With midterms over, students have the option to drop classes they aren’t doing well in. The final drop date for students is Friday, Oct. 26.

Students dropping by this date will be able to receive a “W” for the class and have it not affect their GPA.

While some students might be able to drop two or even three courses if they choose, other students can’t afford that luxury.

Dropping a class also lessens your hours for that semester. It can also lengthen or change your expected graduation date, making it take longer to graduate than before.

“Students should be allowed to drop if the load of school and work becomes too heavy,” said Carrie  Lin Hattaway, a senior elementary education major.

Also, the minimum for full-time students is 12 credit hours. If a student is currently taking only 12 hours and has a scholarship requiring them to be a full time student, it can be a problem. Dropping the class could result in  probation or a loss of the scholarship.

“It can be harmful just because it might put you back with graduating if you don’t go ahead and get it out of the way,” said Hattaway.

Despite the negatives dropping a class can bring, sometimes it may be the only solution with regards to a student’s GPA. If the student is afraid the class will inevitably lower their GPA, dropping the class is sometimes the best option compared to struggling to earn a C.

“I dropped a class freshman year because I tried to take 18 hours and it was just too much,” said Holly Hendrix, a senior speech-language pathology major.

A student’s GPA is crucial, especially if they are planning on grad school in the future. Dropping a class or classes can help balance and even raise that student’s GPA if they wish to do so.

To drop a class, students can log-on to ULM’s Banner website under campus systems. Next, log into access your information and click on the student tab and then click on registration to drop a class. Once you have registered to drop the class, it may take up to 24 hours to fully unroll you from the course. Freshmen have a different process to drop a class.

“I don’t think getting into the habit of dropping classes is a smart thing to do. Dropping classes should be done with good reason,” said Hendrix.