Class Attendance
Purpose of Class Attendance and Participation
Class attendance and participation is an academic commitment assumed by every student enrolled at Gallaudet University. As a bilingual university, Gallaudet’s courses are designed to optimize student-instructor interaction for language access. Class attendance and participation are linked to bilingual robustness and academic success. This policy outlines details related to first-week verification, forfeiture of credit, and excused absences. Any policies established by the University regarding class attendance and participation override school or instructor policy. For additional information about withdrawals on the condition of lack of class attendance and participation, please refer to Administrative Withdrawal (provide hyperlink) policy.
First Week Verification
Students are required to attend the first week of classes for the purpose of verification of enrollment. Students who are registered for class and do not attend the first week of scheduled classes or make a documented effort to communicate with the course instructor will be dropped from the course by the instructor.
Forfeiture of Credit
To earn academic credits, students are expected to adhere to class attendance and participation policies at 75% threshold through face to face, online, and/or hybrid courses as outlined in the course syllabi and communicated explicitly by the instructor. Faculty and/or programs have the right to establish their own attendance policies specific to their disciplines, including requirements for student-instructor interaction for the purpose of learning, skills development, or practice (e.g., lab, practice, performance, and art, etc.). International students should refer to the attendance policy established by Gallaudet University’s Office of International Affairs, which may require an attendance threshold higher than 75% of class sessions.
Students should make every effort to attend and participate in classes, with mindfulness of the policy 75% attendance threshold for forfeiture of academic credits due to excessive absences. To meet the 75% threshold of class attendance and/or participation, please consult these charts for the corresponding number of overall absences before loss of credit.
For 14-week semester:
| Class sessions per week |
Total Number of sessions during semester |
Required number of attended class sessions |
Overall absences before loss of credits |
| 1 |
14 |
11 |
3 |
| 2 |
28 |
21 |
7 |
| 3 |
42 |
32 |
10 |
For 8-week semester:
| Class sessions per week |
Total Number of sessions during semester |
Required number of attended class sessions |
Overall absences before loss of credits |
| 1 |
8 |
6 |
2 |
| 2 |
16 |
12 |
4 |
| 3 |
24 |
18 |
6 |
For 5-week semester:
| Class sessions per week |
Total Number of sessions during semester |
Required number of attended class sessions |
Overall absences before loss of credits |
| 3 |
15 |
12 |
3 |
| 4 |
20 |
15 |
5 |
| 5 |
25 |
19 |
6 |
For 3-week semester:
| Class sessions per week |
Total Number of sessions during semester |
Required number of attended class sessions |
Overall absences before loss of credits |
| 5 |
15 |
12 |
3 |
Class Absence
Gallaudet University expects students to attend and participate in all classes. There are times when students do miss class due to emergency or extenuating circumstances. Students are responsible for communicating with their faculty and making arrangements to make up for the missed classes and assignments. Faculty have the right to define the specifics of their course attendance and participation policies consistent with the approved excuse absences, excused absences, and unexcused absences outlined below. The list of approved excused absences below does not release students from their obligations for communicating with their instructor.
Approved Excused Absences
- University-sanctioned events
Participation in NCAA-sanctioned athletic events, exceptional events, learning activities required for another course (e.g., field trips with approval of instructor), and university representation obligations (e.g.,, student governance representation, university-sponsored conferences, or university research travel). Absences due to attendance at University-sanctioned events should be verified by written or electronic documentation. A letter sent from the Athletic Director, Faculty member responsible for an event, or Supervisory unit must be sent directly to instructors of participating students at least one week prior to the absence that names the student impacted, the date(s) of the event, and the time that the student(s) will need to be released from class(s) to attend the event(s). In addition to the letter, the student is responsible for communicating with faculty about the scheduled absence and making arrangements to submit all work.
- Religious observances
Absence(s) due to religious observances should be communicated by the student to instructors within the first two weeks of the semester. If a student will need to miss the first week of class due to religious observances, the student is responsible for communicating with the instructor. Faculty may consult the calendars of the University Academic Affairs Division, University Office of Campus Ministries, or Religion faculty for clarification of religious observance obligations. Pursuant to discussion between faculty and student, reasonable extension of time on assignments and/or exams must be given without any academic penalty.
- Excusals for short-term absences and lengthy medical events
Instructors should use judgment when deciding whether to excuse single-day or short-term absences. Faculty should not require students to seek excusals from the Student Health Service (SHS) or Office of the Dean of Academic and Career Success for these types of absences. Faculty should seek guidance from their program director or school director if they are unsure about whether to excuse an absence.
Students seeking an excused absence for significant or lengthy medical events must provide the Dean of Academic and Career Success with documentation from a medical or mental health provider. Students may also be asked to provide appropriate documentation to support the need for extended absences for other significant personal or family concerns. Faculty members should not ask for or accept medical, mental health, or other documentation directly from students.
The definition of "significant or lengthy personal or medical event" generally indicates a student has missed multiple class meetings. This will be evaluated according to the length of the course and number of scheduled class meetings.
- Athletic Contests
A student athlete who represents the University in an athletic contest shall be excused from class with the explicit understanding that the student is responsible for making up any missed work. The student athlete is responsible for communicating any University athletic contest dismissals with the faculty.
No student athlete shall be allowed to represent the University in an athletic contest unless the student athlete has been officially approved for participation.
A list of student athletes expecting to participate in the contest must be maintained and updated by Gallaudet Athletics. This list of student athletes and athletic contests is to be sent out to the faculty at the beginning of every semester and be available at any time upon request.
Excused Absences
Unexpected events, such as significant illness or injury, hospitalization, mental health crisis, a death in the immediate family, emergency, and severe weather conditions may be those resulting in missed classes. Documentation of unexpected events must be provided for the resultant absence(s) to be officially excused.
Unexcused Absences
Unexcused absences may include travel, vacations, appointment conflicts (e,g., routine appointment with doctor, academic advisor, or other instructors), and no reason given.