Policy Statement
Regular, punctual attendance is expected of students in all courses at Augusta University (“AU”) and is counted at the first class meeting each term. Faculty members are required to monitor student attendance and ongoing participation in the course. Additional attendance requirements may be established by the individual schools or programs as well as by the individual faculty member in each course. Students who incur an excessive number of absences, as defined by the faculty member and/or college, may be subject to academic penalty.
At the beginning of each semester, all faculty members will provide a clear written statement in their syllabi for each of their courses regarding policies for handling absences. Students are obligated to adhere to the requirements of each course and each course faculty.
To assist AU in complying with federal regulations pertaining to financial aid, faculty members are also required to maintain a record of and report student non-attendance at the start of each academic term. The Office of the Registrar is responsible for informing faculty of the duration of the nonattendance verification period and appropriate reporting method at the beginning of each academic term. If a student does not attend a class or participate in an online course during the non-attendance verification period, the faculty member will mark the student as not attending and the University Registrar will drop the student from the course. In the event a student is dropped for non-attendance during this designated time period, the effect is the same as if the student never registered for the course and it will not appear on the student’s transcript.
Faculty members will be flexible enough in their attendance and grading policies to allow students a reasonable number of absences without penalty for extraordinary personal reasons or for officially representing the university. Students are expected to adhere to the attendance guidelines within the syllabus. No student should assume that the faculty member has initiated a withdrawal form. A student not withdrawn from a course who stops attending class, or who never attends class, is subject to receiving a grade of “WF“ or “F” for the course.
Students involved in required activities representing Augusta University are excused from class meetings that conflict with specified events. These include, but are not limited to, athletic events for student-athletes, required academic or artistic events or competitions, or required student government activities. Other potential events as defined by the Deans of the colleges could be considered excused absences from classes when traveling. These absences shall not count against the student’s attendance record.
Students participating in university-sanctioned events must present to all their course instructors a schedule of events highlighting conflicting dates the first week of the semester or as soon as known. Students are responsible for all coursework missed because of the event and will be given the opportunity to complete those assignments without penalty, when feasible, in a timely manner as negotiated between the faculty member and student.
Some exceptions to this policy may exist (e.g. programs for which accreditation requirements limit the number of absences). A student who is withdrawn for excessive absences may appeal the decision in accordance with the Student Academic Grievance Policy.
Affected stakeholders
All entities and persons within the Enterprise that are affected by this policy:
Faculty, Graduate Students, Health Professional Students, Undergraduate Students
Policy Owner
Office of Academic and Faculty Affairs
Definitions
Course: Any educational offering, regardless of location and/or delivery method, listed on the Schedule of Classes for an academic term that has enrollment.
Process & procedures
Not applicable.
References & supporting documents
Not applicable.
Related policies
Not applicable.
Approved by
President, Augusta University and CEO, AU Health System Date: January 3, 2018
Last Revision: November 16, 2017 Last Review: January 3, 2018