CGS Summer 2026 Leave of Absence

These are the forms you should submit, after you’ve explored your academic options with your advisor, and read through the leave of absence implications and important dates information listed on this page. Only submit once you are sure of your decision. You will need your Kerberos login.

Forms will be available for completion starting April 17.  Suggested deadline for completion is May 11, 2026 to ensure full cancellation of summer tuition charges. 

1.) Student Experience Questionnaire

2.) Leave/Withdrawal Official Request Form

3.) Appointment status notification (I am submitting or I am waiving) – BU Kerberos login necessary to view / submit the required form

4.) International students studying on F-1 or J-1 visas must also fill out required information on the ISSOPortal: https://issoportal.bu.edu/_portal/, “Request Center”.  (Unless otherwise directed by your ISSO advisor.)

Once you’ve completed your leave request forms, move on to “Confirming your leave has been updated”

Once you’ve completed the leave request steps above, your leave request can be passed for updating in MyBU.  Allow 2-5 business days to see the leave of absence notation in your records.  (If you have any holds–immunization, financial, advising, or others impacting enrollment/registration–in MyBU, the timeline for updating your records will be extended.  Please resolve all holds promptly so your request can be processed.)

You can view your approved leave of absence or discontinue (permanent withdrawal) status by taking the following steps:

• log into MyBU Student
• select the “My BU Student Dashboard” tile
• from your dashboard view, select “Academics“
• select “View Unofficial Transcript”
• in this view, click the expandable button for “Programs”

In this view, you should see a line with your “Leave of Absence” or “Discontinue” status. When viewing your status, be sure to follow the exact path described above.  (If you click the “Programs” view directly under “Academics” you will see your academic program and expected graduation term information, but not the leave and return to “active in program” dates; those are only available in the “programs” view underneath “View Unofficial Transcript”.)

Notes:

• CGS Summer 2026 leaves and discontinuations–if arranged in advance–will take effect on May 18, 2026, the day before the Summer 2026 term starts.  This date will show in the MyBU screen described above.
• If the leave or discontinuation request is completed on or after May 19–once the summer term is underway–then the completion date will be listed as the start of the summer leave or discontinuation.

The deadline to arrange a leave with a full cancellation/refund of CGS Summer 2026 tuition and fees is Monday, May 11, 2026.  This is a week before the start of the Summer 2026 term.  Be sure to complete all steps early.  See the CGS Summer 2026 tuition cancellation schedule.  

The images below show an example of a confirmed leave of absence for Fall 2024 (return semester Spring 2025), as well as a permanent withdrawal, which is noted as “Discontinue” in MyBU.

Sample views of status screens in MyBU

Leave of Absence Fall 2024 (Spring 2025 return)

Discontinue (permanent withdrawal) for Fall 2024

Once your leave of absence is updated and your account adjustments finalized, take a few moments to review your records and ensure everything is in order.  Resolve any balances due, address any assigned tasks or to-do items in MyBU.

If you are interrupting your studies mid-semester due to a health emergency, once your leave of absence is arranged for medical reasons, email usc@bu.edu for information on requesting an exception to the Summer CGS tuition refund schedule.

For information on return-from-leave/re-enrollment steps, visit www.bu.edu/usc/leaveandwithdrawal/returning.

• Click the expandable section for “Undergraduate Student Return Checklist”
• Work through all steps from top to bottom; the column on the right shares the typical timeframe for each step (timing will depend on whether you are planning to re-enroll for spring, summer, or fall)
  • Check your return from leave information in MyBU
  • Resolve all outstanding holds and to-do items
  • Medical review
  • Arranging housing (on or off campus)
  • Academic advising
  • Compliance
  • Visa status/travel paperwork
  • Class registration
  • Student account payment/settlement
  • Loan deferment/repayment
• If you are a financial aid recipient, carefully read through the Financial Aid chart “Financial Aid Guidance for Students Returning from Leave” (at the bottom of this expandable section)

If you need more time to complete your re-enrollment steps, consider extending your leave of absence duration.  Talk with your academic advisor about how a delayed return might impact your path-to-degree and your expected graduation term (so that any changes can be made before you extend your leave).

The implications of a summer leave can vary.  Are you arranging this at least a month before your program is scheduled to start, or with less advance notice?  What is prompting your leave and when do you expect to resume studies?  Do you have on-campus housing or financial aid that needs to be canceled?  Is a medical concern involved?  Read through the frequently asked questions and answers below, for helpful basics.

Suggested deadline for Summer CGS 2026 leaves (for the London and New England programs) is by May 11, 2026.  Tuition and fees will be adjusted as outlined on the CGS Summer 2026 tuition cancellation schedule.  

Tuition and fees are adjusted based on the timing of your completed leave (or discontinuation) request.

• If you arrange your leave of absence by May 11 (all steps above completed and your request updated/visible in MyBU), your summer tuition and fees will be canceled in full, minus any nonrecoverable costs associated with the London program.
• If you arrange your leave of absence after May 11, your tuition and fees will be adjusted in accordance with the Tuition cancellation schedule for 1st year CGS Summer London / New England programs, Summer 2026.

Financial aid adjustments as part of a summer leave will depend on the types of aid in your award, and the timing of your leave of absence in relation to the start of your summer program.  Use the Financial Aid live chat hours to consult with an expert from the team (www.bu.edu/finaid/contact-us and scroll down for the Live Chat hours and instructions.)

• Summer 2026 leave and discontinuation requests completed in advance of the term (on or before 5/18/2026) will take effect 5/18/2026.
• Summer 2026 leave and discontinuation requests completed on or after 5/19 will take effect as of the request completion date.

You can see your Summer 2026 leave or discontinuation information in MyBU (log into MyBU > “My BU Student Dashboard” tile > “Academics” > select “View Unofficial Transcript” > in this view, click the expandable button for “Programs”).

