The Board of Governors’ plan to shorten the drop period at UNC-system schools is one that needs to be reconsidered. The proposal, which would restrict the official drop period to 10 days, will still give students the opportunity to drop a class later in the semester, but only after presenting them with a “withdrawal” on their transcript.
The drop adjustment is a one-size fits all policy that doesn’t necessarily consider the harmful effects on schools like UNC. By reducing the deadline, young academics will be less inclined to sign up for challenging classes or classes outside their major or area of interest.
UNC students should work with faculty and administrators, as well as student government, to push for a change in this plan. It would be an effective way to promote education among students about what this plan entails. This would hopefully lead to public student disapproval and a campaign to reverse the policy. Most UNC administrators and faculty members are already in disagreement with the policy.
Once UNC-Chapel Hill administrators, students and faculty members are on the same page, they will need to work with leaders from other UNC-System schools. Around half of the UNC-system campuses already have a 10-day drop policy. Because of this, these schools probably won’t have a strong opinion towards the BOG’s standardizing proposal. So UNC-Chapel Hill must convince these other schools to join in a fight they might not see a direct benefit from.
There is no apparent reason to make any adjustments to the drop period. Students should be able to explore various fields of study that they might find interesting. By shortening this drop period the BOG is effectively discouraging students from stepping out of their comfort zone and challenging themselves.
