The last day to add or drop classes has passed, but that won't stop students from altering their class schedules.
Catherine Brown, junior nursing major at the University of Memphis, dropped a prerequisite course for nursing without knowing that she would have another opportunity to take it in the near future.
According to Brown, re-adding the course was not an option because the late fee that is required to pay after the deadline was too much for just one course.
"Because of that one mistake, I will have to take a couple of nursing classes over the summer in order to finish my courses on time," Brown said.
The last day to add courses before a $100 late fee is added was Jan. 15.
According to Donisha Crumb, employee at ITS service desk, the reason late fees for adding classes is so much is because the student is interfering with the school's tuition deadline. Therefore, the $100 late fee acts as 25 percent taken away from tuition paid for their classes.
While dropped classes do not count against a student's grade point average, the hours for the course count toward scholarships like the Hope Scholarship.
Not every academic department at the U of M has the same regulations as far as adding and dropping classes.
Dropping a class in some departments can complicate graduation plans.
"The nursing program is a lock-step program and is similar to others in that there are certain prerequisite courses that are required for every major, so dropping certain nursing classes could delay a student's progression," Leslie McKeon, assistant dean for Student Affairs in nursing, said. "For example, if a nursing student were to drop 'Common Alterations in Health,' they would not be eligible to advance to the complex course for the major."
The engineering department follows the same curriculum.
"The engineering department is very vertical in their nature," Deborah Hochstein, associate dean of engineering, said. "Just like other departments, there are prerequisite chains that students have to follow and it is possible that if they drop one of the classes that they will delay their graduation by a semester, if not by a whole school year."
Students can still add or drop classes from Jan. 16 to Jan. 22, but the $100 late fee will apply to those who add classes after Jan. 15.
