To request an absence notification at SIUE, fill out the Absence Letter Request Form on the Dean of Students website at siue.edu/student-affairs/dean-of-students/absence-letters.shtml. The form is how you ask the Dean of Students office to notify your professors that you missed class for a significant reason, such as a hospitalization, a death in the family, or jury duty. One thing to understand up front: the letter is a notification, not an excuse. Your instructors still decide how to handle missed work.
What the Absence Letter Actually Does
The Dean of Students office lists “academic notifications for absences from class or academic stress” among its core student services.1Southern Illinois University Edwardsville. Dean of Students – Student Affairs When your request is approved, the office emails your instructors confirming that you experienced a legitimate disruption. That gives you credibility when you ask about makeup work. It does not change a grade, extend a deadline, or override an attendance policy.
SIUE’s Class Attendance Policy keeps those decisions with individual instructors. The policy says students are responsible for learning each instructor’s attendance rules and “making arrangements satisfactory to instructors with regard to missed coursework.”2Southern Illinois University Edwardsville. Class Attendance Policy – 1I9 So the letter opens the conversation. You still have to have it.
What to Have Ready Before You Open the Form
Gather these pieces first so you can finish the form in one sitting:
- Your University ID, the nine-digit 800 number you use to log into CougarNet. If you have forgotten it, call the Student Service Center at 618-650-2080.3Southern Illinois University Edwardsville. ISS – Arrival at SIUE – How to Obtain a SIUE Email Account (e-ID)4Southern Illinois University Edwardsville. FAQs – About – Alumni
- The exact dates of your absence, including every day you missed or expect to miss.5Southern Illinois University Edwardsville. Absence Letters – Student Affairs
- A brief reason, such as hospitalization, bereavement, or jury duty.
- The names or sections of the courses affected, so the office knows which instructors to contact.
Supporting documents strengthen your request. Useful options include a funeral program or obituary for bereavement, military orders for service obligations, a court summons for jury duty, or a provider’s note confirming medical treatment dates. A medical note should confirm the dates you were unable to attend without listing a diagnosis. Your professors don’t need that information, and the Dean of Students office works within student privacy guidelines.
After You Submit
The Dean of Students office reviews your request and, if the circumstances warrant it, emails the instructors you listed. Any response to you comes through your SIUE email, so check it regularly after submitting.
Even after the letter goes out, contact each instructor yourself. Makeup rules vary by professor. Some will accept late work with no penalty, some will offer an alternative assignment, and some will drop the lowest grade. The sooner you reach out after returning to class, the better your chances. Waiting until the end of the semester to mention an absence letter almost never works.
When the Absence Letter Isn’t the Right Tool
Two situations call for a different process.
Absences for Official University Business
If you’re missing class for a university-sponsored activity like an athletic event, a music or theater production, an academic field trip, or Student Senate business, Policy 1I8 covers you instead. Under that policy, you can be excused for up to 15 percent of a course’s scheduled contact hours as long as you and the sponsoring unit notify the instructor in writing at least one week before the absence.6Southern Illinois University Edwardsville. Absence from Class for Official University Business – 1I8 Instructors who grade on attendance cannot count those absences against you. You are still responsible for the coursework.
Medical Leave for the Rest of the Semester
The absence letter is built for short disruptions of a few days to about a week. If a medical or mental health condition makes it impossible to continue the semester, the Medical Leave of Absence process under Policy 3C16 is the formal route, and it can result in withdrawal from all courses for the term, sometimes retroactively.
The application has three parts:
- A written statement explaining the purpose of the leave, how you plan to use the time, and the steps you’ll take to address the condition. For retroactive requests, explain why you couldn’t withdraw on time.
- A privacy authorization giving the Medical Leave of Absence Team permission to share information with the Dean of Students and the Vice Chancellor for Student Affairs.
- Provider documentation covering your relevant medical history, approximate onset date, how the condition affects your functioning at the university, current treatment, and a treatment plan for the leave period.7Southern Illinois University Edwardsville. Student Rights and Conduct – Medical Leave of Absence and Retroactive Medical Leave of Absence – 3C16
A review team evaluates the documentation and, if approved, recommends the leave to the Dean of Students, who sends the decision to your university email.7Southern Illinois University Edwardsville. Student Rights and Conduct – Medical Leave of Absence and Retroactive Medical Leave of Absence – 3C16 Use the absence letter for shorter disruptions and save this route for when returning to class genuinely isn’t possible.
Attendance Rights the Form Doesn’t Handle
Two federal laws create attendance protections that apply regardless of any syllabus policy, and both run outside the absence letter process.
If you are pregnant or recovering from childbirth, Title IX requires SIUE to excuse your absences for as long as your doctor says is necessary. When you return, the university must restore your prior academic standing and let you make up missed work. If a course grades on attendance or participation, you must be allowed to earn those points back.8U.S. Department of Education. Know Your Rights: Pregnant or Parenting? Title IX Protects You From Discrimination at School
If you have a disability, the ADA and Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act may entitle you to modified attendance requirements as a reasonable accommodation. SIUE must provide individually designed accommodations unless doing so would fundamentally change the nature of the course.9ADA National Network. What Are a Public or Private College-University’s Responsibilities to Students With Disabilities? These accommodations go through SIUE’s disability services office, not the Dean of Students absence letter process. Contact that office early in the semester if you expect attendance to be an issue.
If Absences Start Affecting Your Financial Aid
Missing enough class can trigger a Return of Title IV Funds calculation. Under updated federal regulations effective July 1, 2026, institutions that track attendance must determine a student has withdrawn no later than 14 days after the last recorded attendance date, then calculate and return any unearned federal aid within set deadlines.10Federal Student Aid. Implementation of Return of Title IV Funds (R2T4) Regulations Effective July 1, 2026
If you’re missing a lot of class and thinking about not coming back, withdraw officially rather than just disappearing. An unofficial withdrawal from non-attendance can leave you owing money back to the federal government. The Dean of Students office works with students on financial concerns and emergency funding alongside absence notifications, so it’s a reasonable first call if you’re not sure what to do.1Southern Illinois University Edwardsville. Dean of Students – Student Affairs