Phase 1 Attendance Procedures for UIC Rockford
Introduction
This page is provided to describe UIC Rockford campus procedures regarding attendance, but does not replace The College-wide Phase 1 Attendance and Late Arrival Policy.
Synopsis of Attendance Procedures Specific to Rockford
Synopsis of Attendance Procedures Specific to Rockford
- Timeliness: Students are expected to arrive at least 10 minutes early to all mandatory learning sessions to be ready to sign in and begin on time.
- Signing in: Class attendance is taken electronically through the “Benware” software using a unique password posted before the start of each session. The sign-in is open from 10 minutes prior to the start of the session until 5 minutes after the session begins. This allows 15 minutes for students to sign in and be considered on-time and present. In courses where attendance is taken on paper, this sign-in window of time still applies.
- Guidelines for Troubleshooting Benware Sign-in for Attendance: For in-person sessions, a coordinator will be present in the classroom from 10 minutes before until 5 minutes after the scheduled start time of the session. If you experience technical difficulties that are not affecting the rest of the class, please follow these steps to ensure your attendance is properly recorded.
- First, please attempt to sign in using an alternative device. The only way to guarantee you will be counted as attending is through a successful log-in within the mandatory sign-in period.
- If you are still unable to sign in, this must be communicated immediately to the coordinator present in the classroom. There will always be a coordinator present during the 15-minute sign-in period. Note that reporting technical difficulties to the coordinator does not automatically mean the student’s inability to sign in is excused or that they are approved to use a failure to sign in.
- Blocks 1-4 – Katie Nilsen
- Blocks 5-8 and Synthesis weeks – Susan Ping
- DoCS – Tori Allen
INSTRUCTIONS FOR ABSENCE EXCUSAL AND REPORTING FORM:
- The Rockford Absence Excusal and Reporting Form should be used to report any absence, failure to sign in, late arrival, or upcoming absence request from any mandatory course component including sessions, graded assessments and Standardized Patient encounters/simulations. You will be asked to use your NetID to sign in and provide all relevant information about the request, including uploading of documentation as required. For absence requests to be considered, all information, including session title(s) and the affected course(s), needs to be accurate.
- Anticipated absence: For anticipated absences, students must use the online Rockford Absence Excusal and Reporting Form. The form should be submitted as far in advance of the affected session(s) as possible. A determination as to whether the absence is considered excused or unexcused will be communicated to the student in due course. A student is not excused until they have heard from Dr. Clements-Jewery that their absence request has been approved.
- Emergencies: No expectation of prior notification will apply in the case of an emergency. In such cases, absences must be reported by noon the following day, as per the attendance policy, using the online Rockford Absence Excusal and Reporting Form.
- Late arrival: An absence will be recorded when a student does not sign in within the first 5 minutes of the scheduled start time of a mandatory session. Not signing in within the 5-minute window counts as an absence in the course and will be either excused or unexcused based on the situation. For late arrival, students should use the online Rockford Absence Excusal and Reporting Form, after which a determination will be made as to whether the late arrival is excused or unexcused.
- Failure to sign in: This may be requested for a mandatory session where a student is on time for an in-person session (physically present in the classroom prior to the expiry of the attendance sign in), but does not sign in for any reason, including technical difficulty. Technical difficulties should be reported immediately to the session coordinator who is always present in the room during the attendance sign-in window. To request to use a ‘failure to sign in’, students must submit the online Rockford Absence Excusal and Reporting Form by noon the following day. If granted, the student is not assigned an unexcused absence for the affected session. Once the limit of failures to sign in for a particular course has been reached, additional instances of failing to sign in for a mandatory session will be treated as unexcused absences for grading purposes.
- Response: Absence requests will be reviewed by Dr. Hugh Clements-Jewery, who will deem the absence excused or unexcused. Dr. Clements-Jewery will email the student requesting the absence with the determination.
