Approved leave and permanent break from studies

Approved leave from studies

Approved leave from studies is defined as non participation in education for at least one study block and may be granted for students admitted to a programme at KTH.

Decisions concerning leave from studies are made by the Director of Undergraduate Education and Master´s studies (GA) at the relevant School. Acceptable causes include illness, pregnancy/care of children, military service or other special circumstance.

Approved leave from studies always states a certain period of time. If leave from studies has been approved, the student is always entitled to resume studies at the point in time stated in the decision.

Approved leave from studies is not granted during course year 1 or the technical foundation year. Exceptions may be allowed if there are extraordinary reasons.

When assessing applications for leave from studies, the School considers the reason for application (imperative reasons have priority over others), previous study results plus opportunities to resume studies after the period stated.

The student may take resit exams and participate in examinations during the period of leave for courses that started previously. However if the student wishes to participate in the examination of a new course, a special permit must be obtained from the School.

Who do I turn to?

If you want to take a leave from studies you should contact the study counsellor or the programme coordinator at your School to discuss the prerequisites for leaving from studies. It is very important that the application is submitted to the Dean’s office at the School where you have been admitted.

What do I need to do?

A student’s leave from studies must be reported. Contact the programme coordinator or study counsellor at the programme you have been admitted to. The application should be submitted to the Director of Undergraduate Education and Master´s studies (GA) at the your School.

Permanent break from studies

If a student has been absent without the relevant permission for at least one block, he/she is not automatically entitled to resume studies. A return may be allowed if available resources, places and previous study results allow. This also applies if the student resumes studies at a point in time other than that stated in the approved leave from studies.

If the leave from studies is permanent, i.e. the student is definitely leaving the university this must be reported to the School Secretariat on a special form.

Consequences

Primarily it is important that you discuss your study situation with your programme coordinator or study counsellor in order to find out whether there may be other solutions to your situation than taking a leave from studies. It may be difficult to proceed with your studies after being absent from tuition for a longer period of time. At the same time, taking a leave from studies might in some situations be the only alternative.