MUA Attendance Policy
there are only 13 days of classes left. and i am finding it next to impossible to drag myself to (almost) every single one to fulfill the required attendance policy. i have started scheduling study time for the comprehensive final during Intro to Clin Med hours because i feel it’s a more productive* use of my time. i would like to extend my apologies to the professor if they think it’s terribly rude**, but i feel like it’s every man for herself at this point in the semester.
it doesn’t matter that i would much rather be at home. i go to class out of respect for the rule that i will be academically withdrawn if i miss more than 20%. we all have to do it.
normally i don’t really care what you do with your time as long as it doesn’t affect me. but doesn’t it sort of royally majorly suck to know fellow classmates are getting to sleep in (or study at home or jump in a lake or whatever) because their friends are signing them in?
yeah. for those of us that actually show up, it sucks.
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photo: MED 1 wayyy back in September 2007
*remember when i needed 2 extra hours in my day and was threatening to start getting up at 4am again? thankfully, the 4am-ness hasn’t been too necessary so far.
**i sit at the edge of the classroom closer to the back and try to angle my computer monitor so it’s not distracting for anyone behind me.
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February 18th, 2009 at 12:04 pm
Hang in there Sweetie! Attendance policies are brutal sometimes. Ours are similar except if you miss class you also lose 2% on your final grade for that class (even if you have a Dr. note) and if you miss a quiz or anything you’re not allowed to retake it unless at the end of the term you’ve failed the course (therefore you’re losing anywhere from 5 to 15% per quiz and more for other tests).
You’re almost finished!
February 18th, 2009 at 12:55 pm
That sucks. I find lectures pretty well useless, but I still go because usually the prof will say a single sentence somewhere in the hour and a half that I could not have found in a textbook or lecture notes, and that will be useful for understanding the material.
I’m sure they understand about the whole studying in class thing, you guys do have an enormous exam coming up!
Good luck with the revision.
February 18th, 2009 at 3:12 pm
I understand the intentions behind having a compulsory attendance policy, but I know that in practice, it doesn’t necessarily help (and can in fact hurt). If I had not been in a program where I didn’t have to attend lecture (actually, I never attended a single one), it would have severely affected my studies in med school. I doubt that my grades would have been as high, and I surely would have been depressed because I would have had about zero time for “fun” and “relaxation.”
Much kudos to you for actually surviving it! I doubt that I could have done the same.
Only 13 more to go!
February 18th, 2009 at 7:38 pm
Hi Jen,
Keep in there, as much as it pains you. What some of your classmates are indulging isn’t great – I’m of the opinion that you do what you signed up for. Good luck in the revision and for your forthcoming exam.
February 18th, 2009 at 8:37 pm
P.S. Can I say though, there is not a single winter coat in sight in your picture, so at least there’s something! *leaves to walk home in blizzard-esque weather*
February 19th, 2009 at 9:29 am
Well I am on board with you as you know about the required class sitting. I have done much like you and switched to studying other things while lectures are going because time is really starting to become valuable. It is flying by!!!
February 20th, 2009 at 12:46 am
We have a 20% missing-of-class thing also. If I think I’m wasting my time in the class, I will calculate how many classes it means I can miss without penalty, and strategically miss certain days (like Mondays) to totally expand my study schedule.
It totally is every person for themselves.