Petition for Modification or Waiver of Regulation

The regulations governing the graduate school are approved by the Executive Board of the graduate school and appear in the Rackham Academic Policies. All Graduate school policies have been formulated by the Executive Board with one objective: the pursuit of academic quality. This goal requires that the polices be equitably and uniformly applied to everyone. However, the graduate school does recognize the infrequent occurrence of extenuating circumstances that warrant individual consideration. Rackham graduate students may petition the graduate school for a waiver of any Rackham policy.

To do so, you should submit the Petition for Modification or Waiver of Regulation. State in writing all facts that have a bearing on the case you wish to present. In all instances, the request must be reviewed and approved by your program graduate chair(s), whose email you will enter when submitting the petition. You may also upload supporting PDF documentation as appropriate.

To request an extension of time to degree, submit the petition along with the email addresses of your advisor and program graduate chair with supporting information. Supporting information must include:

• a new deadline (month/year) along with an explanation of why the extension is needed.
• a timeline with approximate dates detailing when you plan to complete each step of your degree—coursework, preliminary exams, research, analysis, writing, defending, and finishing, as appropriate.
• a memo from the program graduate chair supporting this request and stating that the degree will still be “state-of-the-art.”
• a memo from the student’s advisor supporting the request and providing further details (if available) regarding the request.

Please note that submission of petition does not guarantee approval. The student and the department/program will be informed of the final action.

Submit a Petition for Modification or Waiver of Regulation

Registration Adjustment Request

Current term adds and drops are initiated by the student on Wolverine Access. Other changes to a course or registration are handled directly with the Registrar’s Office. International students should consult with the International Center before dropping courses as this may affect their immigration status.

To retroactively add, drop, or modify a course, the Registration Adjustment Form must be completely filled out and signed by the instructor(s) and program graduation chair(s). Note that a completed Election Worksheet (signed by the instructor and the graduate chair) must be attached. No changes to a course are allowed after a grade has been assigned.

Please note that submission of request does not guarantee approval. The student and the department/program will be informed of the final action.

This is only a portion of the information on petitions and policies that is available on the Rackham website.