Attendance Policy for Clinical & Lab Courses
Attendance in BSN/ABSN Programs at the University of Washington Seattle Campus
The School of Nursing expects students to recognize that they have entered into nursing in which full participation in the learning environment is an essential component. On-time attendance is expected in all educational activities (lecture, lab, seminar, clinical, and all onboarding activities). As such, students are required to be prepared and present at the beginning of each assigned clinical day and activity. In addition, the instructor may require the student to come before the start of the agency shift for pre-clinical preparation and the student is expected to arrive on time for this as scheduled.
In the clinical training setting, students are considered to be part of the nursing and/or interdisciplinary team. When students arrive late to the clinical or other scheduled activities, it affects other nurses, patients, faculty, and the student’s own performance. On the first occasion of being late to clinical, the student will receive a verbal warning. On the second occasion of being late to clinical, the student will receive a course warn and a learning contract pertaining to the expectations for nursing student behavior and safe practice. If the student arrives late to clinical on more than one occasion, the BSN Curriculum Committee (BSNCC) program may initiate a program-level behavioral warning under the provisions of the Essential Qualifications for BSN and ABSN Students.
Students should not expect to be excused from required coursework or program activities for personal, family, or work commitments. In extraordinary circumstances, a planned absence may be granted at the discretion of the course instructor and course coordinator.
If a student must miss time due to illness or personal emergency, they must call, text, or email the clinical instructor 30 minutes prior to the start of the clinical shift. The mode of notification will be specified by the instructor. The clinical instructor, in consultation with the course coordinator, may determine make-up time. Decisions as to the need for make-up clinical experiences are based on a student’s progress in meeting course objectives, sufficient clinical hours, and the availability of continued clinical site access. If a student does not have sufficient time to meet course objectives, the course will need to be repeated.
Final Exam Weeks
This attendance policy includes absences during final exam weeks. Students should plan to be available for program activities until the end of finals week. Final exam week is noted on the University of Washington academic calendar. Any personal plans (e.g., flight arrangements) should be scheduled during the regular quarterly breaks in order to avoid unexcused absences.