Course and Programme Approval
Withdrawal of Programmes
The withdrawal of programmes requires approval by the College Board of Studies. Please contact Academic Policy & Governance in the first instance if there are any concerns regarding the appropriate management and resourcing of the final student cohorts in the programme being withdrawn.
Circumstances under which a programme should be withdrawn in PIP:
- A programme must be withdrawn in PIP if it is never going to run again.
- A programme must be withdrawn in PIP if it is not going to run for one or more sessions.
- Programmes withdrawn in the last five years can be reinstated in PIP, as the specifications remain available.
- If the programme was intended for delivery, but there were no applicants/offer holders, the programme does not need to be withdrawn in PIP, so long as delivery is planned to continue in subsequent sessions.
The deadline for the withdrawal of programmes is 31 July in the year preceding delivery (approximately 13 months in advance for September start programmes)
Withdrawing a programme with applicants or enrolled students is not permitted except in exceptional circumstances.
The Programme Withdrawal Consultation guidance has information on what consultations may be required for a programme withdrawal. The Withdrawal Consultation Proforma (August 2026) should be used to record the details of any consultations undertaken and uploaded to PIP.
Exceptionally, programmes may be withdrawn after these deadlines under the below circumstances:
- New legislation or an update to existing legislation which requires changes to a programme that the University is unable to address in time for the next session.
- New requirements or an update to existing requirements by an Accrediting Body which requires changes to a programme that the University is unable to address in time for the next session.
- A key staff member is unavailable (due to e.g. loss, illness or has left the University) with no possibility of identifying a replacement and the programme is therefore now undeliverable.
In any of these circumstances proposers should consult Academic Policy & Governance prior to withdrawal.
Once an approved withdrawal is processed on PIP, External Relations will be notified automatically, although Schools should liaise with External Relations earlier if they are aware of any applicants to the programme.
Information and Publicity
- External Relations will review arrangements for current applicants to facilitate application for places on other programmes, or at other universities.
- External Relations will update their publicity and prospectus information.
- Schools must review their publicity to ensure that the status of the programme is updated in all online information and other documentation.
Schools must also ensure that there is no discriminatory effect of withdrawing a programme. Proposers should consult the University’s Equality Impact Assessment guidance here.
If you wish to withdraw a research programme, approval for this should be sought from the College (via the Graduate School or Higher Degrees Committee) and then Academic Policy & Governance should be informed (apg-academic-regulations@glasgow.ac.uk).