Attendance and Absences
Regular attendance is a student responsibility and is expected of all Peabody students. Professors set the attendance policy for each lesson, class, and ensemble. The attendance policy, along with all other rules of the class, may be found in the syllabus that is distributed at the beginning of each semester.
Occasionally, health or personal matters may interfere with a student’s ability to attend class. In this situation, students are expected to notify professors as soon as possible about missing class and discuss how to make up missed class time or assignments in compliance with the relevant syllabi.
A serious or extended illness that causes several missed classes, major academic assignments, or examinations, and multiple large ensemble rehearsals, should be verified with documentation from a licensed caregiver. It is the student’s responsibility to forward the verification to professors who request it or the Peabody Case Manager. A prolonged illness that interferes substantially with academic requirements for the semester may necessitate a withdrawal from classes or a medical leave of absence.
Occasionally, professional opportunities may interfere with regular attendance. Students should remember that outside performances must be cleared with major teachers (Outside Instruction and Public Performance). If an outside performance is approved students should notify professors as soon as possible about missing class and discuss how to make up missed class time or assignments. The same policy also applies to auditions.
In every scenario, the professor makes a final decision about whether or not an absence is excused based on the syllabus. If absences affect a final grade, the student may appeal the grade (and thus the ruling on the absences) through the policy articulated in Grade Appeals.