Vacation, Holiday, and Absence Policies

All students of the UMass Amherst Dietetic Internship will have at least two weeks of vacations each year. The dates for the fall cohort fall between December 21st and January 5th, and the spring cohort will be individually arranged according to each student’s vacation plans and their rotation schedules.

Although highly unlikely, all students may be required to work on legal holidays at the discretion of the preceptor. Students are responsible for notifying their preceptor of any absence or excessive lateness (more than 10 minutes of expected arrival time). If a student knows of an upcoming absence, they should notify the preceptor in advance and arrange to reschedule the day’s activities. Students are expected to keep to their assigned schedules, except for emergencies or illness. Students who are absent due to illness or personal reasons do not need to make up the day unless instructed by the preceptor. Sufficient hours are built into the program that can account for up to three absences. It is advisable for students to obtain the cell number of their preceptors (if acceptable to the preceptor), for immediate notifications. Students who miss long periods of time (i.e., greater than two weeks) will need to extend their time at that rotation. If a student is not able to extend their rotation, they should plan to spend that time in another rotation to ensure the missed competencies are met. Rescheduling such missed work will be done at the discretion of the preceptors and the program director.

Rotation hour logs must be maintained by students and should be signed by the preceptor at the end of the rotation to document supervised practice hours. Some seminar sessions may count toward the total supervised hours (e.g., coding and billing); therefore, if missed, must be made up.