City College is refocusing its efforts to try and reduce withdrawal rates for the upcoming semester.

Withdrawals are when a student drops a class before the deadline that requires a teacher to give them a grade.

While this works out well for the student that drops, most of these students are unaware of the negative aspect this has on not only their own education, but their peer’s educations as well. Many students who find themselves overwhelmed end up taking a “W” on their transcript, as opposed to failing the class.

Academic Senate President Kimberly Monda is one of the members of the administration trying to figure out ways to bring these rates down.

“When students withdraw they can start to fall behind, they need more counseling, and they have to redo their educational plan,” Monda said. “But we are also spending a seat and a resource on someone who is not benefiting.”

This is one of the major reasons the state has put a limit of three attempts on classes. When a student drops the class, their spot in the class stays empty when someone else who needed the class could have been there.

“It’s a loss for other students,” said Monda. “If we could help students see it’s a problem for them, it would also help the institution.”

Every teacher is different even if the course is the same. Some require a lot of written assignments, some focus mostly on reading and tests, and some try to find a balance of the two.

Student Trustee Nicholas Steil would like to see teachers put up a syllabus online, allowing students to get a better idea of the courses they are taking before having to commit to a spot.

“Its like a contract,” said Steil. “You know what you’re getting into.”

With a set syllabus, students that are better at taking tests can try to take exam heavy classes while students that are better writers can focus on classes with more essays.

Over the last seven fall semesters, the college estimates that 6,400 seats are left empty by students who withdrew from a class, about 11 percent of enrollment.

“Every semester I have a student that needs a seat who doesn’t get it,” said Monda. “Especially in English 110 and 120.”

Students impacted the most by the issue are those who rely on financial aid. Senior Director of Institutional Research Robert Else explained that if a student drops a course after a few weeks, they are responsible for paying back a portion of the aid received.

“In some cases, their registration for subsequent semesters is blocked, and transcripts must be held back,” said Else.

Despite the lack of clear solutions, City College remains focused on finding a way to make an impact on the withdrawal rates and overall student success.