Student Forms & Policies

Address Change

Current students can update their address information in Athena.

Former students can update their address information by completing the Address Change Form and mailing, emailing, or faxing the completed form to the Office of the Registrar, or by sending a letter to the office indicating the change of address information. Letters should include the student's full name, date of birth, and indicate whether the new address replaces the Current, Permanent, or Emergency Contact information.

Please note this will not update a student's diploma mailing address if the student has already applied to graduate. Please see Information Changes for more information.

Send form or letter to:

Mail: Office of the Registrar, Holmes-Hunter Academic Building, Athens, Georgia 30602-6113

Fax: 706-583-0319

Email: reghelp@uga.edu

Course Challenges

Under some circumstances, the University of Georgia allows a student the opportunity to receive resident credit for courses by examination without attending the regular classes.

Please refer to the policy below.

Dean's Certification

Third parties such as employers, law schools, and study abroad programs may require applicants to submit a dean's certification, a form that provides information on academic as well as disciplinary issues students may have encountered as undergraduates. If a third party requires a dean's certification, please take or mail the form to: Office of the Registrar, University of Georgia, Holmes-Hunter Academic Building, Athens, GA 30602.

Once the form has been completed by the Office of the Registrar (degree and enrollment verification/academic standing), the Office of Student Conduct (disciplinary issues), the Office of Instruction (academic integrity issues), and the Equal Opportunity Office (discrimination and harassment issues), the form will be returned to the Office of the Registrar for final processing and mailing. Please note this process may take several weeks to complete.

FERPA Restriction Flag Removal or Addition Request

The Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act (FERPA) is a federal law that protects the privacy of student education records. The law applies to all schools that receive funds under an applicable program of the U.S. Department of Education.

FERPA affords students certain rights with respect to their education records. Specifically, it affords students the right to:

  • Inspect and review their education records
  • Request the amendment of inaccurate or misleading records
  • Consent to disclosure of personally identifiable information contained in their education record
  • File a complaint with the U.S. Department of Education concerning alleged failures of the institution to comply with this law

The University of Georgia strives to fully comply with this law by protecting the privacy of student records and judiciously evaluating requests for release of information from these records. FERPA authorizes the release of directory, or public, information without the student's prior written consent under certain conditions set forth in the act.

Gender Change

Students needing to make changes to their gender as listed on their academic records will need to present the appropriate documentation to the Office of the Registrar.

Students must complete, sign, and submit the Gender Change Form along with one of the following:

  • A valid Georgia driver's license reflecting the new gender.
  • If a Georgia driver's license is not available, a government-issued photo identification reflecting the new gender may be submitted if accompanied by a copy of the court order or physician's letter certifying the gender change.

Students may bring all appropriate documentation in person to the Office of the Registrar, send the documentation via fax to 706-583-0319, or mail to Office of the Registrar, Holmes-Hunter Academic Building, University of Georgia, Athens, Georgia 30602-6113.

Students may email all appropriate documentation to reghelp@uga.edu. Please be aware that emailed forms and documentation must be sent from a UGA email address. Do not include any documentation that includes a SSN if sending by email.

Late Adds

No student will be admitted after the last day of the Add period without special permission. No course may be added to a student's schedule after the Add deadline without the approval of the instructor of the course and the department head/program director.

The student is responsible for obtaining all approvals and presenting the completed Late Add form to the Office of the Registrar. A photo ID should be presented by the student when turning the form in to the Registrar's Office. 

All currently enrolled students who wish to late add a course after the withdrawal deadline for the current term must not only complete the late add form showing the approval of the instructor and department head but must also submit the following:

 

  • A letter from the student explaining the request for a late add;
  • A plan of action from the instructor explaining how the student can complete the course by the end of the term; and
  • A letter from the dean to the Registrar providing an extraordinary justification for supporting the late add. For undergraduate students, the process for obtaining this letter is facilitated by the student's academic advising office. For masters and doctoral students, the letter should be facilitated by the Graduate School. Graduate students should email the Graduate School at gradinfo@uga.edu.
     

All required paperwork should be submitted to the Office of the Registrar. Students may appeal the decision of the Office of the Registrar to the Educational Affairs Committee.

Late Add requests for a term that has officially ended must be approved by the Educational Affairs Committee.

 

Important Information to Remember:

  • Students should review the Academic Calendar for drop/add dates and times for a given term and given course level.
  • If a student has attempted to drop a course during the drop/add period but was unsuccessful in doing so due to a flag or misses the drop deadline and as a result has a course that is not needed, the student should visit the Office of the Registrar immediately during business hours with a photo ID.  If the student is not in the Athens area, he or she can email the Registrar's Office at reghelp@uga.edu. No assistance can be provided to students who do not make contact with the Office of the Registrar within 24 hours of the drop deadline.

