REGISTRATION
FACULTY OF GRADUATE STUDIES AND RESEARCH
FACULTY REGULATIONS

1.4.1 REGISTRATION

Students whose applications for admission to graduate study have been approved for full- or part-time study should present themselves to their program advisors prior to registration on the dates recorded in the Calendar of the Academic Year (see 28).

Categories of Registration

The University designates graduate students as full- or part-time:

1) Full-Time Student: A student who is admitted to a program on a full-time basis and who meets the following criteria will be registered as a full-time student:

(a) is geographically available and visits the campus regularly. It is understood that a graduate student may be absent from the University while still under supervision, e.g., visiting libraries, attending a graduate course at another institution, doing field work, etc. If such period of absence exceeds four weeks in any term, written evidence must be made available to the Office of Graduate Studies and Research to the effect that the absence has the approval of the program coordinator and of the Dean of Graduate Studies and Research;
(b) is regularly employed by the University, for not more than an average of ten hours a week. If a student is employed as a teaching assistant or demonstrator, the ten hours a week should represent the total time spent by the student in connection with the appointment, including time spent on preparation, reading, setting assignments, marking examinations, etc.

2) Part-Time Student: Some graduate programs are available on a part-time basis. Students interested in part-time studies should first consult the program coordinator. If a student has not been accepted on a part-time basis at first registration, he or she must petition the Faculty of Graduate Studies and Research for permission to transfer to part-time status for cause. Such petitions will not normally be granted to students meeting criteria (a) and (b) above for full-time students, or students completing thesis or dissertation work. However, petitions based on domestic responsibilities which demand more than ten hours a week will be considered.

Note: Part-time students may not take more than two courses in any term. Registration in any given term for a major paper, thesis, or dissertation is counted as the equivalent of one course.

Graduate Registration Regulations

1) Graduate students must register before the proper deadline or they will not receive credit for academic work they may be doing during the term. Note: Registration is not complete until the appropriate fees have been paid.

2) Full-time students are required to maintain continuous registration through all terms of their graduate program. Failure to do so will require application for readmission to their program and payment for terms missed up to a maximum of three terms.

3) In accordance with the circumstances listed below, a full-time student may apply to the Dean of Graduate Studies and Research for, and may be granted, a leave of absence.

Maternity Leave: Graduate students may request a maternity leave for no more than three consecutive terms without prejudice to their academic standing.

Paternity Leave: In recognition of a father's role, a graduate student may request paternity leave for no more than one term without prejudice to academic standing.

Parental Leave: Parental leave is intended to recognize the need for a pause in studies in order to provide full-time care in the first stages of parenting a child. Either or both parents may request one term of leave. The request for leave must be completed within twelve months of the date of birth or custody.

Financial Leave: In the case of financial necessity, primarily as evidenced by the support awarded through the University, a student shall be granted a leave of no more than one term out of three upon application.
Medical Leave: Graduate students may apply for a leave of absence on medical grounds for up to three terms without prejudice to their academic standing. Students are required to provide documentation to support a medical leave of absence.

Personal Leave: Graduate students may apply for a leave of absence on grounds of serious personal circumstances for up to three terms without prejudice to their academic standing. Examples, though not wholly inclusive, are death in the immediate family, psychological difficulties, and educational opportunities (e.g., B.Ed., LL.B.).

A term is defined as a four-month period coinciding with the academic calendar (January to April; May to August; and September to December).

While on leave, a student may not continue the formal thesis process. This includes regular access to and guidance by faculty members, and the continuation of laboratory experiments and computer research applications.

Apart from the combination of maternity or paternity and parental leave, sequentially combining two leave of absence classifications is allowable only in special and extenuating circumstances.

Applications may be filed at any time and shall be processed within three weeks of receipt by the Faculty of Graduate Studies and Research. A student on leave of absence will be assessed a fee of fifty dollars ($50.00) per term. Appeals against any decisions shall be heard promptly by the Graduate Appeals Committee.

4) Part-time students must register in every session in which the facilities of the University are to be utilized, whether in residence or off-campus. This includes those who are consulting with faculty members while working on a major paper, thesis, or dissertation. Part-time students who have not registered in two consecutive terms will be required to apply for readmission, and their applications will be considered on their merits in the light of the then prevailing conditions and circumstances.

5) Students are reminded that they will not receive credit for courses for which they are not properly registered or for courses completed during terms in which the student has not paid fees.

Once a student has registered, course changes or withdrawal require permission from the Dean of Graduate Studies and Research. Subjects dropped without permission from the Dean will be regarded as failures.

Non-Degree Registration: A student who is not interested in admission as a degree student may be allowed to register for individual courses on a non-degree basis. The normal maximum of courses taken overall on this basis is two. Only students who have been admitted to a graduate program may receive graduate credit at the University of Windsor for courses taken.

Audit Student: An audit student in any course is one who attends the course without credit toward a degree or program. Such a student will not be allowed to write examinations and cannot be graded in any way. The student will normally pay the regular fees for the course(s).