Withdrawal: Disciplinary Suspension

Policy

If you violate University expectations as outlined in The Duke Community Standard in Practice: A Guide for Undergraduates, you may be subject to suspension (an involuntary withdrawal or dismissal from the University for a specified number of semesters), or permanent expulsion.

 

Procedure

If you are found responsible for a conduct violation that leads to a suspension from the University, the Office of Student Conduct will notify you, your Academic Dean and the Time Away Office of that decision. The Time Away Office will process your involuntary time away you from Duke and notify your advisor, instructors, and all appropriate departments. The withdrawal will be entered on your student record.

The effective date of your suspension is normally the date that the Time Away Office is officially notified by the Office of Student Conduct. If you are found responsible for an infraction leading to suspension and where the appeal process is completed after fall or spring break, you will ordinarily be permitted to finish the current semester and receive grades in your courses. In such cases, the effective date of withdrawal from the University will be the end of the semester after final exams are completed. If you are dismissed before fall or spring break, you will receive W grades in all of your courses and tuition will be refunded in accordance with the University's tuition refund policy. If a conduct violation occurs in one semester but the matter is not resolved before the start of the next semester, your suspension will take effect immediately upon final resolution of the case, and your course work in the new semester will be deleted from your record and you will receive a full tuition refund but will be responsible for room, board, and other fees on a pro-rated basis. Note: if you appeal a decision of the Undergraduate Conduct Board, you remain a student in good standing while the decision is reviewed by the Appellate Board. If the Appellate Board upholds the suspension, the decision is final. If the Appellate Board returns the case to the Office of Student Conduct for further action, your status as a student will not change while the disciplinary process continues.

Once the period of suspension is complete, you may submit your return request through the Time Away Office. However, students who are suspended twice for disciplinary reasons are eligible to apply for return no sooner than five years after the date of the second withdrawal. If you are dismissed for both academic and disciplinary reasons, the semesters of withdrawal will normally run successively.  Only under extraordinary circumstances will administration permit the terms of dismissal and suspension to run concurrently. You are not eligible for transfer credit from another university during the period of your suspension. If you are permanently expelled, no return to Duke is possible.

General questions about a dismissal should be directed to the Time Away Office. Questions specifically about your disciplinary suspension should be directed the Office of Student Conduct.   Questions about financial obligations should be directed to the Bursar's Office. If you are withdrawn and have student loans, you must be in touch with the Student Loan Office to complete a Student Loan Exit Interview and to receive information on how to manage any loan payments that may become due while you are not enrolled. For information on returning from a suspension, see the Time Away Office.

Note: If you have been suspended from Duke, you are no longer an active student, are not eligible for the benefits afforded to active Duke undergraduates.

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