Religious Accommodations

Walden University embodies a culturally and spiritually diverse community and recognizes that, on occasion, certain members will observe practices that preclude them from attending to their regular duties. Students who are unable to participate fully in an academic event on a particular day during the calendar event dates for reasons of religious observance (e.g., Sabbath, Friday Prayers) must contact the Office of Equity and Access at equity@adtalem.com at least two months prior to the start of the event.

Walden University makes every effort to provide options for Religious Observation for its students. To avoid possible scheduling conflicts, students are encouraged to review the calendar carefully. Please note that some academic events are scheduled during weekdays to reduce religious conflicts.

Walden Policy

If you have religious traditions that may conflict with the requirements of the academic event (i.e. missing a full day of sessions), you are required to complete additional assignments to make up for the session(s)/day(s) missed. Please contact the Office of Equity and Access at equity@adtalem.com at least two months in advance of the event to discuss religious accommodations.

Student Wellness and Disability Services

Students who require accommodation based on disability should contact Student Wellness and Disability Services at disability@mail.waldenu.edu at least 30 days prior to the event start date to discuss assistance for the event. Students should apply as early as possible as there may be some situations where a request for accommodation is made at a point where appropriate arrangements cannot practicably or reasonably be made.

Accommodations are not applied retroactively. Accommodations for face-to-face events will be reviewed on an individual basis to determine what is reasonable and appropriate.

Virtual Residency Classroom

Access to the virtual residency classroom will be available in your myWalden university portal three weeks prior to the start of the residency. Before the start of the residency, you need to access this classroom to complete residency pre-work, review the residency learning outcomes and assignments, and print or save necessary documents.

Log in to your myWalden university portal to access the residency classroom.

Venue Classroom

For the purpose of any face-to-face experiences, Walden will be utilizing hotel meeting room, convention center and/or hotel suite meeting space as the primary location for your sessions. Due to the layout of the meeting room space, transitioning short distances and/or the use of elevators, stairways or escalators to/from session locations may be required.

In addition, other groups or organizations (private or public, for-profit or non-profit) may be offering an event in meeting spaces adjacent to spaces dedicated for the Walden event. Due to privacy regulations, Walden is not provided other event or group names until arrival at the venue. Walden does not endorse any event, group or organization hosting events in meeting spaces shared with Walden University. Additionally, as you are acting as a representative of Walden University while attending your residency/skills lab/pre-practicum experience, you are expected to comply with standards of professional conduct as specified in the Walden University Student Handbook.

The academic residency/skills lab/pre-practicum experience daily schedule is available through an Event App for in-person events or the Canvas classroom for virtual events. Daily sessions typically begin around 8 or 9 a.m. and last through early evening. The daily schedule will be available approximately two weeks prior to the start of the event. See your registration confirmation email and event website for information about accessing detailed schedule of sessions.

All Walden students, faculty and staff attending academic residencies, intensives, skills labs and/or pre-practicum events must adhere to the Walden University Residency App Terms and Conditions. Event App access is restricted to Walden University students, faculty and staff for personal, educational purposes only.

Complimentary internet access will be available in the meeting space at the event venue.

Internet in sleeping rooms is complimentary for students staying in the Walden room block at the host venue.

In order to prepare your personal computer or laptop for attendance, please make certain you are familiar with the steps to connect to a wireless internet and that you are able to connect wirelessly to another network. Also, be sure your computer is completely charged before attending your first sessions each day of the event. Recharge stations will also be available for you to charge your computer throughout the day. If you need assistance with your computer while you are attending, please contact the Customer Care Team (CCT) at support@mail.waldenu.edu.

In order for the Military Services team to verify your attendance with the VA it is necessary to complete a Residency Statement Form. As a guide to help you complete the form, you can access the information from within your Canvas course room two weeks prior to the event start date.  Please note, there is no deadline to complete this form, however, submitting it early will assist with a timely payment from the VA. 

The VA requires residency attendance to be reported in “completed” clock hours. Please be aware, if you are attending an in-person residency, you must attend a minimum of 18 hours to be considered full time per the VA. If you are attending a virtual residency, please be sure that you complete a minimum of 18 hours per week for weeks 2 and 3 to be considered full time.  Residency attendance qualifies some students to receive the Basic Allowance for Housing (BAH).  The BAH payment rate is determined by the zip code of the school (55401 for Walden) at the rate of E-5 with dependents.  In order to find the payment rate for Walden University please visit the Basic Allowance for Housing page at the Defense Travel Management Office. BAH payments will be prorated base on the required number of days you attend residency. Please note that if you’re active duty, you will not receive the BAH.

If you have questions about your residency, please contact the Academic Residencies at academicresidencies@mail.waldenu.edu. Once your residency attendance has been certified, you will receive a courtesy message from the VA. As a reminder, the VA determines payment and eligibility. If you should have any questions regarding your GI Bill® or VA payments, please contact the VA at #1-888-442-4551 (option 1 then 0) or the Office of Military Services Office: military@mail.waldenu.edu

*GI Bill® is a registered trademark of the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs (VA). More information about education benefits offered by VA is available at the official U.S. government website at http://www.benefits.va.gov/gibill.

• Photo ID (required for check-in).
• Download the Event App to view the daily program schedule. This is available two weeks prior to the start of the event. See your registration confirmation email for access.
• Dress as you would for professional conferences and other professional meetings; business casual is strongly encouraged.
  • Exception: Plan to wear your WaldenGear on the last day of the event.
  • Please be aware that room temperatures in meeting rooms at event venues may vary; therefore, we suggest dressing in layers to allow maximum flexibility in adjusting to the room temperatures.
• Thoroughly review information found under Prepare to Travel and Prepare to Network.
• Typically textbooks are not required for academic residencies. However, in order to get the most out of your experience, please view the list of items needed in your Canvas classroom approximately three weeks prior to the event start date.
• See your registration confirmation email for program specific requirements about what to bring.

At Walden, we are committed to providing you with an exceptional academic experience. To help you plan ahead and be fully prepared for your academic event, follow these helpful tips:

• Register as soon as registration opens, several months prior to the event start date, as seating is limited.
• Attend your required residencies/labs according to the requirements for timing within your program because residencies align with critical courses at strategic points in your program. See Timing and the complete Calendar.
• Thoroughly read your registration confirmation email for the What to Bring and Classroom & Schedule information.
• Notify your online instructors of the dates you will be attending. Be sure to work ahead on course assignments and discussion posts because your time attending the event will be filled with academic sessions, networking, and skill development.
• Become familiar with content in the classroom and complete pre-work (if required).
• Download and access the Daily Schedule Website (for virtual events) or Event App (for in-person events) approximately two weeks before the residency.