The new drop fee implemented this semester seems to be effective, according to preliminary data from the Office of the Registrar released at the Undergraduate Council meeting on Wednesday evening.

Of the number of classes students dropped within the first four weeks of this semester, 76 percent were dropped during the first week of classes.

“”The overwhelming majority of drops happened in the first week,”” said Beth Acree, the registrar. “”We certainly hope they were encouraged to drop earlier than usual (because of the fee),”” she said.

Under the new policy, students are charged $25 for each course they drop beginning the second week of classes and continuing until the last day of classes, according to the Office of the Registrar’s Web site.

Exceptions to the fee include section changes, department drops, summer and winter courses, classes with special start and end dates and complete withdrawal from the university.

The new drop fee generated an estimated $134,775 as of Oct. 2. This money, which has been placed in a separate account, will be put toward increasing seat availability, although no specific plans have been made for the money yet.

In addition to the changes in WebReg activity, the lines for schedule changes in the registration office were also reduced from years past,

said Acree.

“”I think students for the most part understood the reasoning behind the new policy — that it was to try to free up seats in classes,”” she said. “”Students seemed to be more stable.””

Both Acree and Dr. George Gehrels, a professor in the geosciences department and Undergraduate Council co-chair, stressed that they will be able to draw more conclusions once they are able to compare the data to that of years past.

“”A critical thing is how it compares to previous semesters,”” Gehrels said.

The Office of Institutional Research and Planning Support is preparing a report for the Undergraduate Council that will compare the WebReg activity from this semester to past semesters. 

Overall, Acree called the findings “”fairly encouraging.””

“”Even without that data, I think we are certain that it was successful and helpful and so we will definitely continue it in the future,”” she said.

As of about one week ago, 59 students had appealed the $25 drop charge. Acree said 44 of these appeals were approved because the students dropped the classes for an approved reason, such as a section change.

Gehrels said the Undergraduate Council will discuss the data with members of the administration and consider if one week is an appropriate amount of time for the deadline.

Gehrels said he hopes the new policy will encourage students to drop classes earlier to avoid the fee.

“”That would help other students tremendously,”” he said.      

The following are some of the most dropped classes from this semester: