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The University of New Mexico

Class Absences and Student Attendance

Student Attendance

Please see: UNM Catalog policies on Attendance Scholastic Regulations
Subject to Change Without Notice

Students are expected to attend all meetings of the classes in which they are enrolled. A student with excessive absences may be dropped from a course by the instructor with a grade of W or the student may receive a grade of F at the end of the semester. Absences due to illness, or to authorized University activity such as field trips, athletic trips, etc., are to be reported by the student to his/her instructor(s) and to the Dean of Students Office. If a student is unable to contact his/her instructor(s) the student should leave a message at the instructor's department. The reporting of absences does not relieve the student of responsibility for missed assignments, exams, etc. The student is to take the initiative in arranging with his/her instructor(s) to make up missed work, and it is expected that the faculty member will cooperate with the student in reasonable arrangements in this regard.

Verification (such as doctor's note, hospital billing, military orders, death notices, etc.) of a student's report of absence will be provided on request and in accordance with the following general procedures.

Short-Term Absence (1-4 days). When notified in advance of an absence of 1- 4 days, the Dean of Students Office will prepare an absence notice which the student may pick up and personally deliver to his/her instructor(s). On absences of 1-4 days reported to the Dean of Students Office after the fact, an absence notice may be picked up by the student after consultation with a dean, if such consultation provides a basis for issuing a notice.

Extended Absence (5 days or longer). The Dean of Students Office will send absence notices to instructor(s) on absences of 5 days or longer when notification of the absence is received prior to or at the onset of the absence. If notified after the absence, the absence notice will be prepared, but the student must hand carry the notice to his/her instructor(s). Verification of extended absences is recommended (such as a doctor's note, hospital billing, etc.)

Exceptions. On request, members of the Dean of Students staff will review specific absence situations to determine if exceptions to the established absence procedures are warranted.

It should be noted that written medical excuses for class absence will not be issued routinely by the Student Health Center except in the case of physical education classes, where participation would be detrimental to the student's condition. Where confirmation of a student's attendance at the Health Center is required by a member of the teaching staff, this will be furnished on direct enquiry, without revealing the medical details necessitating such attendance. If it appears that a student will be absent for a week or more, the Dean of Students will be notified.

Absences

General procedures for absences adopted by the Dean of Students
Subject to Change Without Notice

The Dean of Students Office, as a service to faculty and students, will send absence notifications to the respective faculty member should an absence be longer than five (5) days.  This service will only be utilized when an absence is for a family/student medical issue, death of a family member, military leave, or a university sponsored activity.  However, when requested by a faculty member, our office may assist in verifying absences that are five days or less on a case by case basis, should this be requested by a faculty member.  Our office will encourage the student to speak directly with the faculty member to work out absences that are less than six days.  The absence notification process is only meant as a notification and not meant to excuse the absence.  Excusing an absence is entirely up to the respective faculty member of the course.

Absence Notification Process: Upon receipt of a notification of absence by a student, the Dean of Students Office will send an e-mail to the professor on record notifying them of the absence.  The e-mail notification will be sent to the faculty member by the end of the next business day.   All students, regardless of length of absence, will be instructed to inform their professor of the absence.

The Dean of Students Office is located on the second floor of the University Advisement and Enrichment Center, Room 280, (505) 277-3361, http://dos.unm.edu, TTY 277-3359. Email address is doso@unm.edu.

Scholastic Regulations - Attendance

Excerpt from UNM Catalog
Subject to Change Without Notice

Policies regarding student attendance at class meetings are set by each instructor.

Students should not assume that nonattendance results in being dropped from class. It is the student’s responsibility to initiate drops or complete withdrawals utilizing http://registrar.unm.edu/ or LoboWeb http://my.unm.edu/.

A student with excessive absences may be dropped from a course with a grade of W upon recommendation of the instructor. Instructor initiated drops are submitted utilizing LoboWeb.