Academics
Class Attendance
Mission of Academic Advising at Rhodes
Guidelines for the Student Advisee
Guidelines for the Academic Adviser
Guidelines for the College
Travel Policy for Countries on the Department of State Travel Warning List
Class Attendance
Rhodes, as a residential college of the liberal arts and sciences, considers interactive engagement with other students and the professor, in a structured setting, to be one of the essential and central components of the academic program. Students enrolled at the institution make a commitment to participate fully in their education, which includes attending class. Absenteeism is not to be taken lightly.
Any student who fails to attend the first day of a class without providing prior notice of his or her absence to the instructor of the course or the chairperson of the department may be asked to drop the course upon request of the instructor. The student is responsible for dropping the class officially upon notification that such action has been taken.
Specific attendance policies are set by individual instructors, who state them in the course syllabus and during the first class session. Students are responsible for knowing the attendance policy in each of their courses, for obtaining and mastering material covered during an absence, and for determining, in consultation with the instructor, whether and under what conditions make-up work will be permitted. Faculty should be mindful in setting attendance policies that college-sanctioned activities may require participating students to be off campus and consequently miss class. Faculty are discouraged from penalizing students solely for such absence and should normally, at their discretion, accommodate such a student (e.g., an alternate date for a test.) However, it is the student’s responsibility in undertaking college-sanctioned activities (e.g., varsity athletics, internships, and off-campus competitions connected with courses) to understand that their participation may come at the cost of absences from other courses or even forfeiting credit on certain assignments when making them up is not feasible. If, in accordance with the course policies, the instructor determines that excessive absences are jeopardizing a student’s ability to obtain a passing grade in the course, the instructor may make written request to the Dean of the Faculty that the student be removed from the course with a grade of F. If a student is removed from two or more courses in the same semester for this reason, the student may be asked to withdraw from the College.
Mandatory attendance at events outside of the regularly scheduled class period (e.g., lectures, seminars, concerts) will normally be included in the syllabus at the start of the semester, and will usually include some scheduling flexibility so that students may make informed decisions regarding their co-curricular educational and employment commitments. If exams or additional class sessions are scheduled outside of the regular class period, faculty members will give alternative times so that students may honor out-of-class educational and employment commitments if possible.
Mission of Academic Advising at Rhodes
The mission of academic advising at Rhodes is to promote student learning. Each entering student is assigned an academic adviser, who will function in that capacity until the student formally declares a major. This must be done prior to the registration period of the spring semester of the sophomore year. At that point, a faculty adviser from the major department is assigned to or selected by the student.
Assisted by the academic adviser, the student learns
· To understand the nature of a liberal arts education
· To assess his or her strengths and weaknesses
· To formulate educational and career goals
· To plan a course of action to achieve those goals
Guidelines for the Student Advisee
1. Realize that final responsibility for meeting Degree or Foundation Requirements rests with the student.
2. Prepare adequately for each advising session.
3. Make preliminary course selections prior to registration advising appointments.
4. With the assistance of the adviser and Career Services, clarify personal values, abilities, interests, and goals.
5. Become knowledgeable about and observe institutional policies, procedures, and requirements. This requires a careful reading of the College Catalogue.
6. Contact and make an appointment with the adviser when in need of assistance or when required. If the student finds it impossible to keep the appointment, notify the adviser before the scheduled appointment.
7. Maintain a personal advising folder and take it to every advising appointment. Documents placed in this folder might include grade reports, declaration of major forms, course plan, and other documents related to the student’s academic record.
8. Follow through on actions identified during each advising session.
9. Keep the adviser informed about academic achievements, difficulties, and other factors that could influence the student’s academic career.
10. Declare a major no later than the spring semester of the sophomore year and choose a new adviser if necessary.
11. Evaluate the advising system, when requested, in order to strengthen the advising process.
12. Accept final responsibility for all decisions.
Guidelines for the Academic Adviser
1. Provide a professional, confidential, and caring atmosphere that encourages and respects interaction with students.
2. Keep informed of information and resources that can be used to address questions on academic matters. Participate in educational advising programs offered throughout the year.
3. Be knowledgeable of institutional policies, procedures, and academic requirements. Provide accurate information to assist students in selecting, scheduling, and registering for courses.
4. Stay informed about non-academic resources (e.g., Counseling Center, Career Services, Student Development and Academic Services, etc.).
5. Maintain a confidential file on each advisee showing the student′s academic progress. Forward this file to a new adviser if one is chosen.
