To answer the op’s question it really depends I the professor. My science and math professor’s have been really accommodating with taking tests ahead of time for random reasons (robotics competitions etc.). They were also accommodating with homework by letting me turn a copy in through email then handing a physical copy in late. Labs are tricky but usually you can make one up during the term. Sometimes they’ll let you have copies of your lecture notes too.
HOWEVER, on the other side of the spectrum you have people like my history teacher who wouldn’t let me make up a quiz after being in the ER and having a doctor’s note. She did drop the lowest grade as a lot of teachers do, but it gives you less leeway.
So, it depends. I would recommend making friends with good notetakers in every class because lecture content is super important.
Can you plan the trip around a 3 day weekend? That would minimize days missed.
Also, keep in mind that a lot of professor’s like saying important stuff on Fridays because fewer people show up.
I wouldn’t equate a robotics competition with a social visit. A robotics competition is a legitimate reason to be away - just like presenting at an undergraduate research conference would be.
@snowfairy137 - love your story! And I have to laugh, as my husband did teach with a broken arm once - took him 24 hours to get it checked out. The broken collarbone was another story… although he did call me from the hospital the night he broke the collarbone to make sure I’d call the department chair!
@InigoMontoya To be fair I also rescheduled a test for a robotics social, skipped 9 Mondays in math because I had a lab at the same time and skipped 3 math classes to go to Boston (to visit colleges). Scheduling is weird when you’re technically a high school junior who is taking classes at two different colleges one on the quarter system and one on the semester system. I have a 3.98 college GPA with my only non 4.0 being in a class I never missed. Of course, if I had to, I would put taking those tests first, but I didn’t have to.
OP: If you’re doing well in your classes and not missing class otherwise this MAY be possible depending on how nice your professors are and how much work you’re willing to put in. It’s not a smart idea if you’re struggling at all though.
“It’s not a smart idea if you’re struggling at all though.”
Since OP is not in university yet, it is probably not possible to be sure whether OP will be struggling at all.
OP should note that university is going to be significantly more difficult than high school.
Another option, if you have internet wherever you’re going, is to do most of your classes online the first semester.
Missing a week is really hard. Regardless of what the professor thinks about absences (usually attendance counts heavily in seminars but doesn’t matter as much for large lectures), the material moves at a fast pace. If you take a week off, you will have a very hard time catching back up and your grades will almost certainly suffer. I had to take three days off for a research conference my sophomore year and it took me a couple of weeks to fully get back on track even though I spent most of my free time at the conference studying.
October is also prime time for midterms. I remember having at least one midterm per week from mid-October until the beginning of December. Professors usually only allow make-up midterms in case of serious injury/illness or family emergencies. If you’re lucky, your professor will have a policy of dropping the lowest midterm. Otherwise, missing a midterm will completely tank your grade. If you really NEED to take a week off of classes, you need to do very thorough research about the classes you are taking, their midterm policies (bear in mind that the exam schedule might change!), and their attendance policies. You must also be prepared to spend a significant portion of that week studying and for your grades to suffer.
You said this visit was to someone very important in your life. Options: visit before classes begin or change your plans in November.
It could be an important birthday or celebration for this person.
If I were OP, I would wait until the school starts before making any travel arrangement. He/she could then ask his professors to see how accommodating they would be. He would then also know if he is going to miss anything important. If he is taking many humanities courses then it could mean more papers than tests. As a STEM major, it may be more difficult with labs, tests, etc.
I have missed some friends’ weddings, birthdays, and other celebrations because of work. Now looking back, I don’t remember what work I was doing, but I do wish I had made more of a point to be there for some of those events. I think school work is important, but if it is important for OP to be there for someone important in his/her life then I hope he/she could make it happen.
OP - there will be consequences in your decision and only you could decide whether it would be worth it.
If this is going to be your very first semester of college I would give transitioning to college level academic work my first priority because you don’t want to mess up your whole semester for a one week trip. Is this some family function (wedding) you want to attend or a more serious matter? How flexible your professor’s are will depend on the reason for the absence.
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See if there is another way to visit this person. Can you do it another time? Can they come to you? It is a very bad idea to do this, but if you must, try to use the minimum amount of time to achieve your goal and then get back.
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Immediately go to the Professor’s office hours during the first week of school and tell them what you are doing and why (there should be some benefit for it for you or you should explain why this is the only option). Talk to them about taking test/quizzes early or any other arrangements.
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Look at the syllabus and do your work early. Read the chapters ahead of time. Do the homework ahead of time. Go to office hours if you have questions.
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Make friends with people in your classes and find people to share notes. “Hi, my name is Razimov. Want to exhange contact info in case either of us miss class and need to share notes?”
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See if you can form a study group for your class…
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For 3) and 4), make sure that you are helpful to them before you need their notes…then let them know what is happening and ask for their notes…Copy them immediately and return them immediately.
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Before you leave, check in again with the professor
One teacher may allow it, another may not.
I don’t think my kids have missed more than a couple of classes each during the 3 years they’ve been in school. One is an athlete and even the coach schedules trips around school. Her freshman year, they’d leave around 9 am on Fridays so they could take the math quizzes before they left.
I agree with a poster above who said if this trip is so important, take a gap year. If not, go to class.
Have you checked to see what your college’s policy on attendance is? Some are more strict than others and will ding your grade after a certain number. Also, missing class and missing tests can be two different things. Even if professor doesn’t take attendance and therefore doesn’t care if you come to lectures, he/she isn’t likely to give you a break if there is a quiz or test planned. As others have pointed out, this sounds like prime mid-term timing.
One issue I don’t think I’ve seen directly addressed here: If you’re taking five classes, you have five different professors. (Even if two have the same professor, they may be different enough classes that for the purposes of this discussion it’s as if different people were teaching them.) Like others have said, much of this depends on the professor and the professor’s own policies—but having all five be willing to make accommodations for a personal trip? That’s Powerball-winning-level likelihood.
But even if you win the lottery, speaking as a professor, I concur with everyone who says this is a very, very bad idea. The odds that this will do damage to your learning process (and therefore your ability to perform well in later courses) is quite high.
FWIW - Rarely is there such unanimity of opinion on CC.
No, I am a dissident on this. Both of my kids have missed Thanksgiving week consistently to go on family vacations. They planned ahead and they were doing well enough that the professors were not concerned. My nephew also took a week off in April of this year to go back to Asia with my mother for her 80th birthday.
I think it is doable if it is planned well.
Assuming a traditional class schedule, that’s 13 classes. Quite an expensive vacation.
Again echoing that there may be grade deductions involved. I only allow 3 free absences in the courses I teach before students’ grades go down. So, if you miss 3 while you’re away and get sick before or after, your grade could be in jeopardy.
It’s important to take school seriously, and thinking that missing an entire week of school is fine is not taking it seriously. Students do better when they come to class, so unless it’s an absolute emergency, I would also highly recommend to reschedule the trip or rethink being in school this fall.