Name Change

Current students can update their preferred name in Athena. A preferred name refers to how a student’s name will display in eLC and SAGE.

For changes to a student's name as listed on their academic records, students will need to present the appropriate documentation to the Office of the Registrar.

Students must complete, sign, and submit the Name Change Form along with one of the following:

  • Change of name due to Marriage  requires a copy of a marriage certificate or current Social Security card and a government-issued photo ID reflecting the new name.
  • Change of name due to Legal Change requires a copy of a court order or current Social Security card and a government-issued photo ID reflecting the new name.
  • Change of name due to Divorce  requires a copy of divorce decree or current Social Security card and a government-issued photo ID reflecting the new name.
  • Change of name due to Adoption  requires a copy of court order or current Social Security card and a government-issued photo ID reflecting the new name.
  • Change of name due to Gender Change requires a copy of court order and a government-issued photo ID reflecting the new name. Please note that a separate written and signed request is required for changing gender on an academic record.
  • Change of name due to Spelling Error normally requires only a government-issued photo ID containing the correct spelling. At times, the student's current Social Security card may be required.

Students may bring all appropriate documentation in person to the Office of the Registrar, send the documentation via fax to 706-583-0319, or mail to:  Office of the Registrar, Holmes-Hunter Academic Building, University of Georgia, Athens, Georgia  30602-6113.

Please note this will not update the name on a student's diploma if the student has already applied to graduate. Please see Information Changes for more information.

Name Change forms and documentation will not be accepted via email.

Pass/Fail Option

Students who have officially achieved a Second Year status (Sophomores) and who were classified as fulltime during the preceding academic year and have maintained a cumulative grade point average of 2.00 may enroll in courses taught on a Pass/Fail basis in accordance with these conditions:

  • Pass/Fail courses may be taken as general electives. Courses taken to satisfy core curriculum requirements, courses required for the major and/or minor, area of emphasis, or certificate program, courses that satisfy college-wide or institutional requirements (for example, the Diversity Requirement, the Environmental Literacy Requirement), and other required courses may not be taken as Pass/Fail.
  • During the semester they enroll in a Pass/Fail course, students must also take a minimum of 12 additional hours (6 semester hours during summer semester) of graded A-F course work at UGA.
  • This policy applies only to courses that are normally graded on an A-F basis.
  • No more than three Pass/Fail courses may be counted towards an undergraduate degree. Courses taken on a Pass/Fail basis beyond this limit will earn institutional credit but will not count toward graduation.
  • Once the drop/add period is over for a given semester, a student who has registered for a course on the Pass/Fail option may not for any reason change to A-F grading or vice versa.
  • Students enrolled in a course on a Pass/Fail basis must meet all normal course requirements (for example, attendance, reports, papers, projects, examinations, labs, etc.) and will be graded in the usual way.
  • Pass/Fail courses will not be included in determining the course load required to avoid dismissal (The requirement that students carry a course load of nine credit hours, six in the summer, in courses numbered 1000 or above that are graded A-F exclusively).
  • A student who earns a grade of U in a Pass/Fail course is not eligible for Presidential Scholar or Dean’s List distinctions for the semester in which the grade is assigned and is additionally not eligible to graduate with First Honor Graduate status.
     

Procedures:

  • Students should complete the Pass/Fail Option Request form online, print and sign the form, and then take it to their  academic advisor.  Before submitting the form, students are expected to already be registered for the course in the standard grade mode.
  • If approved, the advisor will submit the form to the Office of the Registrar.
  • Students are still subject to the same prerequisites and requirements for a Pass/Fail course as students enrolled in the course under the standard grading system.
  • If the Pass/Fail Option Request form is approved by an advisor and sent to the Office of the Registrar, the Registrar's Office will assign the student to a new section of the same course with a pass/fail option available to the instructor when grade rolls open.
  • If a student needs to revert to the standard grade mode, the Office of the Registrar must be notified before the end of the drop/add deadline. After the drop/add deadline, students may not change the grade mode and will not receive a letter grade under any circumstances.

Permission to Register for Course Audit

Undergraduate Students: Undergraduate students may audit a course for the current term with the permission of the instructor. In order to be registered for a course as an audit status, students must submit a completed Permission to Register for Audit form to the Office of the Registrar no later than the withdrawal deadline.

Students who wish to change a course registration status to audit after the withdrawal deadline must submit the following to the Office of the Registrar for review no later than the last day of classes:

  • A Permission to Register for Audit form
  • A letter from the student explaining the request to change the course registration to audit
  • A letter from the instructor explaining why the course registration status should be changed to audit and how the student will complete the coursework by the end of the term
  • A letter from the dean to the Registrar providing an extraordinary justification to support the course registration status change to audit. For undergraduate students, the process for obtaining this letter is facilitated by the student's academic advising office.