6. Post and keep office hours. Be available beyond those times for special appointments.
7. Assist advisees in selecting courses that will satisfy requirements, fit their strengths, and contribute to their career and life goals.
8. Assist advisees in an honest self-assessment of academic strengths, skills, and interests as they make academic decisions.
9. Work with Student Development and Academic Services to monitor advisees′ academic progress and give appropriate advice, encouragement, or assistance if any student is experiencing academic difficulty.
10. Initiate contact with advisees on a regular basis, especially in their first year.
11. Contact and advise students whose academic success is at risk, especially those who have received notifications of deficient work, low mid-term grades, academic probation, and the like.
12. Do not criticize other faculty, staff, or students in the presence of students.
13. Keep a sense of humor.
1. Value academic advising as a necessary extension of the teaching/learning process.
2. Provide ongoing training opportunities for new and continuing advisers.
3. Ensure that academic advising is fully integrated into other programs of the institution (e.g., admissions, orientation, registration, counseling and career planning, etc.).
4. Collect data on the impact of effective advising both on recruitment/retention and as an effective intervention for students in academic difficulty.
5. Develop and implement strategies to evaluate academic advising as part of the faculty′s annual assessment of performance.
6. Communicate academic policies to students and provide supporting rationale for such policies.
Travel Policy for Countries on the Department of State Travel Warning List
Rhodes strongly encourages its students, faculty and staff who are contemplating travel abroad for educational or other purposes to plan well in advance and to take precautions to ensure a safe trip. All travelers should familiarize themselves with political, health, crime, and other safety-related conditions prevailing in any country and specific locations within the country(ies) to be visited. A review of these conditions should be performed by viewing web-based information provided by the U.S. Department of State at http://www.travel.state.gov/ as well as information provided by various other cognizant agencies and governments.
Additionally, the College recommends that its students and their parents consult the comprehensive website offered by HTH Worldwide, a private travel emergency assistance provider engaged by Rhodes to support students who are traveling internationally. HTH Worldwide can be found at http://www.hthworldwide.com/ (see Global Health and Safety Services). This site provides up-to-date information about travel risks of all kinds.
The following provisions apply to all Rhodes students who intend to study abroad or participate in any travel abroad sponsored or funded by Rhodes, or in connection with a trip abroad by a recognized student organization or institution affiliated with the College:
All Rhodes students have primary responsibility for their own safety when traveling internationally, whether or not their travel abroad is funded or sponsored by Rhodes or is accorded credit by Rhodes. Before departure, all students traveling abroad to participate in an internship, undertake research, study abroad in a Rhodes or affiliated program, or participate in a recognized student organization or athletic trip abroad, as individuals or in groups, must provide the College with a statement in a form provided by the College, acknowledging their understanding of the risks of such travel, affirming that they have reviewed and understand the relevant safety-related materials, and stating that they are assuming the risks related to their international travel. Students under the age of 18 must obtain a parental/guardian signature on the form. All student international travel must be pre-approved by the Director of International Programs.
Countries, or areas within a country, placed on the U.S. State Department Travel Warning List fall into one of two levels of severity. Rhodes will not grant or award credit, funding, support or otherwise sponsor any international academic or co-curricular project in any country, or area within a country, for which the U. S. State Department has issued the more severe warning. These include locations for which the U.S. State Department has:
1. Issued a travel warning that orders departure of U.S. dependents and non-emergency personnel;
2. Recommended that U.S. citizens depart the country;
3. Advised U.S. citizens against all travel to the country; or
4. Recommended that U.S. citizens defer non-essential travel to the country.
Additionally, Rhodes students are strongly advised to use caution when traveling to countries for which the U.S. State Department has issued a lesser warning levels or alerts, such as, for example, when the U.S. State Department has:
1. Warned U.S. citizens of the (risks, danger, or potential risks or danger) of travel to the country;
2. Urged U.S. citizens to evaluate carefully their security and safety before traveling to the country;
3. Warned or cautioned U.S. citizens to consider the risks of travel to the country;
4. Cautioned U.S. citizens to take prudent security measures;
5. Urged or warned U.S. citizens to weigh the necessity of travel to the country; or
6. Urged U.S. citizens to exercise extreme caution.
Travel to any country or area for which the U.S. Department of State has issued a lesser warning must have a petition completed and approved in writing by the Director of International Programs and the Dean of the Faculty at least 60 days prior to departure. The Rhodes Travel Abroad Petition may be found in the Downloadable Forms section of the Study Abroad Students website.
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