Enrollment

Enrollment Definition

Enrollment is defined as consisting of three major components:

Application: Students provide information requested by the University for purposes of establishing and administering academic and financial relationships that exist between the University and its students.

Registration: Students register for a course(s) and provides information needed to assess fees and tuition.

Payment of Fees: Students must pay all assessed tuition and other special fees and satisfy all due and/or delinquent amounts payable to the University.

Students who withdraw will be considered no longer enrolled at the time of withdrawal.

Certification of Enrollment

The University of West Florida reports enrollment status based on the definitions listed below. Information on enrollment is reported through the National Student Clearinghouse (NSC) and is available for the semester beginning the first week of classes.

  • Students participating in internships are not automatically considered full-time for the semester of their internship. The number of hours for an internship is based upon the credit hours granted for the internship.
  • Non-degree students' enrollment status is reported based on the level of the non-degree program.
  • Students enrolled in a dissertation, thesis, or cooperative education are considered full time regardless of the hours enrolled.  
  • Students who withdraw are not considered enrolled in the course once the withdrawal has been processed, and enrollment status will be adjusted as of that time.
  • Students receiving Financial Aid should confirm requirements for financial aid eligibility.

Undergraduate Students

Status Fall/Spring Summer
Full time 12 SH or more 12 SH or more
Three-Quarter time 9-11 SH 9-11 SH
Half time 6-8 SH 6-8 SH
Less than half time 0-5 SH 0-5 SH
  • Undergraduate Student-Veterans receiving V.A. Educational Benefits enrolled in a (non-standard) part of term will have their training time determined by the Veteran Affairs Administration.

Graduate Students

Status Fall/Spring Summer
Full-Time 6 SH or more 6 SH or more
Three-Quarter time - -
Half-Time 3-5 SH 3-5 SH
Less than Half-Time 0-2 SH 0-2 SH
  • Graduate Student-Veterans receiving V.A. Educational Benefits enrolled in a (non-standard) part of term will have their training time reported according to the length of a session as defined by the Veteran Affairs Administration.

Continuous Enrollment

Continuous enrollment is defined as enrollment in the University without a non-enrollment period of three or more consecutive semesters (summer semester included). Credits earned at other institutions during any semester, while not registered at UWF, will not constitute continuous enrollment at UWF.

Classification of Students

The classification of a degree-seeking student is based upon the number of semester hours earned.

The classifications for Undergraduate Students are as follows:

Year Hours
Freshman 0-29 semester hours
Sophomore 30-59 semester hours
Junior 60-89 semester hours
Senior 90 semester hours or more including a minimum of 20 semester hours of course work at the 3000/4000 level
Non-Degree Student A student who currently is not a candidate for a degree

The classifications for Graduate Students are as follows:

Classification Definition
Masters A student admitted to a master's program and completing work at the master's level.
Specialist A student admitted to a specialist program and completing work at the specialist level.
Doctoral A student admitted to the doctoral program and completing work at the doctoral level.
Non-Degree Student A student who currently is not a candidate for a degree or diploma.

Non-Degree Seeking Status

The non-degree classification is used only by those students who will not be working toward a degree at UWF. For information regarding the Non-Degree application, please refer to our Non-Degree Admission requirements. Students wishing to attend as non-degree seeking and are not classified as a Dual Enrollment student must be 18 years or older or have a high school diploma or its equivalent. Students who do not meet this requirement and are attending a high school that does not participate in Dual Enrollment will be required to meet Dual Enrollment requirements in order to enroll as a Non-Degree seeking student. These students will be considered on a case-by-case basis. Non-degree students are expected to have the appropriate academic background to complete college-level coursework. The non-degree student registration period is subject to the dates listed on the academic calendar – see the Academic Calendar for specific dates.

Coursework completed as a non-degree student will be included in the undergraduate UWF GPA, as determined by the level of the course. If a non-degree student becomes admitted as degree-seeking, all non-degree courses will be included in both the student's GPA and degree audit (where applicable). However, departments do have the option to exclude non-degree courses from a student's degree audit.

To be considered for degree-seeking status, students must contact the Office of Undergraduate Admissions, complete the required application, and submit supporting documents. Once a student is offered admission as an undergraduate degree-seeking student, a change to non-degree status is not permitted until the baccalaureate degree is earned.

Non-degree students are subject to the student policies stated in the catalog and Student Handbook and Planner. Non-degree students should review the Student Educational Records section of this catalog to understand privacy information. International students in F-1 status should consult with the Director of the International Affairs Office regarding enrollment as a non-degree student.

All Pensacola campus students are required to purchase a Nautilus Card. Parking a vehicle on campus requires a parking permit which may be purchased online through Parking Services. Compliance with the immunization policy is required prior to registration.

Upper Division Status

The following criteria must be completed to achieve upper-division status: admission to the University, 60 semester hours of academic credits, declaration of a major, General Education requirements, College-Level Communication and Computation requirements, and the foreign language requirement.

Developmental Education Courses

Entering freshmen who have scored below the State of Florida’s determined minimums on the ACT, SAT, or CLT exams, the Post-secondary Education Readiness Test (PERT), or Accuplacer are required to take developmental education courses at a state or community college in the appropriate areas before they may register at UWF for courses in those areas. Students must complete developmental education courses prior to or during their first 12 semester hours. Students scoring below the following minimums will be required to take developmental education courses:

Florida Postsecondary Education Readiness Test (PERT)

Test Score
Reading 106
Writing 103
Mathematics 114

Next-Generation ACCUPLACER (through July 2022)

Test Score
Quantitative Reasoning, Algebra, and Statistics (QAS) 242
Reading 245
Writing 245

Next-Generation ACCUPLACER (since August 2022)

Test Score
Quantitative Reasoning, Algebra, and Statistics (QAS) 261
Reading 256
Writing 253

SAT or Digital SAT (March 1, 2016, and thereafter)

Test Score
Reading and Writing 490
Mathematics 480

ACT

Test Score
Reading 19
English 17
Mathematics 19

CLT

Test Score
Sum of the Verbal Reasoning and Grammar/Writing Sections 38
Quantitative Reasoning Section 16

Developmental education courses carry no college credit and do not count toward the 120 semester hours required for graduation. The Office of Undergraduate Admissions must be provided proof of a student’s successful completion of a developmental education course before the student can continue enrollment beyond 12 semester hours at UWF.

*BOG 6.008