Registration Policies

i. Introduction

The Office of the Registrar serves students, faculty, staff, and alumni through course scheduling and registration, degree audits and graduation certifications, academic record keeping and reporting, enforcing FERPA compliance requirements, and coordinating academic warning and final grading processes. This office can assist on matters concerning registration, add, drop, and withdrawal procedures, course substitutions, immunization requirements, transcripts, and enrollment verification requests. Change of address, e-mail, and/or telephone number should be reported to the Office of the Registrar immediately.

Course registration for each semester occurs at dates announced during the prior semester (see Academic Calendar). All degree students must register for courses in advance during these dates, unless a significant issue prevents them from doing so. In that case, students should discuss the problem with their advisor, program director, chair, or the director of academic advising during the scheduled period of advising and registration and notify their department in writing. Later changes to advanced course registration are not penalized up to the add/drop deadlines during the semester in question, but initial advanced registration is important.

Because course cancellations due to low enrollment are determined 2-7 days in advance, students must register for all courses they intend to take no less than seven days before the first class, in order to ensure the maximum number of course offerings for all students. The same deadline ensures that priority is given to degree and certificate students before others are admitted.

ii. Registration

Students are responsible for registering properly and meeting tuition deadlines. Students should confirm their enrollment on CORCboard. Students unable to access their CORCboard accounts should contact the Office of the Registrar at registrar@corcoran.org. Incomplete registration forms will not be processed, and students may be held responsible for any academic or financial consequences that may result. Incomplete information includes, but is not limited to, Social Security or student ID numbers, student signature, advisor signature, incomplete course information, and missing course prerequisites or department approval. Students must also clear all outstanding bills and financial obligations, including library fees, and overdue books prior to registration. While it may only occur rarely, the Corcoran reserves the right to make adjustments to a student’s schedule for administrative purposes to ensure that students have the best possible access to courses needed to fulfill degree requirements.

iii. Schedule Adjustment

After initial registration, students need to file Add/Drop/Withdrawal form to make any schedule changes, including adding, dropping, or withdrawing from classes, changing class sections, and/or changing credit status within a class. Add/Drop/Withdrawal forms are available online at www.corcoran.edu, the Office of the Registrar, and at the Georgetown campus. These forms must be complete, signed by the appropriate advisor(s), and submitted to the Office of the Registrar. In the event that their primary advisor is unavailable, students may consult the chair or program head of their department, the director of academic advising, or the dean of students.

Students can add classes during the first two calendar weeks following the first day of classes. Course additions made after that two-week period require written permission from the dean of students, dean of enrollment, or the director of academic advising, and are only allowed under extraordinary circumstances. Students who report that they attended classes but were not on the official class roster after the last day to add will not receive retroactive credits. The last day to drop classes without a refund is five calendar weeks after the first day of classes. All classes for which a student is enrolled following the last day to drop will remain part of the student’s permanent academic record.

The last day to withdraw from classes with a grade of W is 10 calendar weeks after the first day of classes. A grade of W is not calculated into the student’s GPA, and students may re-enroll in withdrawn courses during a different semester. Retroactive withdrawals following the withdrawal deadline require written permission from the dean of students, dean of enrollment, or the director of academic advising and are only allowed under extraordinary circumstances.

After the withdrawal deadline, an F will be assigned for non-attendance. In order to avoid this notation, students who have extenuating circumstances which will require absences or missing assignments may wish to consider requesting an Incomplete (see Incomplete policy section for more information).

iv. Repeating Courses

Undergraduate elective studio courses and academic special topics courses (in which the content rotates from semester to semester) may be repeated once for credit. Other academic courses may not be repeated for credit. Graduate students need permission from their chairs or program director in order to earn repeat credit for use graduate studio electives. Repeated courses (ie. any course, directed study, or internship that has the same course code) are applied to the student’s plan upon receipt of a completed course substitution form by the Office of the Registrar.  All grades earned from repeated courses factor into students’ GPAs.

v. Auditing Courses

Undergraduate Policies

Full-time degree students who wish to audit a credit course may do so as long as their academic load, including the credit hours the auditing course normally carries, does not exceed the maximum full-time load of 18 credits. Bachelor’s students exceeding this credit limit must pay for each credit that exceeds 18 credits. Students may audit only one course per semester. Audited courses do not satisfy any degree requirements, financial aid requirements, or minimum enrollment requirements for F-1 status.

Graduate Policies

Under certain conditions and with approval, graduates students may register to audit courses. In addition to the $250 audit fee, students are responsible for any lab fees associated with a course.

Auditing requires the approval of the student’s chair or program director, as well as the chair or program director of the department offering the course, if different. All audits are on a space-available basis, according to priorities set by the College. Audit requests are considered on a case-by-case basis and in the event multiple audit requests are made by one individual, that individual will get priority status for one audit course per semester. It is the policy of the College that the number of students enrolled in the course for credit will be greater than the number of auditors and that the learning needs of “for credit” students will take precedence.

