Dean of Students Office
Knight Hall 128
Dept. 3135, 1000 E. University Dr.
Laramie, WY 82071
Phone: 307-766-3296
Fax: 307-766-3298
Email: dos@uwyo.edu
On occasion an unanticipated class absence occurs. If it falls within the following guidelines (in accordance with the UW Standard Administrative Policy and Procedure-Student Absence Policy) of an excused absence, the Dean of Students can provide an excused absence letter to a student, allowing them to make up missed work for the class.
Apart from active military duty and certain pregnant student support, excused absences for any given situation cannot be longer than 5 consecutive weekdays. For example, a five-day absence might be Monday through Friday OR Thursday through Wednesday. Any class attendance points, assignments, or tests falling outside of the excused absence would be at the discretion of your faculty. Refer to class syllabi for class attendance and absence policies. The Dean of Students does not have authority over instructor attendance or grading policies.
Students wishing to request an excused absence must meet one of the below criteria as noted in the Student Attendance Policy. The request and all necessary documentation must be received by our office within two weeks of the first day of absence.
PLEASE NOTE:
Admission to a hospital, accident with significant injury, family medical emergency. Excused absences can only be issued if absent 3-5 days. If absence is 1-2 days or exceeds 5 days, the absence dates will be at the discretion of your professor(s) and per the class syllabus.
Academic field trip, judging, academic conference, field work, RSO activity, athletic event. These requests must be submitted by supervising/advising UW faculty or staff member.
Death of an immediate family member, caregiving to a family member requiring an absence of 3-5 days, or other extenuating circumstance.
Submit an excused absence request for any orders of 5 days or less. If orders exceed 5 days, contact the Veteran’s Service Center (VSC) for review. VSC will help coordinate any absence of 6+ days.
Allowed for sincerely held religious beliefs or events of cultural or ceremonial importance. Include name of holy day, holiday, or cultural/ceremonial event in request.
Contact Dean of Students to meet and discuss available resources and support. Online resources can be found HERE. Disability Support Services (DSS) can offer ongoing accommodation.
Jury duty, subpoena
Contact the Dean of Students Office at dos@uwyo.edu or call (307) 766-3296.
PLEASE NOTE: The Dean of Students, in conjunction with Academic Affairs, DOES NOT issue excused absences for:
Anyone requesting an excused absence must include the W-number of the absent student(s), using the format W00000000.
Excused absence requests and all supporting documentation must be submitted within two weeks of the first day of absence. Late submissions will be denied.
Absence requests can take several days to process, depending on the overall request volume at the time of form submittal.
Faculty and staff requesting a group excused absence for participation in official university activities or functions should allow at least one week for processing of the absence request.
Faculty can find important information on how to effectively manage student absences from the Guidelines on Managing Student Absences and the Student Attendance Policy.
Approved absences will be documented in a signed PDF letter and emailed to the student as an attachment. Students are expected to provide the letter as documentation to any faculty member who will be affected by the student’s absence. The letter will not include detailed information about the nature of the absence. Instructors will give students a reasonable amount of time following the absence to make up the material or activities covered in the absence, regardless of location or modality of the course. Once the Dean of Students has excused the absence, the student must communicate the excused absence to the instructor at least 24 hours prior to the absence when possible, or as soon as is practicable after the absence occurs, except in an emergency or when the University is officially closed.
APPEAL PROCESS: If your request is denied, you have the right to appeal the decision. Appeals must be specifically described in writing and submitted within ten days of the denied excused absence notice to the Dean of Students, 128 Knight Hall, Laramie, WY 82071 or via email to dos@uwyo.edu. Consistent with University Regulation 11-3, appeals may be sought on two grounds: (a) failure to follow proper procedures; or (b) newly discovered relevant facts. Appeals will be reviewed by the Dean of Students or their designee and a written response will be sent to the student within ten business days of the appeal submission.
Dean of Students Office
Knight Hall 128
Dept. 3135, 1000 E. University Dr.
Laramie, WY 82071
Phone: 307-766-3296
Fax: 307-766-3298
Email: dos@uwyo.edu