Enrollment
Registration
Students must register for all courses for which they wish to earn graduate credit. The UAB class schedule is accessible via BlazerNET located at http://www.uab.edu/blazernet. The class schedule lists the courses offered each semester and provides full details on prerequisites, registration dates, and procedures. Students are able to register for courses as well as adjust their schedule by adding and dropping courses through the end of the drop/add period which is denoted on the academic calendar.
To be enrolled as a full-time graduate student, a student must register for at least 9 semester hours in the fall, spring, and summer semesters. To be classified as a half-time graduate student, they must register for at least 5 semester credit hours in the fall, spring, and summer semesters. Degree-seeking students who wish to receive financial aid must be enrolled at least half-time.
Certain funding sources (e.g., training grants, individual grants, and fellowships) may have additional enrollment requirements that must also be satisfied. In addition, student loan recipients must satisfy certain minimal enrollment requirements to defer repayment. Students should consult with their funding source or the Financial Aid Office to determine these requirements as they apply to their specific situation.
Auditing Graduate Courses
Graduate students who have been formally admitted as either a non-degree or degree-seeking student may audit courses available for graduate credit with the permission of the instructor and payment of appropriate fees. Courses taken for audit credit are not counted toward the hours required for full-time status, are not counted as earned hours, are not assigned a letter grade, and do not impact a student’s GPA. Provided the instructor’s requirements are met, the course will appear on the transcript with the notation AU.
The Permission to Audit Graduate Level Coursework form, which can be obtained online at www.uab.edu/graduate/online-forms, should be submitted to the Graduate School for approval prior to registration.
Withdrawal from Courses
Graduate students are expected to complete courses for which they have registered unless unusual and unforeseen circumstances require withdrawal. The procedures for withdrawal are specified on BlazerNET. Mere cessation of class attendance does not constitute withdrawal, either academically or for tuition purposes. Students who wish to withdraw from a class or classes after the drop/add period must proceed with the withdrawal in BlazerNET no later than the last day to withdraw for the semester, which is denoted on the Academic Calendar at, www.uab.edu/students/academics/academic-calendar. If a student follows the appropriate procedures to withdraw in BlazerNET, a grade of “W” will be entered on the transcript. Withdrawal from a course after the withdrawal deadline requires an academic appeal, which can be obtained online at www.uab.edu/graduate/online-forms, and documentation of extenuating circumstances.
Leave of Academic Absence
A graduate student experiencing extenuating circumstances may request a leave of academic absence for up to one (1) academic year. The Request for Leave of Academic Absence form can be found at the Graduate School Web site at www.uab.edu/graduate/online-forms and requires approval by the student's graduate program director and the Graduate School. Leave of Absences are term-based and students’ records will only be updated with a leave of absence status in a term in which they were not registered. If a student is receiving funding and fails to meet the requirements of their assistantship, their stipend can be ended at any time throughout the semester.
Course Numbering System
The scholastic level of UAB courses is indicated by the century number. Courses numbered 500 and above are graduate and post-baccalaureate courses. Courses numbered 500-599 are available to upper-level undergraduate and beginning graduate students. Courses numbered 600 and above are available only to graduate students. Those numbered 600-699 are intended primarily for students at the master’s level, with 698 reserved for non-thesis research and 699 reserved for thesis research. Courses numbered 700-799 are primarily for students at the doctoral level, except in the School of Education where the numbers from 700-729 are reserved for courses leading to the degree of Educational Specialist (Ed.S.). The number 798 is reserved for non-dissertation research and 799 for dissertation research. Seminars, practica, individual studies and projects, internships, and residencies will generally carry numbers in the upper range of these centuries.
Undergraduates Seeking Enrollment
The Graduate School allows undergraduate students who are not enrolled in a graduate program the opportunity to take graduate coursework for either undergraduate credit or graduate credit. They are required to fill the Undergraduate Student Enrollment in Graduate Level Coursework form that indicates how they would like the credit to be counted. Undergraduate students not enrolled in a graduate program can take graduate courses, but it is at the graduate program’s discretion whether or not the course can fulfill requirements retroactively. The Graduate School will not allow the graduate course to count towards both graduate and undergraduate requirements if the student is not enrolled in an ABM.
Withdrawal from the UAB Graduate School
Students who wish to withdraw from the University of Alabama at Birmingham must submit a written request to the Graduate School expressing their intent to withdraw.