Audits have no bearing on completion of degree requirements. The option to audit applies to classroom and studio courses, but not to situations such as field experience, internship, study abroad, or study away courses. Auditors should register during the normal registration period, and before the start of the class. To appear on a student’s transcript as an audit, auditing students must follow the same attendance rules that apply to students taking the class for credit.

The instructor will establish the class expectations where students registered for credit study side by side with auditors. For example, auditors may be expected to do assignments, or not; to participate in critique of student work, or not; or to participate actively in discussions or interactive activities or not.

vi. Directed Studies

This option is appropriate for degree students who want access to independent faculty supervision, lab areas, and supplies for independent projects, and do not need or desire extensive course instruction. This option is justified only if (1) the project content cannot be covered in an existing course, (2) the student’s department deems it of substantive value to the student’s educational goals and interests, and (3) the project work will be done outside of regularly scheduled class time.

All directed studies are for credit (one to three credits). Students cannot take more than three credits of directed studies per semester, and graduate students may enroll in up to 6 credits of directed studies total. Students enrolled in directed studies will have access to the facilities and equipment at times arranged by the instructor. To enroll, students must submit a Directed Studies Contract that is available at the Office of the Registrar and obtain written permission from the instructor and the chair or program director of the student’s department and when different, the course department. The directed studies instructor will be responsible for working with the student to establish project goals, oversee progress, and determine final course grades. Bachelor’s Foundation students and Continuing Education students are not eligible for directed studies.

GRST6910 MAT/Art Education Graduate Studio Capstone is a special registration option, and therefore can be taken in addition to the maximum allowable directed studies credits noted above.

vii. Course Substitution

Course substitutions are available to students who need to either take a class outside of the Corcoran College of Art + Design to make up a requirement or to take a substitute course within the College in place of a requirement. In all cases, approval is needed from the student’s academic advisor and the chair or program director, or the dean of students, or the director of academic advising and the signed course substitution form must be recorded with the Office of the Registrar before the student may take the substitute class. Course substitution approvals are revoked if the student does not complete the approved coursework within the specified semester.

If a class is taken at another institution (outside of the Consortium of Universities of the Washington Metropolitan Area) the student must make arrangements with the visited institution to have an official transcript mailed directly to the Office of the Registrar immediately after the coursework is completed and graded. Credits cannot be evaluated for transfer until an official transcript is received. A satisfactory grade must be earned for a course to be accepted for transfer credit (B or better for graduate students and C or better for undergraduate students). Graduate students may transfer only graduate level courses. See section on Transfer Credit Evaluation for additional details.

If the substitute course is taken at another participating Consortium institution, a separate cross-registration process is required. See the section regarding the Consortium for a list of participating institutions, eligibility requirements, policies, and registration procedure.

Permission to take a course elsewhere will not be approved for a course that the student has attempted at the Corcoran and earned an unsatisfactory grade. Because graduate courses are generally specialized, students should not assume that courses at another institution will cover the same material as at the Corcoran, even when descriptions are similar.

viii. Transfer Credit Evaluation

Transfer credit evaluations for courses taken prior to matriculation, including work completed at the Corcoran, are completed by the Office of Admissions and are approved by the chair or program director when required. Students can petition to change the evaluations through the director of academic advising only during their first two semesters enrolled at the Corcoran, but should first contact their chair or program director for assistance.

Undergraduate

For associate’s students, a maximum of 30 credits of transfer coursework can be considered towards degree requirements. Bachelors students, who are following academic plans prior to 2009-2010 may transfer up to 78 credits (72 credits for students following 2009-2010 academic plans and beyond) from prior coursework completed at other institutions or from other programs within the Corcoran. Of those credits, undergraduate students may not transfer more than nine from outside the Corcoran after matriculated, unless authorized by the chair or program head, and the dean of students or director of academic advising.

Graduate

For graduate students, a maximum of nine credits of transfer coursework can be considered towards degree requirements. Of these nine potential transfer credits, no more than six credits can be taken after Corcoran matriculation unless authorized by the chair or program director and the director of academic advising or the dean of students. In addition, all minimum residency requirements must be met (see section on graduation requirements for more information).

IX. CONCURRENT ENROLLMENT IN MULTIPLE PROGRAMS/MAJORS

Other than the BFA/MAT 5-year joint degree program, the Corcoran does not offer the option to enroll concurrently in more than one program (e.g. degree and Continuing Education certificate), or to double major within a degree program.

x. Leave of Absence and Withdrawal Policies

Leave of Absence

At the discretion of the College, a student is permitted to take one Leave of Absence (LOA) for up to one academic year (i.e., two consecutive semesters) provided that he/she will be making no academic progress during that semester. The year of LOA must be continuous and cannot be separated by other semesters of academic activity.  There is no fee for LOA.

A student cannot take a LOA if he/she has any Incompletes or ungraded work pending, and a student cannot transfer in any credits completed elsewhere while on leave (i.e., the student cannot take a LOA to take a course elsewhere with plans to transfer in the credits).

During a LOA the student is not entitled to use the services of the college and will not have access to the library or other campus resources or activities.

