A withdrawal (a W on your transcript) stays out of your GPA at the schools checked for this guide. Financial aid offices track the share of attempted credits you complete, and a withdrawn course counts as attempted and not completed.
What a W does to your GPA
At the University of Arizona, a W appears on the permanent record and does not affect the grade point average. Old Dominion University states that a W is not computed into a student's GPA. The University of Maryland, Baltimore County says the same and adds a warning that a W does count against the percentage of courses you complete.
Compare a W with the grades you might get instead. Take a 3.00 over 45 credits and a 3-credit course.
| Outcome in the course | Your GPA afterward |
|---|---|
| Withdraw (W) | 3.00 |
| Finish with a D | 2.88 |
| Finish with an F | 2.81 |
The W leaves the average where it was. Deadlines matter. At Arizona, the second withdrawal deadline is normally a student's last chance to drop a course, so check your registrar's calendar.
What a W does to financial aid
Financial aid offices track satisfactory academic progress. Part of that is pace, the percentage of attempted credits you complete. The three schools below set different numbers.
| School | Pace requirement | How a W counts |
|---|---|---|
| University of Arizona | Complete at least 2/3 (67 percent) of cumulative attempted units by the end of each term. | Withdrawn units count as attempted but not completed. |
| University of Maryland, College Park | Undergraduates with more than 30 credits must complete at least 75 percent of the credits they have attempted. | Attempted credits include withdrawn credits. |
| UMBC | 50 percent at 0 to 29 attempted credits, 60 percent at 30 to 59, and 67 percent at 60 or more. | A W does not affect GPA but counts against your completed percentage. |
The requirement depends on your school, and it can rise as you take more credits.
A worked example
Suppose you have attempted 60 credits and completed 42. That is 70 percent. At a school that requires 67 percent, you have a three-point cushion. Next term you enroll in 15 credits.
| What happens this term | Attempted | Completed | Pace |
|---|---|---|---|
| Finish all 15 credits | 75 | 57 | 76.0 percent |
| Withdraw from 6 credits, finish 9 | 75 | 51 | 68.0 percent |
| Withdraw from 9 credits, finish 6 | 75 | 48 | 64.0 percent |
Withdrawing from 6 credits leaves you just above a 67 percent floor, and withdrawing from 9 puts you below it. At a school with a 75 percent standard, like Maryland's for undergraduates past 30 credits, even the 68.0 percent result would fall short. Your GPA in all three cases stays where it was, so a student can look healthy on a transcript and still fall short of the aid standard.
What happens when you fall below the standard depends on the school. Ask the financial aid office what a warning or an appeal would look like for you before you decide.
Before you withdraw
- Ask the financial aid office first. Give them the credits you have attempted and completed and the credits you plan to drop. They can tell you your pace before and after.
- Compare the alternative. An F lowers your GPA, as the first table shows. A W protects your GPA and can cost pace. Which is worse depends on the requirements at your school.
- Check the deadline. The registrar's calendar lists the last day to withdraw.
To see what a grade would do to your average, use the semester GPA calculator or the cumulative GPA calculator. The guide to raising your GPA in one semester shows how much one term can change.
Sources
Checked 24 September 2026. Policies vary and change, so confirm with your own registrar and financial aid office.