- Confirmation: Submitting a request for an “excused absence” does not guarantee acceptance or approval. If no reply to a request is received, the student is responsible for following up and confirming whether the absence is excused or unexcused.
- Implications of absence: Students are responsible for all the material presented at a missed session regardless of whether the absence was excused or unexcused. For classroom-based missed sessions, students should review the learning materials and associated session recording when available. For practical sessions (anatomy labs or DoCS workshops and Standardized Patient Encounters), the student should contact the Course Director to determine the appropriate make up.
- Students should refer to the syllabus for each course to confirm the grading implications of absence, late-arrival, excused or unexcused, as the implications may vary.
- Any questions about Rockford attendance and reporting procedures should be directed to Dr. Hugh Clements-Jewery, Director of Phase 1 Curriculum.
Additional Information:
Number of Unexcused Absences/Failures to Sign-in per Course
| COURSE | M1/M2 | NUMBER OF UNEXCUSED ABSENCESS | NUMBER OF FAILURES TO SIGN IN |
|---|---|---|---|
| BLOCK COURSE (1-7) | M1 & M2 | 2 PER BLOCK COURSE | 1 PER BLOCK COURSE |
| MEDICAL COLLOQUIA (FALL TERM) | M1 & M2 | N/A (MUST ATTEND 6 PER TERM) REQUEST EXCUSAL IF SIGNED UP | N/A (COMPLETION OF ASSIGNMENT) |
| MEDICAL COLLOQUIA (SPRING TERM) | M1 | N/A (MUST ATTEND 6 PER TERM) REQUEST EXCUSAL IF SIGNED UP | N/A (COMPLETION OF ASSIGNMENT) |
| SYNTHESIS WEEKS (FALL TERM) | M1 & M2 | N/A (MUST MEET THE COURSE MPL) | 1 PER WEEK |
| SYNTHESIS WEEKS (SPRING TERM) | M1 | N/A (MUST MEET THE COURSE MPL) | 1 PER WEEK |
| SYNTHESIS WEEK (SUMMER TERM) | M1 | N/A (MUST MEET THE COURSE MPL) | 1 PER WEEK |
| BLOCK 8: SYNTHESIS | M2 | N/A (MUST MEET THE COURSE MPL) | 1 PER BLOCK 8 PART 1 |
| 1 PER BLOCK 8 PART 2 | |||
| DoCS (FALL TERM) | M1 & M2 | 2 PER TERM | 2 PER TERM |
| DoCS (SPRING TERM) | M1 & M2 | M1: 2 PER TERM | M1: 2 PER TERM |
| M2: 1 PER TERM | M2: 1 PER TERM | ||
| DoCS (SUMMER TERM) | M1 | 1 PER TERM | 1 PER TERM |
DOCUMENTATION OF EXCUSED ABSENCES
- Documentation IS required for approval and must be submitted within seven calendar days following an absence request from any session with MANDATORY ATTENDANCE due to:
- Own or another’s wedding
- A healthcare provider appointment for self, significant other, or family member
- An illness of three days or more for student
- Illness of significant other or family member
- A presentation and attendance at a conference (see Attendance Procedures for Participation at a Medical or Research Conference)
- Civic obligations that cannot be rescheduled or deferred (court date, citizenship assessment)
- Student representation on College of Medicine Committee
- Circumstances of an extreme, unanticipated, and compelling nature
- Documentation IS required for approval and must be submitted within seven calendar days following an absence from any session with GRADED ASSESSMENT, DoCS SP/Simulation, and/or Anatomy sessions including:
- Formative and summative examinations (includes weekly quiz*, DoCS quiz*, NBME exams, block final, DoCS OSCE)
- RATs in a TBL session
- Standardized patient or manikin simulation
- Anatomy Lab/Anatomy Lab Practical/Service of Gratitude
- *Approval to be excused from a “take-home” quiz will be handled on a case-by-case basis due to the extended length of time the quiz is available.