To request a LOA, the student must submit a Leave of Absence form (obtainable from the Office of the Registrar, director of academic advising, or the dean of students) that indicates the semester(s) for which leave is requested and a brief explanation for the leave request. A student on LOA for one semester can add a second consecutive semester of leave by submitting a written request for an extension of leave to the dean of students, dean of enrollment, or director of academic advising.                                               

Medical Leave

In addition to standard LOAs, a student can request leave for a medical condition that will prevent him/her from making academic progress. Medical documentation may be required to process request for Medical Leave, and Medical Leave is not limited to two semesters in the way a standard LOA is, nor do semesters of Medical Leave need to be consecutive.

Military Leave

Active military personnel can receive Military Leave if they are being deployed or otherwise have their studies interrupted by their military service commitment.

For more information about leave for medical or military reasons, please contact the dean of students, dean of enrollment, or director of academic advising.

Official Withdrawal

Students who wish to withdraw voluntarily, through official withdrawal, from the Corcoran College of Art + Design’s degree program must do the following:

1. Schedule an appointment with the dean of students, the dean of enrollment, or the director of academic advising for an initial discussion and receipt of the Corcoran withdrawal checklist.
2. Meet with the director of financial aid to determine how a withdrawal will affect their financial aid eligibility and/or payment status, and to complete a financial aid exit interview.
3. Meet with the student accounts manager to settle all due Corcoran payments and other financial matters.
4. Meet with Library staff to ensure that all library items are returned and overdue fees and/or replacement fees are paid.
5. Submit the signed withdrawal checklist for final approval to the dean of students or the dean of enrollment for review during exit interview.

Withdrawal will not be official until all above requirements are met. Students who stop attending classes before their withdrawal is official will receive an F in all classes, and will be subject to administrative withdrawal and/or academic dismissal. Students should refer to the drop and withdrawal refund schedule to determine any owed charges, fees, or housing charges upon withdrawal. Withdrawn students will lose access to academic or administrative facilities or services. These include, but are not limited to, studio and classroom space, computer labs, library, and parking.

Financial Withdrawal

Students who have not fulfilled their financial obligations to the Corcoran College of Art + Design for the current and/or previous semesters are subject to registration cancellation and administrative withdrawal.

Medical Withdrawal

Students who are unable to attend class regularly or fulfill course requirements for health reasons are subject to administrative withdrawal, and must notify the dean of students or the director of academic advising.

Non-Enrollment Withdrawal

Students who have not enrolled for three semesters and who have not officially withdrawn from the College are subject to administrative withdrawal. Application for readmission is required for consideration for future degree enrollment for any type of withdrawal.

Return of Title IV Funds

If a recipient of Title IV funds (federal aid) withdraws before the end of a semester, federal regulations require that the Corcoran calculate the amount of Title IV funds “earned” by the student. The Corcoran uses a pro-rata schedule, whereby the percentage of earned aid is based upon the days the student was scheduled to attend (minus any scheduled breaks) up to the date of withdrawal. Any and all unearned portions of Title IV federal aid must be returned to the respective Title IV programs. These unearned funds are referred to as overpayments. The maximum grant overpayment that must be repaid is 50% of the grant funds that were received or that were scheduled to be received. Students may make repayment arrangements with the Corcoran or contact the Department of Education. If you have any questions about your Title IV funds, you may call the Federal Student Aid Information Center at (800) 433-3243.

EXAMPLE: If a student completes 10% of the semester, then 10% of that student’s federal aid is considered earned, while 90% is considered unearned and is thus returned to the respective Title IV programs from which the funds originated. However, be advised that as soon as 60% of a semester has been completed, there are no federal funds that are considered unearned.

The Title IV programs covered by these regulations at the Corcoran are to be refunded in the following order:

     Federal Subsidized Stafford Loan
     Federal Unsubsidized Stafford Loan
     Federal Perkins Loan
     Federal PLUS/Graduate Plus Loan
     Federal Pell Grant
     Federal Academic Grant
     Federal SEOG
     Iraq Afghanistan Service Grant

In accordance with federal regulations, the responsibility for repaying unearned aid may be shared by the Corcoran and the student in proportion to the aid each is assumed to possess. The Corcoran’s share is the lesser of: (a) the total amount of unearned aid or (b) Institutional charges multiplied by the percentage of aid that was unearned. The student’s share is the difference between the total unearned amount and the Institution’s share. In the case of scenario (a), whereby the Corcoran’s share is the total amount of unearned aid, then the student would not owe anything.

REFUNDS: If any of the earned funds were not received by a student at the time of the withdrawal, he/she may be due a post-withdrawal disbursement. In this case, students may choose to decline some or all of the loan funds in order to avoid incurring additional debt.

NOTE: The Corcoran’s refund policy is separate from the Title IV refund policy. Students should contact the Office of Student Accounts if federal funds were returned or credited to cover tuition costs; students should also contact the Office of Student Accounts to pay any uncovered institutional charges. Students may also be required to repay other federal, state or private student financial aid programs based on the terms and conditions associated with those programs.