COVID-19 Enrollment Updates

Class Withdrawals

• Students must drop a class by the "Avoid a W Deadline" to prevent the inclusion of the class in their permanent transcript. Classes dropped after this deadline will be shown on the transcript.
  
  
• Excused Withdrawals will no longer be automatically issued to students when they withdraw from a class. If students drop (or are dropped by their instructor) after the "Avoid a W Deadline,"  a "W" will be annotated on the transcript. If the student believes the drop was the result of documented extenuating circumstances beyond their control, they may submit a special consideration petition for review.
  
  
• All relevant class-specific deadlines are posted in Corsair Connect (for students) and in mProfessor (for faculty):

• • Refund Deadline: students must drop themselves by the class Refund deadline to receive a refund and to avoid a "W" (Withdrawal) mark on their transcript.

  • Avoid a "W"deadline: last day to withdraw from the class to avoid getting a "W" grade on the transcript 

  • Drop Deadline/Guaranteed W Deadline: last day to withdraw from the class with a guaranteed "W" grade on the transcript--occurs around the 75th percentile of the class.
    
    

• Pass/No Pass Grading Option Deadline (rev. 01/12/22):

  • Starting Spring 2022: The deadline to opt-in for pass/no pass grading will be the last day of instruction for the class. See Corsair Connect for the specific date.  
  • For Winter 2022: Will remain at the 75th percentile of the class given some pending changes to be formally adopted by the California Community Colleges Board of Governors. 

No Pass (NP) Grade Will Not Be Counted in Progress Probation/Disqualification Determination through Fall 2022 (rev. 01/12/22)

• The "No Pass" (NP) grade will be excluded from progress probation and progress disqualification calculation. This provision (per CCCCO Executive Order 2022-02) applies to winter 2022, spring 2022, summer 2022, and fall 2022.

The policies below will remain in effect so long as the emergency exemptions issued by the California Community Colleges Chancellor's Office stand. If the Governor or the Chancellor lift the COVID-19 emergency orders, these exemptions will be terminated immediately--thus not extending into summer or fall 2021.

Pass/No Pass Grading

• The deadline to request Pass/No Pass grading for a class has been extended from the 30% of the class to 75%. This matches the deadline to drop a class with a guaranteed W.
• Students may switch to Pass/No Pass grading on their own through Corsair Connect until the 75% of the class. Students may not make changes to the Pass/No Pass status grading status after the 75% mark of the course.
• While there is a cap of 14 cumulative transferable units to be taken on a Pass/No Pass basis, this provision has been suspended to comply with the Extension of Executive Order 2020-12: Temporary Suspension of Various Specified Grade-Related Regulations Due to the COVID-19 State of Emergency—issued by the California Community Colleges Chancellor's Office on February 4, 2021. However, given the implications for transfer, it has been decided to maintain our 14 unit cap in Corsair Connect, however, we will allow students to petition for additional units through Admissions and Records, but only until the deadline to opt for Pass/No Pass grading for the class. We highly encourage students to seek the advice of a counselor before making a decision to take a class on a P/NP basis, especially if exceeding the 14 unit limitation or the class is required in their major for transfer. While it may sound like a good idea, you cannot anticipate all consequences for taking classes on a Pass/No Pass basis, especially when transfer plans may change down the road or when considering graduate school, thus speaking to a knowledgeable counselor would help make an informed decision.
• The Pass/No Pass Grading Form is available at www.smc.edu/forms.

No Pass (NP) Grade Not Counted in Progress Probation Determination

• The No Pass (NP) grade will be disregarded from progress probation and progress disqualification calculation.
• The NP grade may have a negative impact on Satisfactory Academic Progress (SAP) for Financial Aid purposes. If based on the total number of units a student completes during the term does not meet the required SAP threshold (67% units completed), students may be placed on Financial Aid Warning or Financial Aid Suspension depending on previous term's course completion. If the student is placed on Financial Aid Suspension, they may submit an appeal directly with the Financial Aid Office through Corsair E-docs (accessible at www.smc.edu/cc).
• Any NP grade received by the student will remain on the transcript, however, it will have no effect on student's SMC standing.

