There are times when people simply can't make it; sometimes they have good reasons, sometimes they don't. It's my responsibility to ensure that the rules of the course are applied equally and fairly to all participants.

With such fairness in mind, here is my policy on absences:

• If you are absent from a class at which a pop quiz or attendance checkpoint occurs, you must provide official documentation as to the reason for your absence to be excused.
• Doctor's Note: a doctor's note must be on the doctor's stationery, must include their name and contact information, and must clearly show that you were unable to be present for the class.
• Family Emergency: These things happen, but I may need to contact your family to verify the circumstances of the emergency.
• Family Death: if you've experienced a death in the family, you have my condolences - but you also have to realize that "my grandma died" is a standard attempted get-out-of-jail-free card. I will need to verify that it's YOUR relative, what degree of relation it was, and that your absence was within the time frame of the death to the committal service.
• If you miss a midterm or final exam, you must notify the Registrar within 48h. The only way that you can get an extension is if a doctor can certify you were unable to make such notification, because you could not write, talk on the telephone, etc. (Usually because you were unconscious, but could also be due to injury.)
• If you fail to make contact, the Registrar has the right to determine what happens to you. At this point, it's out of my hands.

As a final point, "I had to work/I had an appointment" is not an acceptable excuse. You are responsible for ensuring your work schedule and your academic schedule are duly managed. I cannot excuse people for this reason, because classes would become an exercise of processing exceptions - everybody is "busy", after all. So: don't book yourself in for work shifts during classes. Don't book yourself for appointments during classes. Obviously, if you're going in for surgery, you're going to have documentation - I'm talking about appointments for job interviews, student loan issues, etc.

I hope I have been able to keep this clear and logical. If you have any questions, please ask.