Academic Regulations & Procedures

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Class Attendance

Carleton is a residential college based fundamentally on in-person, face-to-face instruction. It is expected that students attend all of their classes. Absent a declared state of emergency, attendance will be physical; remote participation in classes will occur rarely, if at all.

In some circumstances, as determined by the Office of Accessibility Resources, attendance-related accommodations may be applicable for an individual student; any such accommodations will respect the fundamental character of the course and the residential nature of the college.

Within this residential context, faculty have the authority to incorporate a limited possibility of remote attendance in their classes; faculty also have the full authority to exclude this possibility in their classes. Instructors may choose to teach an occasional class session remotely in exceptional circumstances that make them unable to be on campus for a small number of classes (e.g., owing to road conditions, short-term illness, or travel), or in exceptional cases based on the pedagogical needs of a specific class session. Similarly, faculty may choose to provide remote participation options for a student who occasionally cannot attend class, but there is no mandate that faculty offer remote attendance options for their courses.

In no circumstances should a student attend remotely for more than a third of the meetings of a particular class. For more persistent or longer-term disruptions to in-person class attendance, see the policy on Leaves of Absence. Course-level exceptions to this policy may be made only for the courses offered over the summer as part of specific programs that have been pre-approved by the Provost’s Office.

While class attendance is the responsibility of the student, who will be held accountable for any missed work, instructors are also requested to inform an associate dean of students when a student’s attendance record gives cause for concern. The Academic Standing Committee (ASC) may, on occasion, require verification of regular class attendance by a student on academic review.

For any course with a waitlist, the instructor has the authority to drop from the class roster any student who has failed to attend the first two class meetings (or the first meeting for classes scheduled to meet only once per week) and has not otherwise contacted the faculty member to confirm enrollment. To do so, the instructor must make an official request to the Registrar’s Office before the end of the first week of classes. This faculty prerogative does not relieve a student of final responsibility for proper registration.

Any student who fails to register for a minimum of twelve credits and attend classes prior to the end of the first week of the term may be withdrawn from the College. (See the policy on Academic Load.)

See also registration.

Last Revised: November 6, 2023

For: Faculty, Students

Last Reviewed: November 13, 2023

Maintained by: Office of the Provost

List all Policies & Guidelines for Academic Regulations & Procedures