Dropping Courses and Transcript Changes

• Courses that are dropped between the day after the refund deadline and the guaranteed W deadline (75% of the course) will be removed from your transcript, along with any grade. Refunds will NOT be given after the refund deadline, however.
  • On Corsair Connect, you will see the deadline listed as the "Drop Deadline" (for brevity) on the "Class Schedule" section. When you go to the "Drop a Class" page, you will see deadline listed in the column labeled "Last Day to Withdraw With a Guaranteed "W" Grade on the Transcript".
• Some students may have applied for transfer, with indication to the other institution that courses are in progress, and for this reason Santa Monica College will keep a record of any course dropped between the above stated period and it will be coded internally as an Excused Withdrawal (EW).
• If a transfer institution makes the request for the dropped course to appear on your transcript, submit an Admissions & Records Special Consideration Petition (available at www.smc.edu/forms) to make the request to reinstate the course to the transcript. Admissions will then place the course back and issue an EW. Once the transcript records the EW, it will not be rescinded.
• Students are encouraged to discuss this with a counselor before reinstating an EW to the transcript.

Policies Back to "Normal"

Effective with the Summer 2020 term, most enrollment-related policies and dates return back to "normal."

• Policies and dates related to Refunds, Class Withdrawals, and issuance of final grades return to normal.

• The Pass/No Pass grading option deadline has been extended for Summer and Fall 2020 through the 75th percentile of the class length, which corresponds to the Drop Deadline for the class. 

• All applicable class deadlines may be found in Corsair Connect. 

Applies to Spring 2020 course enrollment only

(New Option Added June 3)

• Students may request a late or a retroactive withdrawal for full-semester or late start classes by emailing admissions@smc.edu [clicking this link will open an email message where you can complete the requested information].

• The email should include your full name, email, phone number, class and section you wish to drop. You do not need to provide any back-up documentation.

• Courses will be dropped with no penalty; they will not show on your transcript. You will be given either a credit that can be applied toward summer or fall classes, or a refund once the refund process is run again (in August).

• Because spring enrollment is frozen the week before finals begin, Admissions and Records cannot process the late withdrawals immediately. All requests will be processed after all final grades are submitted by instructors (due June 23). 

Should I drop my class?

•  Students are asked to VERY carefully consider if dropping the class is truly in their best interest

• Consider potential consequences, such as:

  • Financial Aid impact (email: financialaid@smc.edu)

  • Reaching your educational goal

  • Transferring (contact a counselor first)

  • Health Insurance

  • Visa status (F-1 students visit www.smc.edu/askiecc)

  • Veteran benefits (email: VetsOutreach@smc.edu)

    and many others

Applies to Spring 2020 course enrollment

(New Option Added June 3)

• Students may request the opportunity to switch to Pass/No Pass grading for any Spring class. Courses completed with A, B, or C would result in a P grade. Courses with a D or F grade would result in a NP grade.
  You must complete the Pass/No Pass Petition and submit by email to admissions@smc.edu [clicking this link will open an email form]. The email should include your full name, email, phone number.
• Because spring enrollment is frozen the week before finals begin, Admissions and Records cannot process the Pass/No Pass petitions. All requests will be processed after all final grades are submitted by instructors (due June 23).

Applies to Spring 2020 course enrollment

• Students who opted to take a class on a Pass/No Pass grading basis in Spring 2020 who earn a No Pass (NP) will be able to repeat the course without that NP counting toward the maximum number of times a student may subsequently repeat the course.
• Effect of NP on transcript: The "Units Enrolled" for the course where the NP was earned will not count toward the "Timely Progress" progress calculation for progress probation or progress disqualification standing. If manually calculating the "Timely Progress" rate, units for the NP class should not be counted. Caveat: this discounting of "Units Enrolled" only applies to courses where the student opted to be graded on a Pass/No Pass basis—not on courses that are natively graded on a Pass/No Pass basis.

Applies to Spring 2020 course enrollment

• Due to suspension of regulations, students impacted by COVID-19 who earned a W, substandard, or a passing grade in a class, may repeat the class at any time in the future—even if the student has earned a C or a B grade. To make it clear, the student must have been enrolled in the class in Spring 2020.
• If the student has maxed out on the number of repetitions for a class and now needs counselor/Dean approval, counselors should select "COVID-19" for the "Override Reason" in the WebISIS Course Repetition Petition program. This will ensure SMC meet auditing requirements and be able to collect apportionment. Counselors must indicate on their counseling notes that the repetition was caused by COVID-19 related issues. There is no need to collect any additional information from the student to back-up their request. The emergency COVID-19 declaration from the Chancellor's Office suffices.
• If a student has completed the class with a passing grade, the student is strongly cautioned not to repeat the class, particularly if the class is transferable or if the student is receiving financial aid, or is a Veteran student using GI Bill benefits. 
  
