College of MedicineMD ProgramPoliciesMedical Student Attendance Policy 

Medical Student Attendance Policy 

Policy Number: CU.06.04.170815 

Applies to: All Medical Students 

Date: 8/6/2024 

1.0 Policy Statement 

All enrolled medical students are held to professional conduct and responsibilities outlined in the Medical Student Handbook. In accordance with these standards, students must attend and participate in the five types of required curricular activities: 

  • Involving guests, guest speakers or patients 
  • Involving interacting with peers, small group learning sessions (e.g., case-based learning sessions, small groups, anatomy lab) 
  • Involving peers outside the college (e.g. interprofessional learning) 
  • Clinical activities including clinical skills workshops and community patient experiences 
  • All assessment activities (e.g. course exams, clinical skills exams) 

2.0 Categories of Absences 

Approved Absence

Absence requests that meet the criteria listed below must be submitted by following procedures listed in this policy to be considered for approval. Needs that extend beyond the maximum designated days may require institutional approved reasonable accommodations or a voluntary leave of absence. Note that specific instances that fall within the listed categories may not be approved due to related educational considerations. 

Unplanned Absences Days

Up to eight per academic year. Students must meet with a Student Affairs staff member in the Office of Student Experience to discuss unplanned absences that are needed after the approval of the fifth unplanned absence in an academic year. Categories for unplanned absences include: 

  • Unplanned Illness 
  • Unplanned Emergency

Planned Absence Days

Up to nine per academic year, no more than three per term. Students must meet with a Student Affairs staff member in the Office of Student Experience to discuss planned absences that are needed after three are approved for a given term, along with any requests after the fifth planned absence approval of the academic year. Categories for planned absences include:

  • Planned Emergency: Attending to a loved one in urgent need of support (e.g., a funeral, visiting an ill relative or close friend, or surgery for self or loved one). 
  • Planned Life Event: Supporting a loved one (e.g., a graduation ceremony or wedding festivity of a relative or close friend). 
  • Professional Development: Attending an academic activity that aligns with the College of Medicine mission that supports a student’s development of becoming a physician. Professional Development absences may not be requested for research and/or MEDSCHLR activities. 

Personal Day

In the Pre-clerkship years (MS1 and MS2) there is one personal day per academic year. Personal days may only be requested for lectures and small group learning sessions, excluding the days with anatomy lab and where clinical skills, health equity, or ethics are being taught. The personal day must be used prior to the beginning of FMS 513 in the second year. Personal days are not approved for a day before or following a holiday weekend. 

Unexcused Absence

An absence that is not listed in the approved category and/or the request was not properly submitted prior to the absence. Unexcused absences may result in an Incident Card. Incident Card information is found in Section 2 of the Medical Student Handbook. 

3.0 Responsibility

Office of Student Experience (OSE) 

4.0 Procedures

To request an approved absence, students log into their EFlo account, open their profile menu, select “Absences,” and follow the prompts to request their absence. 

The College of Medicine understands that there may be emergent issues that could cause a delay in the unplanned absence request submission. When this occurs, students are encouraged to email Student Affairs at medicine.studentaffairs@wsu.edu as soon as they are safely able to do so to report the unplanned absence request along with any support that may be needed. 

Confirmation of approved absences will be emailed to the student as well as faculty and offices related to the student’s missed curricular requirement. This may include: 

  • Office of Curriculum (OC) 
  • Office of Assessment, Evaluation, and Curriculum Management (OAECM) 
  • Course Director(s) 
  • Small Group Leader(s) 
  • Virtual Clinical Center (VCC) 
  • Associate Dean of Clinical Education (ADCE) and Clerkship Coordinators 
  • Student Learning Center 
  • Student Affairs Advisor 

Students should check their EFlo calendar prior to submitting an absence request to ensure that their absence does not overlap with an official assessment activity or a curricular activity in which an approved absence is not allowed. 

Students are responsible for all educational content missed from their approved or unapproved absence and are required to submit all assignments on the original due dates, unless they have approval from OSE for an adapted due date for an unplanned illness or emergency. 

Students requesting reasonable accommodations for religious observations should complete the absence request form in the Student Handbook (see Section 2: Attendance Policy) within the first two weeks of a term. 

Students should reference the Communicable Disease Policy for absences related to contagious illnesses (see College Policies website). 

Students should reference the Leave of Absence page in the Student Handbook (Section 3) for voluntary leave of absence needs. 

Collaboration with the WSU Spokane Access Office and the Student Learning Center may be needed for absences where reasonable accommodations apply. 

Pre-clerkship (MS1 and MS2) Absence Requests 

Pre-clerkship students are required to submit their planned absence requests at least two weeks in advance. Planned absences not submitted in this time period may not be approved without discussion with Student Affairs. 

Any pre-clerkship planned absence extending three days or more in length will need to be discussed with Student Affairs and may require approval from the OC and/or the OAECM. 

Clinical Campus Week Absences

If approved absences are needed during a Clinical Campus Week (CCW), the student should follow the approved absence request process listed above. OSE will involve a student’s ADCE, OC, and OAECM in decision making for planned absence requests during a CCW. 

Art and Practice of Medicine, Clinical Skills Workshops, and CPE Absences

If a student has an approved absence for a required Art and Practice of Medicine (APM) session, they must contact their APM facilitator within 24 hours of the missed session. If a student has an approved absence for a Clinical Skills Workshop (CSW) or Community Patient Experience (CPE), the student should speak with the course instructor and then initiate a swap of days with another student for the activity. This is very important due to the resource intensity of these activities. If a swap cannot be successfully negotiated, the student will need to make up the activity during the Assessment Week for that term, even if the student does not have required Targeted Skills Development. 

