Steps to Apply for an Emergency Leave of Absence (ELOA):
Step 1:
- To apply for an Emergency Leave of Absence, a student will submit their request through the Student Hub here.
Step 2:
- A student should indicate the leave type, their contact information, when they last participated in their class(es), and the effective start date of the leave.
- Please note, We Care will verify official last dates of participation through the instructors. This is important to determine appropriate academic and financial outcomes.
- If approved, the leave will be in effect for the entirety of the term in which the leave was requested.
Step 3:
- “Reason for leave” should be a brief synopsis of what occurred, how it impacted the student, and why they are requesting the leave.
- If the reason for the leave is medical in nature to the student requesting the leave, we will recommend that they apply for a medical leave of absence instead.
- The student does not need to supply any documentation during the application, unless they choose to before speaking with a member of the We Care team.
Step 4:
- The student should indicate the term in which they intend to return.
- Students should plan to return to classes after the emergent situation has come to conclusion. There are no partial leaves. A leave applies to an entire term.
- There is no re-entry process for Emergency Leaves*.
- No documentation needs to be submitted and the student does not need to notify We Care of their intent to return.
- *All F1 and J1 students are required to meet with an Office of Global Services Adviser to discuss their plans for going on and returning from any leave of absence. Failure to do so may result in negative consequences for their Visa status.
- No documentation needs to be submitted and the student does not need to notify We Care of their intent to return.
- Students should be in touch with their academic adviser to ensure they register for courses during their assigned registration period.
Next steps and things to consider after submitting an ELOA:
- After the leave is submitted, a member of the We Care team will review the application and contact the student to arrange a follow-up meeting to discuss the situation and anything else that may be needed to move forward with the process.
- If the Emergency Leave is approved, all necessary documentation will be submitted to the appropriate offices for processing.
- The student will be notified of the outcome and they will be encouraged to consider applying for tuition refund appeal. The appeal form can be found here.
- A student should only submit a tuition refund appeal if the ELOA was approved.
- There is no guarantee an appeal will be granted.
As with any leave of absence, a student should be aware of all implications and will be prompted to “Agree” or “Disagree” when submitting their application.
Please visit the next page to read about the implications of taking an Emergency Leave of Absence.
Important Deadlines to Apply for an Emergency Leave
Emergency Leave Application Process
Implications of Taking an Emergency Leave of Absence
Below are examples of the Acknowledgement Page and Application Page found in the Student Hub.
