Rules Governing Leaves Of Absence And Withdrawal

All requests for withdrawal and leaves of absence must be submitted on the official form and submitted to GMSRegistrar@bu.edu or forwarded to Graduate Medical Sciences,  72 East Concord Street (Room L 310) Boston, MA  02118.

LEAVE OF ABSENCE:   Request for approved leave of absence must be on file in the Records office NO LATER THAN THE THIRD WEEK OF CLASSES IN THE SEMESTER OF THE ANTICIPATED LEAVE.  The following specific procedures govern the approved leave of absence:

(a)   Upon written petition to the Associate Provost for GMS and for appropriate cause, a student is allowed up to a total of two (2) semesters of leaves (or for a total of one (1) academic year) of absence throughout degree completion without the necessity of reapplication and/or readmission. All official leave of absence applications must indicate the effective date of leave and anticipated date of return.

(b)   Leaves of absence beyond two (2) semesters are granted only in exceptional cases, such as a substantiated illness, maternity or paternity leave, or military service. The student should petition to the Associate Provost of GMS with the approval of the program director.

(c)     Leave of absence will not be granted for the semester during which degree requirements are to be completed, or during the preceding semester.

(d)    If all degree requirements are completed, except for incomplete grades obtained in the last semester of coursework, the Continuing Student Fee may be waived for the period allowed to complete incomplete coursework.

(e)     The period of the leave of absence counts as part of the time period within which the student is expected to complete degree requirements.

(f)     Students on an approved leave of absence are expected, by virtue of that leave, to be engaged in no activities related to the completion of degree requirements (i.e., course work, examinations directed study, or research).  Leave of absence shall not affect regulations governing make-up of incomplete courses.

WITHDRAWAL:  Notification of withdrawal from Graduate Medical Sciences should be submitted directly to GMSRegistrar@bu.edu or the office (L310); the office will be responsible for notifying the student’s major department.  All students who have voluntarily withdrawn and all who have been requested to withdraw from the Graduate program will be subject to the following regulations governing reapplication in Graduate Medical Sciences:

a)       A minimum of two years must elapse before readmission.

b)       Re-applications must be accompanied by an application fee.

c)       If readmitted, the student may be asked to retake examinations or demonstrate that he is knowledgeable in current issues in the field of specialization.

d)       Re-admittees will be subject to the rules and regulations set forth in the Academic Policies and Procedures at the time of readmission.

Students who have outstanding financial obligations to the university at the time of withdrawal will be required to meet those obligations as a condition of readmission.

e)       At the time of readmission, the student must provide a detailed schedule of plans for completing the remaining degree requirements within specific time limits.