- Examples of proper documentation for excused absences:
- Healthcare provider’s note listing date of appointment
- Police report
- Wedding invitation with date and location
- Traffic ticket
- Public transportation delay receipt
- Email notice for College of Medicine committee meeting
- Documentation IS NOT required for absence approval from any session with mandatory attendance due to:
- Observation of a religious holiday (see UIC Senate Policy on Religious Holidays)
- Attendance at a funeral
- An illness of one or two days for a student. However, documentation is always required for absence due to illness from a graded assessment regardless of duration.
Attendance Procedures for Participation at a Medical or Research Conference (up to 3 consecutive curricular days)
- “Participation” is considered to be any of the following:
- Presenting at the conference. Documentation of accepted abstract must be provided.
- Organization of a session. Documentation of the leadership role in the session must be provided.
- Attendance as a designated UI COM representative or designee*
- National or regional organizational leadership. Documentation of leadership position in the national/regional organization must be provided.**
*Email/communication from UI COM faculty or sponsoring department leadership indicating that you are a UI COM rep or designee required for excusal
**National or regional organizational leadership approval may be limited to cases in which the organization requires a minimum number of students to attend a given conference. This information should be provided with the absence request.
- PLEASE NOTE:
- Students are not guaranteed to be approved to attend conferences each year.
- If none of the criteria above is met, the absence request will not be approved and the recommendation will be to attend a conference at another time that doesn’t conflict with mandatory curriculum.
- Multiple pre-planned absences for a combination of reasons (including conference participation) may not be approved more than once per course.
- Alternative attendance at a conference, remote conference attendance options, academic concerns, and the complexity for making up mandatory curricular events may be considered when determining if a conference absence request is approved.
Multiple Absences
- NOTE: Students with repeated absences may be asked to provide a higher level of documentation. If absences are considered a matter of professionalism, the student may receive a “professionalism concerns” form, which may lead to review through the student promotions committee process. Please see the Statement on Professional Behavior contained in the Academic Policies and Professional Standards document posted on the Educational Policies web page.
- In the event a student has more than 3 excused absences or 2 unexcused absences in a single course, they may be required to meet with Dean Richards or Dean Calato to discuss their engagement in the medical school curriculum.
- Contact Dr. Maureen Richards (Dean, Office of Medical Education) and Dr. Hugh Clements-Jewery (Director of Phase 1 Curriculum) to discuss when there is a possibility of multiple absences.
Absence Implications for Team-Based Learning (TBL) Sessions
- Absence or late arrival for any TBL session must be submitted via the Rockford Absence Excusal and Reporting Form with documentation as necessary to determine if the absence is excused or unexcused. The student will be responsible for all the material covered regardless if the absence or late arrival is excused or unexcused.
- If the TBL absence is excused, the student should make arrangements with the testing coordinator, Eric Cunningham, to take a make-up for the Individual Readiness Assurance Test (IRAT) in-person within 7 calendar days.
Students with an excused absence must make-up the IRAT to receive a score for the Team Readiness Assurance Test (TRAT). The student’s grade for the TBL will be their IRAT score and their team’s TRAT score.
-
- If a TBL absence is considered unexcused, the student may still contact the testing coordinator to request a make-up IRAT “for practice” and will receive a score of 0 (zero) for both the IRAT and TRAT for that TBL session. Students who are absent from a TBL are expected to review the application exercises and the session recording when available.
- Late Arrival for TBL Sessions: Since the ultimate goal of a TBL session is to learn and contribute to the team, students are expected to attend and participate in the session even if they will be arriving after the scheduled start time. Late-arriving students should log into Benware for all session components they are present for.
- Grading implications of late arrival to a TBL session are listed in the Attendance Policy. Questions on grading implications should be directed to Dr. Clements-Jewery.
Absence Implications for Doctoring and Clinical Skills (DoCS)
- Use the Rockford Absence Excusal and Reporting Form to request excused absences or report any unexcused absences or failures to sign in.
