HU international graduate students in F-1 status are required by United States immigration laws to be continually enrolled in a full-time status. At HU, this requires maintaining a six-credit course load in every semester of enrollment.

 

Per SEVIS guidelines, F-1 students must attend their classes for every scheduled executive session in which they are registered as well as maintain satisfactory academic progress as defined by HU’s graduate catalog. 

 

The executive session schedule is announced well in advance and students should plan accordingly: Executive Format Weekend Schedule. For more information on your class schedule, please consult the Records & Registration office by submitting a ticket via their support portal. 

 

If you are an F-1 student and fail to attend your in-person class, the following action will be taken:

            

 

NOTE ABOUT ATTENDING THE FIRST CLASS: New students arriving in the US must attend the first executive session of the semester. Any student who does not physically attend the first executive session, will have their Initial I-20 cancelled, and you will need to depart the US.


Students are expected to be registered on time and attend all sessions for the course(s) they are enrolled in. Please be sure to register on time and/or early in order to be registered in your preferred courses and sections.


Review the Academic Calendar to determine when registration will open for the upcoming semesters.


Please also note:

  • If a student changes courses before the add/drop period, the missed class will be counted as an absence in the new course and an attendance warning email will be sent to both the student and employer (if applicable). Attendance is not transferrable between classes.
  • If a student registers late for a class and the date of the first class meeting has passed, the student will accumulate an absence for the missed class. It is the student's responsibility to be registered for classes on time.
  • If a student is registered for two or more executive courses, the student is expected to attend all sessions for all the courses. Attendance is taken and accumulated for each class separately from one another.

As an F1 student, you must ensure that your in-person attendance is accounted for. You must communicate with your instructor if you are unsure whether your attendance was recorded accurately.

 

Please also regularly check your attendance records for accuracy. You can find your attendance records in Canvas by navigating to the "Attendance+" option on the course page.


If you know you will miss a class, please do the following:

  • Contact your professor to see how your absence will impact your grade. (Please remember that even if your professor excuses your absence in terms of your grade, it will still be counted as an absence in regard to your F-1 status and you will still receive a warning email.)
  • Collect documentation for your own records related to the reason for your absence. You may need to provide this information to the U.S. government at a later time. Please see below. 
  • Consider carefully that even one absence may negatively impact the following situations:
    1. Travel and reentry to the U.S.
    2. Requests to SEVP to correct your SEVIS record, 
    3. Applications to USCIS for OPT, H1B, Green Card and other statuses


Please remember that F1 students are expected to attend classes in-person and maintain a full-time status. Although, HU will not terminate your F1 status after the first absence, it may cause other negative consequences. 


Important: If your SEVIS record is terminated, documented evidence must be submitted for review no later than one week after date of the warning/termination email. Evidence submitted after this date will not be considered. 


If you are suffering from a medical condition that will require you to miss multiple classes, you will need to apply for a Medical Reduced Course Load to avoid termination. You can find out more information here: Reduced Course Load Overview  It is very important to note that you cannot work while on an RCL. If you want to maintain your CPT authorization, you must attend the in-person classes.



Note: If your SEVIS record is terminated and you file for reinstatement or an alternative immigration status after termination in SEVIS, it is your responsibility to secure and pay for private immigration counsel to assess what options are available to regain a legally recognized immigration status, as well as take appropriate legal steps to achieve a recognized immigration status.