Request a Student Academic Leave of Absence 

Tutorial

If you are looking for information on how to place a worker on a leave of absence, refer to the Leaves of Absence for Workers reference guide.

At WashU, a leave of absence (LOA) is a temporary pause from the university where you plan on returning to complete your studies.  

Step-by-Step Instructions

  1. Navigate to your Academics Hub in the apps section of the Workday homepage. 
  2. Navigate to your Suggested Links. 
  3. Click Create Request.  
  4. In Request Type, search for and select Student Time Away.  
  5. Click OK.  
  6. Complete the Student Time Away questionnaire, including the basic contact information. Your answers to these questions will guide the administrative processing, in particular:  
    1. What is your school affiliation?
      • If you’re completing programs of study in multiple schools, select all schools you wish to take a leave from.
    2. What is your reason for requesting time away? Medical leave requests are routed differently, depending on your school.
      • Danforth student medical leaves are routed to WashU Cares.
      • WashU Medicine student medical leave requests are routed to the medical school registrar.
      • DBBS student medical leaves are routed to the Office of the Graduate Studies registrar.
        • For medical leaves, you must upload additional documentation to the WashU Cares website. You must complete both the Workday leave of absence request and the WashU Cares documentation for it to be reviewed by the MLOA committee.
    3. Are you an international student?
      • If you select Yes, the Office of International Students and Scholars (OISS) is notified.  
    4. Do you expect to return from your time away?
      • To request a leave of absence from WashU, select Yes, you are returning to the university, which initiates the leave of absence administrative process.
    5. When are you requesting time away?
      • This date indicates when your status will change and when you will be dropped from classes.
    6. While on a leave of absence, your academic record remains active for two years. After this period, the record becomes inactive, and you must submit an application to re-enter WashU.
  1. Click Submit.  
  2. Your request will be reviewed by the Office of the University Registrar (OUR) and possibly other offices, depending on your answers. You’ll be notified of their decision through Workday.  
  3. If approved, your academic status changes to Leave of Absence and you will be notified. Workday doesn’t automatically notify your instructors, but it will automatically update your course registrations depending on the time of your leave. For example, Workday will drop or withdraw you from current and future courses.  

While you’re on a leave of absence, you can: 

  • Log in to Workday. 
  • Make payments. 
  • Update your student profile. 
  • Request transcripts.  
  • Apply to a program of study via an admission system and if admitted during your time away, the status for the new program will be leave of absence. 

While you’re on a leave of absence, you can’t: 

  • Edit your academic plan.
  • Add, change, or delete a program of study.  

Additional Context

Key Changes
  • The Office of University Registrar (OUR) enters transcript notes for any students who take a leave of absence.  
  • Students who have at least one program of study with a status of matriculated, in progress, leave of absence, or pending completion will have “active” academic records.  
  • Students on a leave of absence display as active, and their leave of absence is noted on their record next to their program of study. 
  • If a student is enrolled in courses at the time of the leave, that student will be automatically dropped/withdrawn from their courses. 
  • Leaves can be immediately effective, retro dated, or future dated. 
  • If a student remains on a leave of absence longer than two years without taking action to return in Workday, the student’s academic record will become inactive and the student will need to submit an application to re-enter WashU. 
Considerations
  • If you take a leave of absence before the last day/date to drop a class, then your previously registered courses are automatically dropped from your record and won‘t appear on your academic record. If your leave of absence begins after the last day/date to drop a class but before the last day to drop with W ends, there will be a W grade on your transcript for those course registrations. After the drop period ends, you can only withdraw from a class.
  • If you request a leave of absence, we strongly recommend contacting Student Financial Services to discuss any financial aid implications.  
  • If you are an international student requesting a leave of absence, the Office of International Students and Scholars (OISS) is notified. OISS may reach out to you regarding any visa implications or other ramifications.  
  • If you’re requesting a medical leave of absence, WashU Cares reviews and approves Danforth campus student requests. If the request is approved, Student Health Center – Danforth Campus will be notified of Danforth student campus requests. 
  • Student Health Services reviews and approves medical campus student requests. 

Related Resources