Family & Medical Emergencies
It is always difficult to be ill, experience an injury, or learn that there has been a family emergency when you are away from home. The information below will provide you with guidance on how to best deal with these stressful situations. The Office of Academic Advising can assist students as they make academic decisions following a medical or family emergency. Please do not hesitate to contact us (336.758.3320) if you, or a student you care about, need academic advice and assistance relating to such situations.
Although the Office of Academic Advising can communicate with your instructors about your medical situation, the instructor ultimately determines what accommodations are appropriate and whether absences are excused.
Family Emergencies
If you have a serious injury or illness of a loved one, please contact the Office of Academic Advising as soon as possible. You should also contact your faculty members to let them know what has happened and how long you plan to be away from campus. The Office of Academic Advising is available to follow up with your faculty members after your initial contact with them to update them on your situation. We are also available if your situation may cause you to want to make adjustments to your academic schedule. The Office of the Chaplain is also available to assist students dealing with these types of situations.
Personal Medical Emergencies
Seek Urgent Care
Access the medical care that you require. In cases of emergency, call Campus Police (336.758.5911) or 911. Students may seek medical assistance at on-campus resources, including Deacon Health (336.758.5218) and the University Counseling Center (336.758.5218).
Communicate directly with your faculty
If you are ill and will be absent from class for a day or two, email your faculty directly to let them know why you are absent and what you plan to do to stay on top of or make up assignments. If you can’t develop a plan on your own, request a meeting to talk with them as soon as you are able to return to class.
Communicate with the University only when necessary due to severe illness
If your illness will have a significant impact on your academic engagement (e.g., missing multiple days of class, hospitalization), you can ask your medical or mental health provider to provide information about your need to be absent from class. Contact Medical Requests (medicalrequests@wfu.edu) to begin this process.
If appropriate, Medical Requests will then contact the Office of Academic Advising, and OAA will notify your faculty members about your medical situation. Keep in mind that faculty are not required to excuse absences or make special arrangements due to student illness, but it may be helpful for instructors to receive formal verification of your situation. Please do not send private medical documents directly to faculty.
What options are there if emergencies or illnesses are ongoing and make it difficult or impossible to keep up with my academic obligations?
In case of chronic illness or emergencies that require extended absences, we ask that students please inform their faculty members, academic advisors, and our office. In such instances, students should meet with one of our Academic Advisors to discuss options such as Continuous Enrollment Status (CES), Incompletes, and other options found under the “Academic Exceptions” and “Enrollment Status” tabs on our homepage.