Enrollment Requirements
Enrollment Rules
Undergraduate international students are required to enroll in a full course load for the Fall and Spring semesters in order to maintain their U.S. immigration status. A full course load for undergraduate students is defined by immigration rules as 12 credit hours or more per semester. Recipients of UNM scholarships must enroll in 15 new credit hours (no repeated courses) to maintain their scholarship. International students are not required to enroll in courses during the summer session, but may choose to. A full course load for graduate students is defined as 9 credit hours, or 6 credits with an assistantship authorized by the Office of Graduate Studies (OGS). International students are not required to enroll in courses during the summer session, but may choose to.
Undergraduate Students
Graduate Students
All Students
Enrollment Exceptions
International undergraduate students in their final semester of study may be considered full-time with fewer than 12 credit hours as they are allowed to take only what they have left to complete their program requirements. In order to qualify, the student's academic advisor must complete a Certificate of Completion of Formal Course Requirements and the form must be submitted to GEO at the beginning of the semester for which the student will enroll for fewer credit hours than full-time.
Undergraduate Students
Graduate Students
Part Time Excuses
Limited excuses exist for dropping below full-time enrollment as defined below. All excuses must be authorized in advance by an international student advisor in the Global Education Office (GEO). Students who drop below full-time without being authorized are in violation of their immigration status and must be reported to the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) within 21 days of the date they dropped below full-time. The legally permissible part-time excuses and required proof are: A medical excuse may be granted for a maximum aggregate total of 12 months with a written doctor's excuse. Bring a letter documenting the illness and recommending that you take less than full-time written and signed by a licensed physician or psychologist.Academic Excuses
One time only during program of study.
Medical Excuses
Enrollment Requirements During COVID
Immigration rules normally restrict the number of hours of online classes that can be counted toward a student's full-time minimum enrollment requirement. During COVID these rules have been altered to the following: 1) Students who were in the US in student immigration status BEFORE March 10, 2020 may take all online classes through the Spring 2023 semester. 2) Students who began student immigration status in the US AFTER March 9, 2020 must have at least one face-to-face component each semester (cannot study 100% online) through the Spring 2023 semester. It is presumed that normal online restrictions will apply again beginning Fall 2023. These normal restrictions state that only 3 credits of online coursework can count toward a student's full time minimum enrollment requirement for immigration purposes.