  • Transfer college/universities and graduate schools will likely disallow the repeated course, even if a higher grade on the repeated course is obtained.
  • Financial Aid regulations will allow a student one opportunity to repeat a course for a more favorable grade.  If a student desires to repeat a course more than once for a higher grade, Financial Aid funding will not be able to cover the costs of that course.  
  • Veteran students are urged to work with the Veteran's Resource Center to ensure a repetition will be funded.

Applies to Spring 2020 course enrollment

• The updated deadline is the "Last Day to Withdraw" (aka "Drop") deadline (75% of the course)
• Deadlines can vary on a class to class basis, check your "Last Day to Withdraw" (aka "Drop") deadlines in Corsair Connect.
• Be aware:
  
  • Qualifying students may choose to be graded for a class on a Pass/No Pass (P/NP) grading basis. A "P" grade will be recorded on the transcript for performance equivalent to "C" or better and a "NP" grade for less than satisfactory performance (D or less).
  • Pass/No Pass cannot be rescinded or reverted to a regular grade.
    Due to the move to remote learning for all SMC classes this Spring 2020 as a result of COVID-19, students may opt to take courses on a P/NP basis even if it exceeds the 14-transferable unit limit.
  • Courses that do not transfer or are already graded on a P/NP basis are excluded from the 14-unit limitation.
  • Students with a bachelor degree may take any number of classes/units of P/NP grading.

Applies to Spring 2020 course enrollment

• Students may drop a course after the "Avoid W Deadline" through the "Guaranteed W Deadline" (aka "drop" deadline) without a "W" penalty. 
  Simply drop the class on Corsair Connect before the "Last Day to Withdraw" (aka "Drop") deadline.
• If you previously petitioned to drop without a W, ensure you dropped your class already, or do so by the deadline.
• Previously dropped spring 2020 classes will automatically qualify and be processed for the removal of a "W".
• Once dropped, neither the course not the "W" will be shown on your transcript. This will be like you never enrolled in the course. 
  Class enrollment refunds will be given. The next refund process is scheduled to run April 29. It normally takes another 2 weeks for the students to get a reimbursement.
• This policy also applies to classes that were dropped by a faculty member for courses that started in Week 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, or 6, and the drop occurred on or after March 4.

Should I drop my class?

• Students are asked to VERY carefully consider if dropping the class is truly in their best interest
• Understandably, tensions and frustrations are high, but do consider potential consequences, such as:
  
  • Financial Aid impact (email: financialaid@smc.edu)
  • Reaching your educational goal
  • Transferring (contact a counselor first)
  • Health Insurance
  • Visa status (F-1 students visit www.smc.edu/askiecc)
  • Veteran benefits (email: VetsOutreach@smc.edu)
    and many others

Applies to Spring 2020 course enrollment

F1 students are also permitted to drop courses without a "W" and get a refund, so long as dropping the class does not place them below 12 units. If the student wishes to drop below 12 units, they must initiate their request through an International Education Center counselor at www.smc.edu/askiecc. The IECC counselor with discuss options and further steps.

Applies to Spring 2020 course enrollment

• When dropping courses on Corsair Connect, students are presented with a notice advising them of various issues to consider before they drop. While we believe that the removal of a class from their transcript (with no W) will ultimately benefit most students, we remain committed to assist any whose circumstances we could not account in a process designed to assist the majority of students. 
• Financial Aid, for example, will use their discretionary authority to assist students in any appeal process—should their financial aid be impacted by the drops.
• Admissions and Records will also allow students to request the course be restored with a W or EW, should a transfer institution demand it be there (not all universities play well even in these times!) because of a pending admission decision, for example.

Applies to Spring 2020 course enrollment

• Students who dropped a course in Spring 2020 that started in Weeks, 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, or 6 will not get a W on the transcript. Instead, the entire class will be removed from the transcript. 
• In the event that a transfer college or university insists the course must remain on the transcript, the student may submit a petition for special consideration to the Admissions Office requesting that the class show an "Excused Withdrawal" (EW) grade instead.