Class Attendance Policy for L&S Undergraduate Students at UW-Madison

The following section explains the class attendance policy for UW-Madison and L&S undergraduate students.

It is expected that every student will be present at all classes. In accordance with UW-Madison policy, faculty are asked not to schedule mandatory course requirements on dates when a religious observation may cause substantial numbers of students to be absent. Faculty/instructors are encouraged to extend reasonable consideration to accommodate students should their university-endorsed extracurricular activities (not including practice activities for performances or athletic events) conflict with class attendance requirements. It is expected that students provide adequate and reasonable advance notice to faculty and instructors in order that they can ensure that an accommodation, if granted, not jeopardize or compromise the pedagogical goals and requirements of the course and students' learning. See Faculty Legislation II-108: Class Attendance and class attendance for more information.

Faculty policy allows instructors to indicate what criteria need to be met for an absence to be considered "excused".
Instructors should make sure they publish their criteria for excused absences in a clear and consistent manner on their syllabi.

Students are required to be present at the beginning of the semester/term and to remain until the work of the semester/term is completed (which includes final examinations). Note that any excused or unexcused absences may have a negative impact on a student's final grade in a course. Students should be mindful of class attendance policies for each of their classes and make sure they completely understand the ramifications of missing classes (either excused or unexcused).

Additional resources regarding class attendance can be found at: