Separation: Withdrawal or Leave of Absence

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A Leave of Absence, or separation from the Veterinary School, is a period of non-enrollment marked by loss of student status. 

Types of Leaves of Absence are defined as follows: 

• Voluntary: personal or medical 
• Involuntary: see “Involuntary Leave of Absence” below for definition
• Mandated: the University or the Veterinary School dictates student to take a leave due to misconduct or academic reasons
• Withdrawal (voluntary or mandated): student permanently leaves the program, cannot return unless they reapply and are accepted back into the veterinary school. 

Voluntary Leave of Absence

All Leaves of Absence – The following applies to all types of leaves of absence

A Leave of Absence must be requested in writing through the Office for Students (OFS) and approved by the Assistant Dean of Students and Admissions and the Chair of the Committee on the Academic Status of Students (CASS). The letter should include the reason(s) for requesting a leave and specify the duration of the requested leave.  The maximum leave of absence for any reason is one year in length. A student may petition for an extension of up to one consecutive additional year.  This request must be made in writing at least 60 days before one year is complete and must be approved by CASS.

These restrictions do not include time spent in the military.

It is the responsibility of the student to remain in communication with the Assistant Dean of Students and Admissions while on leave.

If the leave is extended past 1 year, the veterinary school through CASS may impose special academic requirements to address any knowledge loss during the leave as well as clinical safety issues.

Students requesting a leave of absence must be in good academic standing with no outstanding failures and not in danger of failing a core course. Good Academic Standing is defined as follows: GPA of 2.0, no current failures, not on academic probation, and no misconduct notation on their transcript. Students requesting a leave of absence with outstanding failures or with core course failure warning letters must appeal to CASS for approval. 

Students requesting a leave of absence must immediately resign any leadership position in School student government or School or national student organizations.  

Students granted or required to take a leave of absence are not permitted to take veterinary school core or elective courses, participate in independent study or research projects for credit, or accrue any other academic credit toward graduation requirements during the leave.

Because students on leave of absence have a non-enrollment status, they therefore may not participate in any student organizations, receive the Ryan or NBC Clinical Student discount, or have access to any University services (for example, parking passes, library systems).

Students on leave may not participate in any school-sponsored patient care activities in the inpatient setting, outpatient setting, or in the community. 

Once the leave of absence is approved and takes effect, the student’s PennCard will be deactivated, and access to University services and facilities will be restricted – including, but not limited to, University student services, School student services, and the Library system.

Students on leave of absence holding the Penn Student Insurance Plan may be eligible for health insurance continuation.  Students must contact the Student Health Insurance Office directly regarding continuation, coverage, and billing.

Once the request is approved, students will receive a confirmation letter outlining the terms of the leave and any conditions that must be met prior to making a request to return.

Personal

Students on non-medical or non-mandatory leaves of absence may work in the School as long as student status is not required, and with the understanding that the activity will not fulfill any VMD degree requirements.  

Medical

A medical leave is granted to enable a student the appropriate amount of time to become fit to return to school full-time.  If the separation is for medical purposes, supporting documentation must be submitted from a health care provider to Student Health Services, CAPS, or both indicating that a leave of absence is suggested for the well-being of the student.

While on a Medical leave, students cannot pursue a degree at any institution, be employed full-time, start a business or any other new enterprise. 

Students on medical or academic leave may not work at the School.  

In the case of a medical leave, access to Student Health Services (SHS) and Counseling and Psychological Services (CAPS) would be granted by those services on a case-by-case basis. 

Students on medical leave may request an extension after one year with the stipulation that current documentation of the student’s condition warrants continuation of the leave and is submitted by their health care provider to SHS, CAPS, or both at least 60 days before the end of their leave period.

Involuntary Leave of Absence

The University of Pennsylvania may place a student on an involuntary leave of absence or require conditions for continued attendance under the following circumstances when the student exhibits behavior resulting from a psychological, psychiatric, or other medical condition that:

• Threatens, harms, or has the potential to harm the health or safety of the student or others
• Causes or threatens to cause significant property damage
• Significantly disrupts the educational and other activities of the University community
  
  The process is initiated by a request sent from the Associate Dean of Education and/or the Assistant Dean of Students and Admissions to the Office of the Vice Provost for University Life.  For more information on an Involuntary Leave of Absence, please refer to the University Involuntary Leave of Absence Policy.  

All Leaves of Absence

Tuition and Fees

A student who is granted a leave of absence from the School of Veterinary Medicine during either term of the academic year may be eligible for a reduction in tuition and fees in accordance with the conditions set forth below.  The effective date of separation from the University is the date that the student files a written request for withdrawal or leave of absence.

A student who is required to withdraw because of a violation of University or School regulations shall receive no tuition refund.

International students should contact the University’s Office of International Student and Scholar Services to determine what, if any impact a leave of absence will have regarding their legal status.  

Gaps – Third Year Elective Curriculum and Clinical Year Students

A short-term break (gap) may be requested when a student needs to miss 2 to 8 weeks of elective course work in the Spring term of the third year and in the clinical year.   Gaps are not an option for students in their core curriculum.  Schedule adjustments, which exceed 8 weeks, must be considered as leaves of absence.  A request for a gap must be approved by the Assistant Dean of Students and Admissions. The student must communicate with the Assistant Dean of Students and Admissions at the beginning of the gap and, again, when he/she wishes to resume course work. Students must also remain in communication with the Assistant Dean of Students and Admissions while away from school.

In the case of illness, a student must provide documentation from a treating physician at the beginning of the gap and, again, at the time when he/she would like to resume coursework/clinics. 

