College Student with Mono - suggestions?

[Myra]

On his first day of spring break, my college sophomore son's blood work came back positive for mono and strep throat.  So far he has spent the week in bed alternating between sleeping, sweating, fevers, and oh such swollen throat/glands. 

 

So he goes back to college on Sunday.....so any advice on how to handle mono and college?

 

 

Thanks,

Myra

[regentrude]

Contact the Office of Student Affairs (or whatever the equivalent entity is called at his college). They can notify instructors if a student has a prolongued illness.

He should also contact his instructors individually and let them know and ask how they can work with him. Sometimes, even when a syllabus does not have provisions for making up work, an instructor can decide in special cases to accommodate a student. (This is  usually easier in small classes and may not be possible in large enrollment courses)

If it turns out that his illness prevents him from doing classwork for a longer period, find out the rules for a medical Incomplete. With an Incomplete, any work the student has done in a course is "saved" and he only needs to complete the missing work and usually has one year to do that. This is preferable to Withdrawal because it saves all the work and does not cost tuition for retaking the course. At our college, Incomplete agreements are drawn up with each instructor that specify which work the student has to turn in and which exams to make up. Since this is already late in the semester, I would try to negotiate an Incomplete if necessary. Some schools have rules that an Incomplete is only granted if the student is incapacitated during the last three weeks of the semester - so it is worth finding out the exact rules and communicating with instructors.

 

Best wishes to your son and a speedy recovery. I hope he is able to complete the semester and may not need to resort to the Incomplete - but better to find out how things work and not need them.

[Matryoshka]

I got mono in college, and fortunately caught it early.  I think I missed a week or two of classes - can't remember exactly.  I slept a lot, and my mom sent me a care package with extra vitamins and supplements and food.

 

But I know people who have lost a semester or even a year due to mono - I think that's because if you try to power through it, it says ha and kicks your butt.  So my biggest recommendation would to have him rest as much as possible and not push himself back to a full workload before he's ready.

[Bluegoat]

Yes, my advice is don't count on him going back.  If he is still that unwell, he may be very weak for a while and may not be well enough to go back, even taking it easy. Some people can be quite poorly for months. 

 

I would look into how much time he can miss in his classes, and how much time he can realistically miss and get a reasonable mark, and what would be involved in missing the rest of the term.  Usually for illness like this if the term is missed it counts as an incomplete.  Sometimes there may be a possibility of an extention to finish work but that may not be practical depending on the classes.

 

If he is well enough to go back earlier he will have to be very careful about not getting overtired, and eating properly.  If he is living off-campus there may be more considerations like pulling his weight with roommates and getting fed.

 

I would be prepared for anything at this point.

[Myra]

Contact the Office of Student Affairs (or whatever the equivalent entity is called at his college). They can notify instructors if a student has a prolongued illness.

 

Are you referring to the health center?

 

 

Thanks,

Myra

[JennyD]

Are you referring to the health center?

 

 

Thanks,

Myra

 

 

Not regentrude, but I am pretty sure she is referring not to the health center but to the part of the administration that deals with student issues.  For example, at my university this particular situation would be handled through the Dean's office -- specifically, the associate dean for undergraduate education.  Sometimes the point person is called the Dean of Students, or the Dean for Student Affairs.  They handle matters like this all the time and will get in touch with his professors if necessary.

 

FWIW, I had mono during my last semester of college and one of my major regrets is that I just tried to power through.  I thought I was OK enough to finish, but in retrospect it damaged my grades and I would have been much better off taking a leave of absence and finishing up the incompletes over the summer.

 

Hope your son feels better soon! 

 

 

Edited March 18, 2016 by JennyD

[Bluegoat]

 

 

Not regentrude, but I am pretty sure she is referring not to the health center but to the part of the administration that deals with student issues.  For example, at my university this particular situation would be handled through the Dean's office -- specifically, the associate dean for undergraduate education.  Sometimes the point person is called the Dean of Students, or the Dean for Student Affairs.  They handle matters like this all the time and will get in touch with his professors if necessary.

 

FWIW, I had mono during my last semester of college and one of my major regrets is that I just tried to power through.  I thought I was OK enough to finish, but in retrospect it damaged my grades and I would have been much better off taking a leave of absence and finishing up the incompletes over the summer.

 

Hope your son feels better soon! 

 

 

I had the same experience my last semester.  I was given an extra month to get my papers in, and I did, but they were awful.  The fact that I had not taken in much in the term because I was unknowingly ill with momo didn't help.  I am pretty sure my papers made little or no sense.  Luckily my profs were kind and just gave me Bs because I am pretty sure I didn't deserve them.

[G5052]

Yes, depending on the college, it will be Student Affairs or the Dean of Students or something like that. Having a central contact for an issue like this is better. Get a "doctor's excuse" for the professors.

 

Mine came down with flu right after his return from break, but thankfully seems to be recovering now. The doctor gave him an excuse from all assignments for 10 days, and all of the professors said they'd work with him. Today (five days later) is the first day he hasn't had a fever.

[regentrude]

Are you referring to the health center?

 

No. At least at our school, the health center may treat students who are ill, but is not involved in advocating for students with instructors. The Office of Student Affairs is doing that.

[Mom22ns]

 

If it turns out that his illness prevents him from doing classwork for a longer period, find out the rules for a medical Incomplete. With an Incomplete, any work the student has done in a course is "saved" and he only needs to complete the missing work and usually has one year to do that. 

 

The college ds is attending has an incomplete policy that says students have 6 weeks after the start of the next semester to complete the work. No where close to a year, but it could still be enough to save your ds's semester. 

 

Do contact Student Affairs or the equivalent. Do have him email every professor. Do not send him back to school if he is too sick to realistically be successful. It is much better that he stay home long enough to get healthy. Young adults taking care of their own health is an iffy thing. Mono can drag on a long time and the best chance for a relatively quick recovery is excellent care now.

 

:grouphug:

[TechWife]

At my son's school, the process starts at the Student Health Center. They provided him with a letter stating that he had been ill, dates that he was seen at student health and that the physician determined it wasn't feasible for him to attend class for xxx days (I think his said he could only attend intermittently due to the nature of his illness).  He turned that letter in to the Registrar's Office and filled out a form there to request a "medical withdrawal" from one of his classes. That office approved it and forwarded it to the Dean of Students, who approved it and notified the instructor of the drop and the other instructors of the dates of medical absences.  One of his instructors didn't allow him to make up any work (it is a studio class), three other instructors did allow him to make up work. At this particular university, students are only allowed to drop four classes during their time there (after the drop/add period ends). With a "medical withdrawal" the dropped class doesn't count towards that limit. In reality, he could have dropped all of his classes, but things were under control by midterm, so he felt he could pull the remaining four off. 

 

 

[Joules]

I'd agree with everyone to talk to Student Affairs and plan for the worst.  He may be pushing to go back, but it really does take a long time to completely recover.  You finally feel decent, make it to one class, and then sleep for the next 18 hours.  It makes it hard to explain to professors when the work doesn't get done, because you seemed fine that one hour you were awake in class.  I had more than one student push too hard and end up with complications like pneumonia, which then put them yet another quarter behind.

 

 

[Myra]

But on a positive note, my other son just got accepted to his first choice grad school for Masters in Classics!

 

Myra

[TranquilMind]

But on a positive note, my other son just got accepted to his first choice grad school for Masters in Classics!

 

Myra

Congratulations! 

 

I hope your son feels better soon.