Thinking of Dropping a Course?

Are you thinking about dropping a course, but unsure?

There are a lot of factors at play if you are considering whether or not to drop a course. The following information may help:

 

  1. The Library has a Mark Calculator to help you get a more realistic idea of where you are at in a course and what you need on the final exam to attain a final grade your are comfortable with (50%, 60%, etc).

  2. After going through this exercise, it is also important to consider how you did on assessments similar to the final exam format, and whether you are starting to comprehend course content better since that first failed mid-term perhaps.  If you did well on assignments, but not on tests, is the final grade needed on the exam realistic?

  3. Courses dropped by the last day of classes do not appear on your transcript. 

  4. You can retake a failed course. Starting Summer 2026, if you choose to take the failed course again, the highest grade will be calculated into your cumulative average. If the course is part of your major the higher grade will be used for your major average. All courses will remain listed on your transcript.

  5. Starting Summer 2026 you can retake a passed course. The highest grade will be calculated into your cumulative average. If the course is part of your major the higher grade will be used for your major average. All courses will remain listed on your transcript. Repeating courses will depend on space availability. 

  6. If you are concerned about the impact of low or failed grades on a future professional program application, it is best to look more closely into the admission requirements for the schools that offer those programs.  Do they look at a cumulative average, or the last or 10 best credits, or pre-requisite courses and last two full time semesters?  Is a reduced courseload in one semester, with higher grades, going to be a better outcome in the long run than a full 2.5 credit courseload with much lower grades.

  7. How much current time and effort are you designating to this course?  If you opt to try and complete things, will this impact your ability to focus well on your other courses? 

  8. Is this course part of your major?  Students in the BA degree program are required to obtain a major average of 70%. If this course is part of your major, and you do not pass this course or do poorly, this will impact your major average.

  9. You can consider the credit/no credit option for courses you are currently registered in and are not related to your major, minor or area of concentration. Here is a link to the Credit/No Credit option. https://www.uoguelph.ca/registrar/downloads. If you pass the course, you will receive 'CR' on your transcript and the grade will not be calculated into your average. If you fail the course you will receive 'NCR' and your grade will not be calculated in your average.

  10. If you are concerned about reducing your courseload to part-time status and any implications that may have on OSAP funding, etc, please check with Student Financial Services at finaid@uoguelph.ca