Liberty University Course Requirements Checklist and first-week attendance

The checklist sits in Module/Week 1 of most online course guides. It asks you to confirm that you have read the course syllabus or guide, understand the policies, and agree to follow them.

The policies it covers usually include the late assignment rules, academic integrity under The Liberty Way, the use of Canvas, and the course's expectations for discussion boards and papers.

It is short and usually worth only a few points. Students sometimes treat it as optional, but it carries weight beyond its points.

Completing it early in week one also gives you a reason to read the course guide properly. That is when you see every major item and its due week.

Some courses pair the checklist with a class introduction forum in the same week. The introduction is a graded discussion item too.

Because the checklist counts as a graded submission, its timing affects both attendance and refunds.

In many guides it appears on the same line as the class introductions, both due by the end of Module/Week 1. Treat the pair as the opening task of the course and finish both in the first two or three days.

Liberty measures online attendance by graded submissions. The catalog defines attendance as any submission of a graded assignment within the enrollment dates of the course.

That means logging in or reading the materials does not count on its own. Attendance is shown by turning something in.

The first week has its own rule. A student who does not submit a gradable item in the first week of the sub-term is dropped from the course.

The catalog lists the kinds of submissions that count: the Course Requirements Checklist, an exam, a written paper or project, or another academic activity.

After week one, attendance continues to matter for financial aid. Long gaps without submissions can affect how aid is calculated if you later withdraw.

The simplest protection is to submit the checklist and the first forum early in week one and to keep turning work in each week after that.

Military students and others with planned absences should tell the instructor in advance. A short note before a deployment or a hospital stay makes later conversations about deadlines far easier.

The checklist also marks a line in the refund schedule. Withdrawing within the first week and before submitting the first assignment, which includes the checklist, credits 100% of tuition.

Once the checklist or another graded item has been submitted, a withdrawal through the end of week two credits 75% instead.

The credit then drops to 50% through week four, 25% through week six, and nothing after week six.

So if you are unsure whether to stay in a course, decide before you submit anything. Reading the guide and the first module costs nothing; the first submission starts the clock.

Students who simply want out before the course begins should drop rather than withdraw. A drop before the sub-term start date is a full refund with nothing on the transcript.

Ask your advisor before acting if financial aid or tuition assistance is involved, because the refund to the account is not the whole picture.

Week one sets the pace for the whole eight weeks. Besides the checklist, most courses open with an introduction forum, the first readings and often a first thread due by the end of the week.

Use the week to build your calendar. Write every due date from the course guide into one place, and mark the weeks that hold a paper, a project part or an exam.

Check the textbook and any access codes. Courses that use McGraw Hill Connect, MindTap or another platform often need registration in week one, and some grade a registration quiz.

Read the rubrics for the large assignments now. Knowing what a final paper will be graded on changes how you read the early modules.

Introduce yourself in the forum with something specific about your work or program. Instructors and classmates remember it, and it makes later replies easier.

If two courses start on the same day, give each its own hour on the first evening. Starting both well is easier than catching up on one later.

Sometimes a student misses week one entirely, through illness, travel or a late registration. If no gradable item is submitted, the course will be dropped under the attendance rule.

If you are dropped and want to stay, contact your advisor quickly. Reinstatement is not guaranteed, and the next start date may be the realistic option.

If you are still enrolled but behind, submit the checklist first. It is quick and secures attendance, and the forum can follow.

Email the instructor about any missed item. Late work is subject to the standard deductions, but an early, honest message often gets a better response.

Students who start a course late sometimes ask for help with the first written items so they can catch up. Threads and papers can be prepared for you to read and submit, while the checklist itself, quizzes and exams stay yours.

From week two on, the usual late assignment rules apply to everything.

Keep a copy of every message about a missed week, including the advisor's reply, so the dates are on record if a refund or reinstatement question comes up later.