To: Students on the Quarter System
From: N. John DiNardo, Ph.D., Senior Vice Provost for Academic Affairs
Subject: Academic News and Key Policy Reminders for the Winter Quarter 2011 - 2012
Date: 6 January 2012
Welcome to the Winter Quarter at Drexel!
- Winter Quarter classes begin on Saturday, January 7 for Saturday Scholars
- Winter Quarter classes begin on Monday, January 9 for all other full-time and part-time students
Please review news, key policies, and dates for the upcoming quarter.
IMPORTANT ANNOUNCEMENTS
CRITICAL DATES
IMPORTANT POLICY REMINDERS
KEY POLICIES & PRACTICES
IMPORTANT ANNOUNCEMENTS
New Satisfactory Academic Progress (SAP) Policy
Effective July 1, 2011 Drexel has updated its SAP policy in accordance with federal guidelines. The new policy mandates that students maintain the following two requirements in order to be eligible to receive federal financial aid.
- Undergraduate students must maintain a cumulative GPA of at least 2.0
- Undergraduate students must complete the appropriate percent of all courses attempted since enrollment. See the below table:
| Earned Credits | Registered Completion % |
| 0—89.5 credits | 60% |
| 90—129.5 credits | 70% |
| 130+ credits | 80% |
Students who do not meet these requirements will lose their federal financial aid. For more information on SAP please visit the SAP policy website.
New Classroom Suite - One Drexel Plaza Garden Terrace
This Fall we are pleased to welcome more new Drexel students than we ever have. Classroom space has been at a premium and to provide new options to accommodate new students, a beautiful new classroom suite in the Garden Level of One Drexel Plaza has been built. In addition to classrooms, there is also study space available.
To visit the new location, please take the 3101 Market St. entrance (to the left just before the Drexel labeled railroad trestle on Market Street). Make sure you have your Drexel ID to gain entrance into the space. Follow the signs to the end of the hall and take the stairs in front of you down 2 flights. When you reach the bottom of the stairs, take a left turn and follow the hallway, taking another left at the end of the next hallway until you see the sign and double door entrance to the Garden Level Classrooms. A navigation map is available at Registrar's website.
Course Withdrawal
Withdrawing from courses may impact your academic progression and financial aid awards. Before withdrawing from class, students are urged to review the impact of withdrawal on their program plan, particularly if withdrawing from critical pre-requisite courses. Students should also contact the SRC/Financial Aid Office to determine the potential consequences of withdrawal on fulfillment of federal financial aid criteria. Further information on federal financial aid criteria can be accessed at Drexel’s Satisfactory Academic Progress policy.
International Students and Course Withdrawal
According to federal regulations, international students must always maintain full-time status. The University Registrar reports as part-time, undergraduate students who fall below 12 credits and graduate students who fall below 9 credits. Therefore, undergraduate international students who fall below 12 credits; and graduate international students who fall below 9 credits due to course drop in weeks 1 and 2 will be reported to USCIS as “Out of Status” immediately following the adjustment period, by the office of International Students and Scholars Services (ISSS).
International students are advised to coordinate with the Office of International Students and Scholar Services (ISSS).
DegreeWorks - Powerful Degree Audit Tool
DegreeWorks is a web-based academic advising system for degree audit and course planning. DegreeWorks assists students in reaching their academic goals and better understand degree requirements by providing a clear picture of courses required and courses completed. All undergraduate students have had access to DegreeWorks since September 2008 and graduate students have had access since September 2010.
Students, faculty and professional advising staff access DegreeWorks through DrexelOne. There are graphic advising worksheets within DegreeWorks showing options for all requirements, helping students and advisors determine academic progress and providing information to help with registration decisions. Students contemplating major changes can run what-if scenarios to see how completed courses apply to other majors.
DegreeWorks provides access to multiple services through hyperlinks: SRC, Drexel BlueLine, Term Master Schedule, AskDrexel, DegreeWorks help, catalog pages and lists of Writing Intensive Courses.
For more information, please visit the Quick Start Guide to DegreeWorks.
