Makeup work policy change

The Senate Committee on Educational Policy and the Policy Advisory Committee has recently recommended changes to the policy on MakeUp Work for Legitimate Absences. If given final approval, there will be two changes to the policy: (1) official student representatives’ attendance at required University governance meetings such as Board of Regents meetings will be a legitimate excused absence, and (2) instructors will be prohibited from requiring verification for single-episode medical absences, such as a cold that causes a student to miss a single class.

TransForms pilot

The Office of Information Technology (OIT) and University colleges are partnering with Academic Support Resources to pilot TransForms, a new product that could help create efficiencies in electronic form submissions for University students and staff. In this pilot, staff are creating two electronic forms: Cost of Attendance Appeal (both for both graduate and undergraduate students), and Request to Change Graduation Date for Undergraduates. If successful, this product could be used for other forms in the future. ASR anticipates the launch for the two pilot forms to be later this spring.

Request: only one student per email

Effective immediately, Graduate Student Services and Progress (GSSP) is asking that documents for multiple students be submitted in separate emails to gssp@umn.edu (in other words, one student per email). This change is an effort to better align GSSP business practices with FERPA best practices.

Cance/add refund chart on One Stop

In December, we published a chart with cancel/add and refund dates to the One Stop website. You can find a link to the chart from Dates and deadlines. The chart provides similar information to the chart that used to be on the old One Stop site, however modifications have been made to the display of information based on accessibility needs and overall design standards for the new site.

Form updates for GSSP

Graduate Student Services and Progress (GSSP) has recently updated the graduate forms listed below. The changes range anywhere from general reformatting to modifying the language and information on the form to reflect the most recent business practices. The forms are available on the Graduate School site, or you can use the links below. Email gssp@umn.edu with any questions.

• ​​Language Department Certification of Foreign Language Proficiency (OTR192)
• Graduate Program Certification of Foreign Language Proficiency (OTR193)
• Letter of Certification Request Form (OTR196)
• Thesis or Dissertation Hold Request (OTR197)

FERPA Q&A

Q: We would like to publish a list of students on the Dean’s list. How should I handle this for students that have suppressed their information?

A: Student's names and honors/awards are public information and can be published, unless they have selected directory or full suppression of their records. In that case, you should not publish their information unless you have the student’s written permission.