<p>Is it crucial to be there for the first class? I know it might sound like a stupid question, but due to a VERY important reason I might have to make a trip back home around September 2-3 for 2-3 days. Would this hurt a lot in terms of missing information given to students in those first few days?</p>
<p>It depends on what courses you're taking. For some classes, it won't matter, but for others, you HAVE to be there. (For example, in the Spanish classes, the students have to attend the first two or three days. If they don't, the students will lose their seats in the course.)</p>
<p>Do you know which courses drop their students if they miss the first or second class? Is there a site where I can find this info? Thanks.</p>
<p>Obviously, students overcome this issue of information being given out only the first day, because every term people add classes after the first meeting. But I think it's a serious handicap because there are always some things that are conveyed that may not be spelled out in the syllabus. Make SURE you get the syllabus ASAP, and try to find someone in the class who can run down other information for you.</p>
<p>I don't know of a website that will give this information to you. I only know the rules regarding Spanish and Classical Civilization courses as those are my majors. </p>
<p>If you/re really worried about missing the first few days, I'd advise you to e-mail your professors to see what they think about the situation.</p>
<p>I would definitely email the professors of all the classes you would be missing to find out if it's ok. Give a legitimate reason and everything.</p>
<p>It happened to me during winter term as flight tickets weren't available on the first few days so I missed the first two days of class but in the end after emailing and following up, everything came out ok. </p>
<p>It is department policy though for classes in languages and English, some of the small seminar classes to drop a student if he/she doesn't attend the first two classes.</p>