Return from Leave of Absence

Failure to return from leave after one year can lead to permanent withdrawal. It is the responsibility of the student to inform the Office for Students in writing of the intent to return from leave. Students returning to the fall semester must notify the Assistant Dean of Students and Admissions of the intent to return no later than February 1; students returning to the spring semester must notify the Assistant Dean of Students and Admissions of the intent to return no later than July 1.  Students who do not meet the deadline will be permanently withdrawn from School.  Students who are returning into clinical rotations must give the OFS at least 90 days notice of their intent to return.  In the case of a medical leave, any clearance needed from SHS or CAPS must be completed and reported to OFS from either/both of these services 60 days prior to return. Students who do not meet these deadlines will be permanently withdrawn from School.  

Students who remain on leave longer than 24 months and who do not respond to the School’s attempts to contact them will be withdrawn from active status and will be permanently withdrawn from the V.M.D. program. 

Students who have holds on their record must have these holds cleared before their return can be approved. Holds may be placed by Student Health Service, the Office of Student Conduct, and Student Financial Services, among other offices, and students are responsible for contacting the respective offices directly. 

Students who were not in good academic standing at the time of the leave of absence request will return to the same academic standing status they held (for example, probation) when they left. 

For those students requesting to return from a medical leave, the student must submit necessary documentation to be granted a return from either Student Health Services (SHS) or Counseling and Psychological Services (CAPS) 60 days prior to the return date. Return From Leave Forms are found at the following links: 

• CAPS
• SHS: Return from leave form

Re-Entry into the Veterinary Program – All Separations

Curricular Changes:  Significant curricular changes may impact a student taking a leave of absence and affect graduation requirements.  Students returning from a leave of absence may be held to new course work/clinical competency requirements.  Current requirements will be reviewed upon the student’s return to the Veterinary program by the Committee on the Academic Status of Students (CASS) and may require a revised plan of study. 

For Clinical Re-entry:  A student’s re-entry will be subject to compliance with certain academic conditions. These academic conditions will be determined by the Committee on the Academic Status of Students and are intended to support student’s transition back to veterinary school and to enable student to succeed in their clinical training. These requirements could include being required to repeat certain core or elective courses, including those involving clinical skills (i.e. VSUR602).  CASS reserves the right to require students to repeat an entire academic year (or more) of core and/or elective courses. 

Separation Policy

(Effective August 31, 2021)

Mandated withdraw or mandated leave of absence (for any reason): zero return of tuition and fees regardless of time of withdrawal or leave

Voluntary withdraw or leave of absence (e.g., family emergency, illness):

• Formal request (via letter or email) is received by OFS within the first two weeks of class: 100% refund of tuition and fees.
• Formal request (via letter or email) is received by OFS within the third and fourth week of class: 50% refund of tuition and fees.
• Thereafter: zero refund of tuition and fees. 

Financial Aid Implications for Students Granted a Leave of Absence

Return of Federal Student Aid (Title IV) Funds Policy

If students receiving federal aid find it necessary to separate (leave of absence; withdrawal- voluntary or mandated) from all classes during a semester, they should consult with the Director of Scholarships and Financial Aid in order to have a clear understanding of the financial consequences of separation.

Any separation from the school may impact the student’s eligibility for federal loan aid.  This includes students who need to remediate course work or who have not made academic progress.  Determination of eligibility for federal loans will be made by the University of Pennsylvania Loan Office.

The Return of Title IV Funds (Federal Student Aid) policy is separate from the Tuition Refund policy.

Determining Aid Earned

Students receiving federal student aid should be aware that U.S. Department of Education regulations govern the refund and repayment of federal student aid when a student withdraws before completion of the semester for which federal student aid has been received.

Federal Regulations require the University to calculate a return of federal student aid funds for students who withdraw (officially or unofficially) from all classes on or before the 60 percent attendance point in the semester and for students who withdraw from any module-based courses.

If the student officially withdraws, the determination date is the date the University of Pennsylvania determines the student began the withdrawal process. If the student does not provide official notification of his/her intent to withdraw, the determination date will be determined by the University of Pennsylvania Administration. For official withdrawal, the University of Pennsylvania uses the date the student provided official notification to withdraw as the withdrawal date; for unofficial withdrawals, the last date of academically related activity as given by a professor may be used as the withdrawal date.

The calculation required determines a student’s earned and unearned Title IV aid based on the percentage of the enrollment period completed by the student. The percentage of the academic period (e.g. semester) that the student remained enrolled is derived by dividing the number of days the student attended by the number of days in the academic period. Academic period is counted in Calendar days (including weekends); however, breaks of at least five days are excluded from both the numerator and denominator.

Until a student has passed the 60 percent point of an enrollment period, only a portion of the student’s aid has been earned. A student who remains enrolled beyond the 60 percent point is considered to have earned all awarded federal student aid for the enrollment period.

The unearned portion of federal student aid funds will be returned to the appropriate aid program(s). The funds are returned in the following order:

• Federal Direct Unsubsidized Loan
• Federal Graduate PLUS Loan
• Other Title IV program aid

Earned aid is not related in any way to institutional charges. In addition, the University’s refund policy and return of Title IV funds procedures are independent of one another. A student who withdraws from a course may be required to return unearned aid and may still owe the University for that course.

Students who stop attending all classes without officially withdrawing will be subject to a return of federal student aid funds at the end of the semester based on the last documented date of attendance as determined by the University of Pennsylvania.

The responsibility to repay unearned Title IV aid is shared by the University and the student. For example, the calculation may require the University of Pennsylvania to return a portion of federal student aid funds to the federal Title IV programs. In addition, the student may also be required to return funds based on the federal calculation. A student returns funds to the Federal Direct Loan program based on the terms and conditions of the promissory note of the loan.

The student should understand that when Title IV funds are returned, any school charges that were previously paid by federal student aid funds might become a debt that the student would be responsible for paying. The student may also be responsible for returning any refund s/he received as a result of federal funds.