Attendance policy at your school

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Hey I was wondering if everyone else's nursing school has an attendance policy for lecture? Mine is super strict! If I miss 2 lectures during the semester, I'm automatically withdrawn (and 2 tardies equals 1 absence). So if I'm late twice in a semester and then say have an emergency like a car accident or something, I'm out! It seems like an unnecessary rule since if you're passing the tests, you're learning the material, right? Also, it's super annoying because for the most part, the instructor just reads verbatim from the powerpoint slides, so it sometimes seems like a waste of 3.5 hours :yawn:

Specializes in Critical Care, Trauma, Neuroscience.

hmm I guess it's not the ADN vs BSN thing then... just a theory lol! I'm trying to figure out the discrepancy. I guess it's just up to the nursing school - so random...

Clovery - that is so messed up about making people pay for a missed clinical day?! What kind of messed up policy is that?! Seems like we already pay wayyy too much as it is! Or is this some kind of under the table *wink* *wink* thing between instructor and student?

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Specializes in Critical Care, Trauma, Neuroscience.
Our program says that if you miss class, clinical, or lab twice in a semester then you fail. Also, your absences are all counted together. For instance, suppose you miss clinical today, and class three days from now, there are your two absences, and you are out of the program. Also, if we are late twice that counts as an absence, and if we are late to class or lab three times or more, we can be removed from the program. We can also be removed from the program if we are late to clinical more than twice. And if we are late to clinical without calling our instructor before arriving, we are failed for the day and sent home. If you are failed twice during any clinical semester, you are out of the program. There are a lot of ways to get removed from our program.

Yeah mine is the same way... if you fail any two clinical courses within the program, you are OUT! And after 2 absences, GOODBYE! and if it's after midterm, it equals a WF... which is essentially a fail. You're exactly right, it seems like if you are not up to basically military code in nursing school, you can kiss the RN license goodbye!

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Specializes in New Critical care NP, Critical care, Med-surg, LTC.

Schools can do what they want, and if you choose to attend nursing school there, you agree to the policies. I think if they choose to have an attendance policy for lecture, they may have decided, through experience or not, that students that attend lecture are more likely to pass. Since they're interested in graduating students, and having them pass the NCLEX, they have a right to make those stipulations because your performance has an effect on the school. They may also feel that students not interested in attending class are less committed to the program. Rightfully so or not, they can again decide as they choose. I've not missed a day of lecture, lab or clinical in three semesters. I don't think that's unreasonable.

Edited to add, I do think that extenuating circumstances should be evaluated individually. But, with the number of students that want to attend, I can understand why they move on and fill seats with someone else.

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That was profound.

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Specializes in Cardio-Pulmonary; Med-Surg; Private Duty.

Lecture -- it's up to you, but we have a quiz every lecture day, and they can't be made up.

Exam -- can only be made up if you make prior arrangements with the instructor (if you're sick the day of the exam, you have to email/call the instructor prior to the exam start time).

Clinical -- no absences allowed.

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My school takes attendance, but they don't hold it against you. They only take attendance so that when someone comes in and says, "I don't know why I'm failing, I try so hard!" and they check the sheet and see you have come to one class out of 15, they can tell you to attend classes more often. For clinical, we have to do a care plan for anything less than 3.5 hours missed, from 3.5+ hours missed you have to make up a day, and more than 16 hours missed you have to repeat the semester.

Your school is pretty strict!

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Specializes in Electrophysiology, Medical-Surgical ICU.

Idk what the colleges attendance policy is but I know they have to take attendance for financial aid purposes. As for the nursing program any clinical or lab missed must be made up or u get a clinical jeopardy and 3 jeopardys = out the door. For lecture there isn't a set amount you have to attend but the first 3 absences is 1 pt off of your final grade and then every absence after that is 1pt off your final grade and every late = 1/2 an absence...its rough...especially when passing is 75%.

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Specializes in Cardio-Pulmonary; Med-Surg; Private Duty.
Idk what the colleges attendance policy is but I know they have to take attendance for financial aid purposes. As for the nursing program any clinical or lab missed must be made up or u get a clinical jeopardy and 3 jeopardys = out the door. For lecture there isn't a set amount you have to attend but the first 3 absences is 1 pt off of your final grade and then every absence after that is 1pt off your final grade and every late = 1/2 an absence...its rough...especially when passing is 75%.

Be glad your passing rate isn't 78% like ours is!

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Be glad your passing rate isn't 78% like ours is!

Our passing rate is 80%

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At my school, I know that for financial aid, you must attend the first day of class. Beyond that, there are no requirements that I'm aware of. My instructor is the attendance nazi. We have to sign in to EVERYTHING so she can assure our attendance.

Our passing rate is 78% too.

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Specializes in Critical Care, Trauma, Neuroscience.
Our passing rate is 80%

Yeah, our passing rate is 80% - that's the lowest C you can get. You have to have a 93 or above to have an A.

Hahah CrazierThanYou - my instructor last semester was totally an attendance nazi too! I was late to lecture one day and when she handed me the sign in sheet, she had circled "3 minutes" next to my name since apparently that was how late I was :lol2: She will do the same thing for people coming back from break late. Apparently, the wall clock in our classroom was faster than our cellphones so everyone was coming in like 2-3 min late, but she would hear NONE of it. Finally, someone changed the wall clock. To this day no one will confess to it haha! But we're all happy they did! She never did notice except that we were all finally coming in "on time". ;)

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