Graduate Students: Graduate students may audit a course for the current term with the permission of the instructor and the Graduate School. In order to be registered for a course as an audit status, students must complete a Permission to Register for Audit form. Once signed by the instructor, the form must be emailed by the student to the Graduate School at gradinfo@uga.edu for review. If approved, the Graduate School will send the completed, approved form to the Office of the Registrar. This process must be initiated no later than the withdrawal deadline.

Graduate students who wish to change a course registration status to audit after the withdrawal deadline must submit the following for review to the Graduate School no later than the last day of classes:

  • A letter from the student explaining the request to change the course registration to audit
  • A letter from the instructor explaining why the course registration status should be changed to audit and how the student will complete the coursework by the end of the term
  • A Permission to Register for Audit form

If approved by the Graduate School, the Office of the Registrar will process the request.

Audit to Credit: All students requesting a change from audit to credit after drop/add has ended must submit the following for review to the Office of the Registrar no later than the last day of classes:

  • A letter from the student explaining the request to change the course registration to credit
  • A letter from the instructor explaining why the course registration status should be changed to credit and how the student will complete the coursework by the end of the term
  • A letter from the dean to the Registrar providing an extraordinary justification to support the course registration status change to credit. For undergraduate students, the process for obtaining this letter is facilitated by the student's academic advising office. For masters and doctoral students, this letter should be facilitated by the dean of the Graduate School.

Important Information:

  • Please note that tuition and fees for audited classes are the same as those registered for credit.
  • All requests to change a course registration status to/from audit after the term has officially ended must be approved by the Educational Affairs Committee.
  • Audited courses do not count in the computation of full or halftime status for financial aid purposes. Courses must be taken for credit in order to count for financial aid purposes. HOPE does not cover the tuition and fees to audit courses.

Permission to Release Educational Information

Students must provide a signed and dated written consent form before a school official may disclose education records, or non-directory information.

Please note that the Office of the Registrar does not release non-directory information over the phone.

Petition to Reinstate Class Schedule

The Spring 2025 reinstatement deadline is February 7. Students who fail to reinstate their schedules by the deadline will not be allowed to reinstate or earn credit for the term.

If tuition and/or fees are not paid by the deadline listed in the Payments Date section of the calendar, students may be dropped from all classes and require a Petition to Reinstate Class Schedule form to be reinstated.

Students are expected to pay their tuition and fees according to the Bursar’s Office payment deadline schedule. When a student’s schedule is dropped for nonpayment, the student is either expected to either:

  1. No longer attend classes
    or
  2. Make payment in full of any outstanding student account balances and request to have their schedule reinstated.

A reinstatement deadline will be determined for each semester (approximately two weeks from the drop for nonpayment deadline for fall and spring semesters and by the end of the summer semester).

Students requesting reinstatement must obtain and submit the Petition to Reinstate Class Schedule for processing to the Office of the Registrar by the reinstatement deadline.

The schedule must be reinstated as it was prior to being dropped. Partial reinstatements will not be considered.

After the completed form has been submitted, the student will need to pay their  account balance, plus the reinstatement fee, by the deadline.The reinstatement fee for fall and spring semesters is $150 and $100 for summer semester. If an account balance remains after the reinstatement deadline, the entire schedule will be dropped a second time.

Students dropped for nonpayment a second time will not be reinstated for the semester.

Section Change

Section Change forms should be used when a student needs to:

  • Switch to a different section of the same course (ex: moving to a new section of SPAN 2001)
  • Switch to a crosslisted course as outlined in the UGA Bulletin
  • Switch to a different course within a course path (ex: dropping SPAN 2002 for SPAN 2001)
  • Adjust the registered hours on a variable hour course

 

All currently enrolled students who wish to submit a section change form after the term is complete (defined by the day of Commencement) must submit a section change form showing the approval of the instructors and department head as well as the following:

  • a letter from the student stating that they are aware of the change to their registration;
  • a letter from the instructor of the new course explaining the reason for the late change; and
  • a letter from the dean to the Registrar providing an extraordinary justification for supporting the section change. For undergraduate students, the process for obtaining this letter is facilitated by the student's academic advising office. For masters and doctoral students, this letter should be facilitated by the dean of the Graduate School.

All required paperwork should be submitted to the Office of the Registrar. Students may appeal the decision of the Office of the Registrar to the Educational Affairs Committee.

Important Information to Remember:

  • Students should review the Academic Calendar for drop/add dates and times for a given term and given course level.
  • If a student has attempted to drop a course during the drop/add period but was unsuccessful in doing so due to a flag or misses the drop deadline and as a result has a course  that is not needed on their schedule, the student should visit the Office of the Registrar immediately during business hours with a photo ID.  If the student is not in the Athens area, the student can email the Registrar's Office at reghelp@uga.edu. No assistance can be provided to students who do not make contact with the Office of the Registrar within 24 hours of the drop deadline.