Graduating Seniors
Graduating seniors can apply for degree starting the summer before their senior year through to the application deadlines listed on the SRC Graduation Page by completing and submitting an Application for Degree via DrexelOne. Indicating one’s senior status by applying for a degree prior to the start of senior year will assist in assessing accurate billing for your final year at Drexel.
Wait-listing for Courses at Capacity
Colleges will identify courses for which they want to implement wait-listing. When students register into a wait-listed course which has reached capacity they will be placed on a waitlist and notified by email of their placement on the waitlist. As more students are added to the list, a new section may be created at a time that best accommodates student schedules. Students will be notified that they have indeed been added to the newly created course by email. This capability enables departments and colleges to better anticipate and plan for course schedule needs each term.
CRITICAL DATES
Academic Calendar 2011 - 2012
The Academic Calendar provides detailed information regarding important academic deadlines; critical SCDC/Co-operative education dates; and University holidays in particular. Please note the following academic deadlines:
Course Add/Drop/Withdraw
Quarter Term Courses
Course Add/Drop
- Friday, January 20 by 5:00 PM with Academic Advisor Assistance
- Sunday, January 22 by 11:00 PM via Drexel One
Classes During Co-op
- Registration for students on Co-op for the Winter quarter is open from January 3 until the end of the add/drop period. It is important to understand the guidelines that apply to the Classes during Co-op policy so that you do not incur additional charges to your bill
Course Withdrawal
- Friday, February 17 by 5:00 PM
Students should have an assessment of their performance by the end of Week 5 and before the course withdrawal deadline. Students should be aware of financial aid policies when considering drop and withdrawal (see Satisfactory Academic Progress policy).
Accelerated Courses
Course Add/Drop
Term A
- Friday, January 13 by 5:00 PM with an Academic Advisor (Part of Term A)
- Sunday, January 15 by 11:00 PM via Drexel One (Part of Term A)
Term B
- Friday, February 17 by 5:00 PM with an Academic Advisor (Part of Term B)
- Sunday, February 19 by 11:00 PM via Drexel One (Part of Term B)
Course Withdrawal
Term A
- Friday, January 27 by 5:00 PM
Term B
- Friday, March 2 by 5:00 PM
Saturday Scholars
Course Add/Drop
Term A
- Friday,January 13 by 5:00 PM with an Academic Advisor (Part of Term A)
Term B
- Friday, February 24 by 5:00 PM with an Academic Advisor (Part of Term B)
Course Withdrawal
Term A
- Friday, January 27 by 5:00 PM
Term B
- Friday, March 9 by 5:00 PM
Closed Section Overrides
In the event that a course has reached its maximum capacity as established by the Office of the University Registrar and the department offering the course, a student must appeal to be added into the course, that is appeal to override the established maximum capacity for the course section. Authorization to add a student to a section that has exceeded maximum enrollment capacity must be secured by Thursday, January 19, 2012.
The appeal to be overridden into a course must be advanced to the collegiate advisor or Dean's Office. The appeal will be reviewed against established criteria for override consideration (review criteria for override consideration). If the student meets the criteria, he or she must then complete an Add/Drop/Withdraw form and obtain the instructor's signature for the course.
The instructor's signature on this form is provided as an indication that the addition of the student will not negatively impact his/her ability to achieve learning goals for the course and that the seating capacity of the room has not been exceeded. An instructor's signature is not final approval.
Once the instructor's signature is secured, the student must return the Add/Drop/Withdraw form to his/her Advisor.
Holds
A student who has not registered for a course by the add deadline will not be permitted to attend that course after the end of the second week. Accordingly, students must resolve all "holds" on their record by the established deadline.
Those students whose accounts have been placed on hold are prohibited from sitting in courses for which they are not registered. Students placed on hold cannot add courses or participate in co-op until the circumstances contributing to the hold are resolved. Students on hold have until the end of the adjustment period (Friday, January 20, 2012 at 5:00 PM) to resolve the hold placed on their account in order to add courses or participate in co-op by the deadline.
