Deregistration Information for Instructors

The following is guidance for matriculated and non-matriculated undergraduate students. 

Class attendance is a matter between the instructor and the student. Students are expected to attend all classes and all examinations and are expected to complete all course requirements on time. 

Instructors may elect to develop guidelines under which attendance and/or participation is part of the grade. Instructors must announce and explain all course requirements, including attendance and/or participation guidelines, to their classes at the beginning of the term.  

Instructors may also elect to enforce the attendance and absence policy included in the Undergraduate Bulletin.  

Beginning on the seventh day of classes, instructors may elect to deregister students who fail to attend class and explain their absence — unless the student has made prior arrangements with the instructor. 

The instructor is responsible for determining whether a student’s explanation for their absence is satisfactory. Similarly, the instructor is responsible for determining and agreeing to any prior arrangements. 

Instructors may only deregister students during the Add Period at the beginning of the semester, as listed on the Academic Calendar.  

For courses that meet only once a week, including laboratory classes, the instructor may elect to deregister students who do not attend the first scheduled class day. Note: A class day is defined by the University as any Monday through Friday when classes are in session. 

This guidance applies to spring and fall semester 8 Week classes on a prorated basis, depending on the length of the class in question. Students cannot be deregistered for failing to attend class in the summer or winter terms. 

Instructors who elect not to deregister students who fail to attend class should review the Grading Information for Instructors page for grading guidance. 

The following is guidance for degree and non-degree graduate students. 

Graduate students are responsible for regularly attending their classes. Instructors may set their own attendance guidelines, which they must announce at the start of the term.  

Students must make up any work missed due to absence. However, how makeup work is handled is at the discretion of the instructor.  

Visit the Graduate Bulletin’s section on attendance for more information. 

The University reserves the right to exclude from a graduate program, course, or final examination students whose attendance in classes is unsatisfactory to their instructors or to the Dean of The Graduate School.  

Visit the Graduate Bulletin’s section on enrollment for more information. 

Instructors may request a graduate student be deregistered from your class for non-attendance at any time during the term when the student fails to maintain regular attendance. However, the instructor or their department must contact the student first regarding their failure to attend. 

The following is guidance for all students. 

The Federal Student Aid Handbook requires schools to document attendance when students are enrolled in online courses. The handbook states that schools must demonstrate that a student participated in class or was otherwise engaged in an academically related activity. 

Examples of evidence of academic attendance and attendance in an academically related activity in an online class include: 

• Student submission of an academic assignment or exam 

• Documented student participation in an interactive tutorial or computer-assisted instruction 

• A post made by the student that shows the student’s participation in an online study group assigned by the school 

• A post made by the student in a discussion forum that shows the student’s participation in an online discussion about academic matters 

• An email from the student, or other documentation, showing the student initiated contact with their instructor to ask a question about the academic subject studied in the course 

Documenting that a student has logged into an online class is not sufficient, by itself, to demonstrate a student’s academic attendance. 

The following is guidance for matriculated and non-matriculated undergraduate students. 

Instructors may elect to deregister students who lack the required prerequisite(s) for the class at any time within the semester, term or session the class is being taught. 

If a student is deregistered after the last day to drop without a W, as listed on the Academic Calendar, the Registrar will assign that student a W grade. 

The following is guidance for degree and non-degree graduate students. 

Instructors may elect to deregister students who lack the required prerequisite(s) for the class but must do so no later than the first week of the term. 

Post enrollment requirement checking (PERC) provides the ability to reevaluate the status of requisites after final grades are posted and drop students from classes in subsequent semesters for non-compliance. Automated communications will notify students when they have been dropped from a class for non-compliance. The communication will encourage students to work directly with their advisors to adjust their schedules. 

The enhanced functionality aims to ensure that students meet requirements for course progression after final grading, reduce deregistration requests, and minimize registration changes after the start of the semester.