College vs. High School: Class Attendance

Attending class is mandatory in high school. Skipping class may have led to a detention or a phone call home. In college, class attendance is frequently a decision. Some professors have strict policies, in which missing more than one or two classes can cause your grade to drop a full letter grade. Some professors have a more lenient policy, but a policy nevertheless. Attendance may factor into your grade if you are on the border of two letter grades, or it may only be included if attendance is unacceptable. Other professors have no policy, as long as you take all the exams and turn in all the assignments, your grade will not be affected by attendance. These variances lead to a lot of differences in the amount of time students spend in class.

Many students are tempted to not attend classes where it is not mandatory. Your grade may not be directly affected, but it will be indirectly. Professors give information in class that is not always in the notes or the textbook. They can also fill in any gaps from the readings that may be unclear. Every time you skip class, you are wasting money that you are paying to be in classes, and could be wasting more money by getting bad grades which could lead to retaking the class.

Consider the consequences of skipping class. They are both financial and academic, and could profoundly affect your future career.