Interprofessional Experience Absences

If a student has an approved absence, the Interprofessional Experience (IPE) team will switch the student to another open IPE session. If the absence is not approved, students can explore switching possibilities with the IPE team. Typically, a student can explore a switch with a peer and notify the IPE faculty as soon as possible, but at least three business days prior to the soonest date the switch impacts. If a student misses a required IPE (approved or unapproved), they must complete a makeup IPE. Makeup IPE dates will be offered based on availability. A possible extension of IPE may need to be in the following academic term. 

Med Scholar Absences

Med Scholar (MEDSCHLR) courses (with only three in-person check-ins) are eligible for unplanned absences only; planned absences will not be accepted for this course. Missing more than one MEDSCHLR check-in may require repeating the course. Students should speak directly with the MEDSCHLR course director if there are known conflicts of course timing and a student’s planned absences needs. 

Clerkship (MS3 and MS4) Absence Requests 

Due to the nature of clinical learning being required and involving patient care: 

  • Clerkship students are encouraged to submit their planned absence requests as early as possible, ideally three months in advance. 
  • Clerkship students are required to communicate directly with their supervisor/preceptor(s) about their absences after submitting their absence request via EFlo. 
  • MS3 students are allowed up to five planned or unplanned absences without make-up, during the Longitudinal Integrated Clerkship (LIC). Additional absences may require make-up via comparable clinical experiences for those missed. Clinical campus staff will keep records of make-up activities. 
  • MS4 student schedules of clinical and education workdays and times will vary, referencing a maximum of 80 hours per week. MS4 students are encouraged to plan any personal absences around their clinical schedule. 
  • MS4 students are allowed up to two days of approved absence during a 4-week rotation and one day of approved absence during a 2-week rotation. Whenever possible, absences should be made up (evenings/weekends) in consultation with the course director and supervisor at their assigned clinical location. Allotted absence days do not carry over from one rotation to the next. 
  • MS4 students must complete at least 75% clinical time in any clinical rotation to meet requirements of the clinical course. 
  • Residency interviews typically take place October through February of the MS4 year. Generally, MS4 students should plan to participate in interviews during the time allocated for them in the curriculum and should not request required Year 4 rotations during interview season. However, circumstances may arise in which a program may offer an interview opportunity on relatively short notice. MS4 students are required to submit an absence request for a residency interview for which an absence will be needed. 

Inclement Weather and Holiday Closure Procedures

Pre-clerkship Students

Students are encouraged to sign up for WSU Campus Alerts so they are aware of any campus closures due to inclement weather. If the campus is open, yet a student feels unsafe to travel, they are required to submit an absence request under the category of “Urgent Emergency.” 

During times of inclement weather, students should monitor EFlo for changes in session delivery from in-person to an online format. OC or OAECM will make announcements as soon as delivery modes are changed. 

For clinical experiences in the pre-clerkship years impacted by inclement weather, refer to the Clerkship section for processes. 

Clerkship Students

Students are encouraged to sign up for the WSU Campus Alerts for their assigned clinical campus during their clerkship years. 

During the clerkship years, “days off” on a recognized (WSU or Federal) holiday is determined by the clinical site and responsibilities. 

If the clinical site is closed in observance of a holiday or for an inclement weather closure, the student must still meet clinical hour requirements to earn credit for the rotation. This may include make-up days and/or need for alternative learning activities. 

Holiday Closure

If the clinical site is closed due to an observed holiday, the student should note this in the EFlo schedule by commenting “Clinic Closed” or similar when submitting the declined hours and notify the Course Director of the clinic closure. If the clinical site is open on the holiday, the student needs to attend and participate as scheduled.

Weather Closure

If there is a local WSU campus closure (inclement weather, local emergencies, etc.) during a time in which the student has a required clinical experience, the student needs to attend if the clinical site is open and it is safe to attend.

  • If the clinical site is open, but the student does not feel safe getting to the clinical site (e.g., unsafe driving conditions), the student should submit an absence request for an unplanned emergency and communicate with the preceptor and coordinator. This absence counts as any other absence would.
  • If the clinical site is closed due to inclement weather or a local emergency, the student should note this in their EFlo schedule by commenting “Clinic Closed” or similar when submitting declined hours and notify the Course Director of the clinic closure.

Faculty Process for Reporting a Student Absence

  • The Course Director, Small Group Facilitator, Clerkship Coordinator, and/or ADCE will notify OSE that a student missed are required curricular event by emailing medicine.studentaffairs@wsu.edu. OSE will verify if the absence is excused or unexcused and inform the reporter and other needed positions and/or offices as listed in Section 4.0.
  • An unexcused absence will result in an Incident Card issued by the course faculty that is tracked in OAECM. Students with Incident Cards related to unexcused absences maybe referred to the Student Evaluation, Promotion, and Awards Committee (SEPAC). Incident Card information is found in Section 2 of the Student Handbook.

Urgent Emergency due to Wellness Crisis 

If a student is having a wellness crisis, this is considered an emergency and students are encouraged to email medicine.studentaffairs@wsu.edu as soon as they are safely able to do so. Student Affairs will work on the student’s behalf to communicate the absence. Students in a mental health crisis are encouraged to contact the wellness resources.

Wellness Resources Include

5.0 Related Policies

  • Medical Student Leave, Withdrawal, and Readmission Policy
  • Student Promotion, Dismissal, and Graduation Policy
  • Communicable Disease Policy

6.0 Key Search Words

Attendance, scheduled activity.

7.0 Revision History

Original Approval: 8/15/2017
Policy Number: CU.06.04.170815
Review/Revision: 12/20/2019, 07/12/2021, 8/6/2024