Spring 2026 Syllabus Policies

Course Prerequisites and Placement

Prior to enrollment in a course in the Department, a student must have completed the course prerequisites or have proper placement for the course. It is the student’s responsibility to check that they are properly enrolled in a course and to drop the course if they are not. Failure to do so could result in the student receiving no credit for the course. The department may cancel student’s registration in a course in which they are not properly enrolled. It is students’ responsibility to monitor their own enrollment.

Administrative Drops

A student may be administratively dropped through the 7th business day (January 21, 2026) from a course by the instructor if the student meets either of the two following criteria: (1) has not met the prerequisites for the course as stated in the academic catalog, or (2) is absent one or more times from class during the first four business days of the semester.

Class Attendance

Students are expected to assume full responsibility for class attendance and are accountable for work missed because of absences. Instructors are under no obligation to make special arrangements for students who have been absent unless such absence has been excused by a formal institutional excuse. Institutional excuses permit a student to be absent from classes to represent the University in athletics and extracurricular or academic activities. Institutional excuses must be hand-delivered to the instructor and arrangements made for the work missed prior to the planned absence from class.

Adding/Dropping/Auditing a Course

The last day to add a class is January 22, 2026. The last day to add to a waitlist is January 21, 2026. The last day to drop/delete a course (without the class appearing on your transcript) is January 22, 2026. The last day to drop a course (and receive a W) is May 1, 2026. Academic policy requires that a student who never attended class or stopped attending class receive an F should the student fail to officially drop the course. The deadline to change from credit to audit or vice versa is January 22, 2026. Once a student has registered and completed a class as an auditor, the audit grade cannot be changed to a credit-earning grade. The grade of AU is awarded to auditors for satisfactory attendance. More information can be found in the NAU Catalog.

The Grade of Incomplete

A student, who, for reasons beyond the student’s control, is unable to complete course requirements during the instructional period, may make a request to the instructor for a grade of Incomplete (I). The student must be passing the course and must have completed a majority of the course. Before a grade of I can be given the student and instructor must complete the official department form indicating the work to be completed, as well as the date(s) by which the work must be completed. All work must be completed within one year. After one year, a grade of I automatically reverts to a grade of F.

Final Examinations

Final examinations are required in all classes and must be given at the scheduled times and dates indicated in the university final exam schedule. An exception to the official final examination schedule can be made if a student is scheduled to take more than two examinations in a 24-hour period. For more information, see the Final Exam Schedule (MS Word file).

NAU Policy Statements

Additional institutional Syllabus Policy Statements can be found on the Academic and Faculty Affairs Syllabus Requirements page.

Department Policy on Use of Portable Electronic Devices

Cell phones, mp3 players and portable electronic communication devices, including but not limited to smart phones, cameras, and recording devices must be turned off and inaccessible during in-class knowledge assessments. Any violation of this policy will be treated as a violation of the student academic integrity policy.