- See DoCS course syllabi and ‘Table for Number of Unexcused Absences/Failures to Sign-in per Course’ above.
Absence Implications for Synthesis Weeks and Block 8
- Use the Rockford Absence Excusal and Reporting Form to request excused absences or report any unexcused absences or failures to sign in.
- Synthesis course grades are based on attendance, participation, and completion of assignments with each course component assigned a specific percentage of the grade. EACH missed sessions will require a make-up assignment. Students who do not meet the MPL for the course will be required to complete any missed course material via written make-up, in addition to submitting a narrative reflection before a passing grade will be given.
Absence Implications for Medical Colloquia Sessions
- Please see the Medical Colloquia course syllabus. Students are required to attend and submit a feedback assignment for 6 Medical Colloquia dates out of the 8 dates offered per term. Since there are more course offerings than is required to complete the course, it is not common to provide excused absences for any single Medical Colloquia offering.
- It is highly recommended to plan your attendance for the Medical Colloquia dates offerings carefully so as not to run out of available sessions before you have completed your 6 required to pass the course.
- If you have questions about this after reading the Medical Colloquia course syllabus, please contact Dr. Hugh Clements-Jewery (Director of Phase 1 Curriculum) and Dr. Miriam Whiteley (local course director for medical colloquia).
Absence Implications for a Block Exam
- Listed in the Attendance Policy.
• Absence Implications for an OSCE
- Listed in the Attendance Policy.
• Absence Implications for Transition to Clerkships Sessions
Although the Transition to Clerkships (TTC) course is included in the Phase 1 curriculum, it is considered the orientation for Phase 2 and the foundation for the longitudinal Clinical Connections and Competencies course that spans Phases 2 and 3. All rising M3 students are scheduled for TTC in the spring semester prior to the start of Phase 2. Students should not schedule any outside activities during the two weeks of Transition to Clerkship and should be available from 7am-6pm until the final schedule is posted. ALL segments of TTC must be completed for satisfactory completion of this course. This includes ALL scheduled activities such as workshops, TBLs, small group sessions, and large group sessions.
- Reporting Absence/Requesting Excusal in TTC: Remember that planning ahead for any time off is very important, especially as you enter your clinical training. Note that you must complete the Rockford Absence Excusal and Reporting Form; you should never assume that your request will be granted automatically.
- Absence:The TTC course is situated in Phase 1 and follows the Phase 1 Attendance and Late Arrival Procedure. Absence requests must be submitted using the Rockford Absence Excusal and Reporting Form. Documentation may be required with the exception of absences due to the observance of religious holidays.
- Late Arrival: Students should utilize the Rockford Absence Excusal and Reporting Formin advance or immediately following the session to explain the reason for the late arrival. Late arrivals will follow the same protocol for excused or unexcused absences as described above. An arrival is considered late 5 minutes past the posted start time for the session.
- Unexcused Absences and Unexcused Late Arrivals:Unexcused absences and late arrivals are never acceptable in TTC. An unexcused absence and/or late arrival may elicit a “Professional Development Concerns” form. If a pattern of late behavior or unexcused absences is detected, or if a serious professionalism breach is reported, the student will meet with the Curricular Dean, the course Director and/or course coordinator and the Student Affairs Dean and/or the student’s advisor.
- Making Up Missed Course Time:Any missed time, whether excused or unexcused, must be made-up before a passing course grade will be submitted.
Some Transition to Clerkships sessions are required (to meet clinical site compliance requirements) prior to starting your first clinical rotation (i.e., Occupational Exposures, Fit Testing, BLS Certification, etc.); Students cannot begin clerkships without satisfactory completion of these sessions and may have to make changes in their clerkship schedule if they cannot meet requirements. Students with an excused absence for sessions that are required prior to starting clerkships should contact the course coordinator regarding limited make-up options. Students with an unexcused absence for BLS Certification are still required to complete the required certification course before starting clerkships but at their own expense.
