Psychology Department
Reinstatement/Leave of Absence
Reinstatement
If a graduate student breaks continuous enrollment, he or she will no longer be a matriculated student at CSULB and loses program rights as set by his or her Advancement to Candidacy. The University requires students that have broken continuous enrollment to reapply to CSULB, using the university application and paying the associated fee (deadlines: Fall semester - July 1st, Spring semester - December 1st), after obtaining permission from their department.
The MSIO, MAR and MSHF programs require the student to petition the appropriate program committee for readmittance back into the master's program, and reinstatement to his or her program coursework as set by the student's Advancement to Candidacy where appropriate. The petition should include an explanation as to why there was a break in continuous enrollment, why it is no longer a hindrance (i.e., how the situation has changed) and a statement as to when the student plans to complete his or her program (including thesis) and expected semester of graduation. The student's position in regards to thesis progress should also be addressed (the name of your chair should be the minimum provided -- if you don't have at least a thesis chair, you are not ready to request readmittance). The petition is to be submitted to the student's program committee via the Graduate Advisor.
If the student's coursework is considered too outdated by the committee, he or she may be instructed to reapply to the appropriate master's program, thereby competing with other applicants. All required paperwork for the department application must be submitted/resubmitted, including valid GRE scores (most GRE scores are valid for a maximum of five years).
If the student's program committee rules in favor of the student being readmitted to his or her master's program and reinstatement to his or her program coursework (where Advancement to Candidacy had occurred), the Graduate Advisor will send a formal memo, via the College office, to the Enrollment Services office, requesting reinstatement of the student's program coursework. The College office requires that the student's expected date of graduation be listed, as well as where the student is in regards to completion of coursework (and acknowledgment of revalidation needs where appropriate) and thesis progress.
Leave of Absence AKA Educational Leave
If you are planning to skip one or two consecutive semesters, you should file for an Educational Leave from the Enrollment Services office. An Educational Leave Form should be filed during the semester before the leave is effective; this form must be signed by the Graduate Advisor. Please note: If you have enrolled in GS 700 during a prior semester, you are no longer eligible to take an Educational Leave.
The Enrollment Services office now has the
Educational Leave form on-line so that you may print it out, complete it
(you need to get my signature), and submit it to that office:
http://www.csulb.edu/depts/enrollment/assets/pdf/ed_leave.pdf
Additional information regarding university Educational Leave, copied from the Enrollment Services web pages (www.csulb.edu/depts/enrollment/registration/details.html), appears below:
To maintain continuous enrollment at CSULB, you must attend at least one class every Fall and Spring semester after you are admitted to CSULB, unless you are on an approved educational leave.
If you do not attend a Fall and Spring semester without taking an approved educational leave, you will not be able to register for the next semester, will have to re-apply to CSULB, and may be subject to the requirements of the Catalog dated the year you re-apply.
If you are subsequently placed on academic disqualification, the
University will revoke the approval of your educational leave. For
more information, refer to the
University Catalog.
Updated 5/20/09