Academic Engagement Within Class Policy

Classes for a student who receives a UF grade will be administratively dropped or withdrawn by VCU. Effective spring 2025, students who receive a UF grade in all of their classes will be subsequently administratively dropped from those classes. Students who receive a UF grade in some, but not all, of their classes will be administratively withdrawn from those classes with UF grades. A student is still financially responsible for payment of the classes.

Background:

The Academic Engagement Within a Class Policy can be found here:

https://policy.vcu.edu/doctract/documentportal/08DC169A26F2910230A59225A39C99F7

Essentially, a student who does not demonstrate academic engagement within an enrolled class is considered by the Department of Education to not have attended the class.

Class engagement can be measured many ways and can include one or more of the following actions from a student during the semester:

• Conduct activity within online synchronous or asynchronous class modality with the instructor or students such as posting comments on discussion boards, asking questions, submitting assignments, attending electronic class/meeting rooms, completing polls or surveys or live chatting.
• Attend an in-person class where there is an opportunity for direct interaction between the instructor and students.
• Attend or participate in lecture, recitation, field, internships, clinical or laboratory assignments where there is an opportunity for direct interaction between the instructor or students.
• Submit one or more class assignments.
• Submit one or more exam, quiz or other assessments.
• Conduct activity within an interactive tutorial, webinar, pre-recorded video or other interactive computer-assisted instruction.
• Participate in a presentation, study group or group project that is assigned by the instructor.
• Interact with an instructor about academic matters in which the student is enrolled and the subject of the course.
• Log into an online class and post a comment on a discussion board, ask a question, submit an assignment, attend an electronic meeting room, complete a poll or survey, initiate contact (including live chat) with an instructor to ask a course-related question. (Logging into an online class, without any other action, is not considered attendance or engagement within a class according to the Department of Education).

How will academic engagement within class be measured?

Instructors will determine at the midpoint class calendar date each semester if a student has not demonstrated any academic engagement within class as described above. A UF midterm grade notation will be updated within eServices for each student by the instructor if a student is not demonstrating academic engagement within class.

For more information on how this impacts your bill and financial aid package:

Academic advisors and financial counselors within the Student Financial Management Center can help answer questions. Students are encouraged to reach out for assistance to assess how UF grades may also affect financial aid satisfactory academic progress (SAP).