Remember, tuition and fees will be adjusted based on the leave/discontinuation request completion date; May 11 is the deadline for full cancellation of tuition and fees.

University policy requires that all students who take leaves for medical reasons complete the medical review process with Student Health Services prior to re-enrollment. Information on the medical review process is outlined under the returning from leave options on this site.

• It is not necessary to provide medical documentation at the time of the leave of absence.
• If you arrange a medical leave, you will need to complete the medical review process as part of your return-from-leave/re-enrollment steps.  Medical documentation is required for medical review.  See more details at www.bu.edu/usc/leaveandwithdrawal/returning.
• If you arrange a medical leave and work with usc@bu.edu to request an exception to the tuition refund schedule, medical documentation will be required as part of the exception review process. 

The University establishes semester deadlines for leaves of absence and withdrawals.  The last day to arrange a leave of absence for the CGS London 1 and New England programs is June 8.  The last day to arrange a leave of absence for the London 2 program is July 20.

• If the semester deadline for a leave of absence has passed, and a medical or other emergency arises which will prevent you from finishing your classes, contact your CGS advisor right away to discuss options.
• If you need to arrange a Fall 2026 leave of absence, view the linked information at www.bu.edu/usc

When your leave of absence request is updated, your course registration will be cancelled for the summer semester and your name removed from class lists.  You will not earn any academic credit for the summer program.  Your summer courses will be dropped, with or without W notations, as appropriate depending on the course dates and the timing of your leave request.
If you are arranging a leave of absence for medical reasons, you will need to complete a medical review process / arrange re-enrollment permission before you can resume studies at BU.  This means your fall course enrollment may need to be canceled as well as your summer course enrollment. 

If you are arranging a leave for the London semester:

• After May 11 (London 1) / after June 22 (London 2), in addition to the leave of absence steps above, contact the Student Life team in London to let them know you are arranging a summer leave.  They will let you know if there are any additional steps needed.

If you are arranging a leave for the New England semester:

• By May 11: your on-campus housing assignment will be cancelled and the space reassigned.
• If you’ve already moved into on-campus housing at the time of your leave you may take up to 48 hours to vacate the residence and return keys; see BU Housing’s webpage for more detailed checkout instructions.

For information on requesting on-campus housing for your semester of return, see Planning Your Return From a Leave of Absence.

Allow five business days for tuition/fee adjustments to be reflected in your online invoice once your Summer 2026 leave of absence is showing in MyBU.  Adjustment of financial aid funds may take up to thirty days. We recommend you not request a refund of any payments via your MyBU Student portal until you’ve confirmed  all financial aid adjustments are complete and are reflected in your MyBU online invoice.  

Yes, student and parent educational loans may go into repayment status if the student isn’t enrolled full-time.  Information on payment amounts, grace periods, etc., can be obtained from the lender.  

A student on a leave of absence or in a non-credit certificate or exchange program cannot be paid as a student employee, but can be hired as a temporary employee/staff/faculty through Human Resources.  See the policy “Student Work Hours for Employment at Boston University” for more information. 

During a leave of absence, you will not have access to BU services such as FitRec membership, library borrowing privileges, etc.  If you are resolving an incomplete during your leave of absence and need access to library materials, speak with your advising team. 

Your BU Email and (select components of your) MyBU portal access remain active for each semester you are officially registered for classes or are on an approved leave of absence.  If your records lapse (you don’t enroll and don’t extend your leave of absence), then your BU Email and MyBU portal access may be discontinued.  To avoid discontinuation, ensure you are enrolled for the semester or on an approved leave of absence. 

• If you miss a few days of class due to a medical or other emergency, discuss options with your advisors.  They will let you know if a summer leave of absence is needed or if there are better alternatives to explore.
• If you are arranging an incomplete for one or more classes for the summer term, you can’t arrange a summer leave.  (You can arrange a leave and drop all your summer classes OR you may be able to arrange incompletes for term courses, but you have to choose on or the other– you can’t arrange a leave and incompletes for classes in the same term.)
• If you have already completed a Summer 2026 class with a grade, you are not able to arrange a summer leave of absence.  (If you’ve finished one summer class but can’t finish the remaining courses in your schedule, discuss this with your advisor.  They can help you figure out best next steps, since you can’t be on a leave of absence for a term where you’ve already earned credits.) 

Student Experience Questionnaire

• thank you for taking time to share your feedback with us about your BU experience
• only the first few questions are required; everything else is optional
• if you are skipping response for any optional questions, be sure you navigate all the way to the end of the form and click the submit button — if you don’t submit, your request is incomplete, and can’t be forwarded for processing

Leave/Withdrawal Official Request Form

• read the form instructions thoroughly
• double check your answers before you submit
• make sure the information you submit matches across all your forms (name, UID number, leave type, duration, and reason) — discrepant or missing information will delay processing
• make sure you have discussed the most appropriate return-from-leave semester with your CGS advisor before submitting this form

Appointment status notification (I am submitting or I am waiving)

• if you have submitted all your forms without errors and all the information matches it is fine to waive the offered appointment
• if you realize you made an error on an earlier submission and need that fixed, note you are scheduling an appointment on this form (and schedule it!) so we can meet to review your submissions and make any edits needed before updating the request in MyBU

ISSOPortal: https://issoportal.bu.edu/_portal/, “Request Center”

• International students (those studying on an F-1 or J-1 visa) must also complete required paperwork through the ISSOPortal  (https://issoportal.bu.edu/_portal/) in the “Request Center”.  This will allow the smoothest possible re-enrollment / avoid any issues with your immigration or travel paperwork.  See image below, and email isso@bu.edu for assistance if you have questions about your ISSOPortal request.