# Attendance & Absence Request Policy and Request Form Absence Requests should be submitted *at least* 4 weeks in advance of the first day of the clerkship (this does not pertain to illness or death in the family). It is the responsibility of the Clerkship Director to approve excused absences. To Request an Absence For More Information about this Policy --- # Agent Instructions: Querying This Documentation If you need additional information that is not directly available in this page, you can query the documentation dynamically by asking a question. Perform an HTTP GET request on the current page URL with the `ask` query parameter: ``` GET https://ismms-md-program.gitbook.io/medinfoapp/student-resources-and-policies/attendance-and-absence-request-policy-and-request-form.md?ask= ``` The question should be specific, self-contained, and written in natural language. The response will contain a direct answer to the question and relevant excerpts and sources from the documentation. Use this mechanism when the answer is not explicitly present in the current page, you need clarification or additional context, or you want to retrieve related documentation sections.