"Being on hold" during the adjustment period is not considered an acceptable reason for a late or retroactive add.
To resolve a financial hold, students are encouraged to visit the Student Resource Center in Main Building, Room 222 to explore financing options.
Student Progress
Monitoring Academic Progress
In order for a student to make a reasonable decision regarding course withdrawal, it is important that he or she has information regarding their performance before the withdrawal deadline. Every instructor is encouraged to make certain that students are apprised of their performance in courses by the end of the fifth week of classes (i.e., by Friday, February 10, 2012). Graded quizzes, exams, lab work, essays, etc. should be returned to students by the end of the fifth week and should provide a sufficient basis on which they can usefully gauge their standing in the course.
Instructors for accelerated sessions are also asked to abide by this practice by providing information - such that all of their students will know where they stand in the course - by the end of the second week of the accelerated session.
Progress Towards Degree
Students are encouraged to maintain reasonable academic progress towards degree, in terms of credits earned. Reasonable academic progress is provided by your program plan and, for full time students, summarized in the 2011-2012 Tuition and Fee Guidelines.
Satisfactory Academic Progress (SAP)
As required by the Higher Education Opportunity Act, Drexel is implementing an updated Satisfactory Academic Progress (SAP) policy effective July 1, 2011. This progress policy is used to determine eligibility for continued receipt of federal funds. Please see the Financial Aid Eligibility Policies to review the updates to SAP.
A special website, Drexel Express, has been developed for online and blended students who infrequently come to campus. We invite you to familiarize yourself with the extensive services available to you.
IMPORTANT POLICY REMINDERS
Absence from Class
Students are first encouraged to review the class absence policy as established in their course syllabus. The syllabus provides important information to students to guide their decisions about absence from class. Please be sure to review University's absence policy which includes protocol for absences for University-sponsored activities, religious observances, medical illnesses, and extended absences. Please review the full Absence from Class policy.
Please note that the Drexel Health Center will not provide notes to excuse absences for students missing class due to their visit to the Health Center, or to excuse class absences due to most common illnesses. The Health Center will also not provide notes to excuse absences for medical conditions which were not treated at the Health Center. Please be sure to review the Medical Notes policy which includes criteria for excused absences.
Class Cancellation due to Unexpected Instructor Lateness or Absence
On rare occasions, instructors may be delayed or unable to attend a class due to unforeseen circumstances. In the event that an instructor does not appear in class due to an unexpected delay and has not notified class of his/her expected arrival time, class is cancelled after 15 minutes of the scheduled start of class. Please review the full Class Cancellation policy.
Audit Option
The Audit Option provides undergraduate and graduate students the opportunity of attending a course, but carries no credit and no standard letter grade. Participation in the course will be evidenced by the "AUD" grade designation on the transcript. The "AUD" grade designation does not affect a student's GPA. Please review the full Audit Option policy.
Classes During Co-op
Registration for students on Co-op for the Winter quarter is open on January 3 until the end of the add/drop period. It is important to understand the guidelines that apply to the policy so that you do not incur additional charges to your bill.
The Classes During Co-op policy has been updated to make online courses available to students employed in Co-op positions that are outside of a 50 mile radius from Drexel University, restrictions permitting. This change is being enacted to support students participating in national and global Co-op opportunities.
The Online Classes During Co-op policy states that students with pre-junior, junior, and senior status who are participating in cooperative education assignments and employed at companies that are a distance of 50 miles or more from Drexel have the opportunity to register for one (1) online course of up to four (4) credits at no additional charge per six (6) month Co-op experience.
For more information on the policy and guidelines, please reference the Classes During Co-op policy and contact your Co-op coordinator regarding eligibility guidelines to participate in classes during Co-op. The approval of your Co-op coordinator verifies eligibility and is not considered final approval.
Quarter / Semester Credit Conversion
When converting credits from semester to quarter or vice versa the following conversion can be used: 1.0 semester credit = 1.5 quarter credits.
Senior Final Exam Exemption Policy Discontinued
The Senior Final Exam Exemption Policy is no longer in effect. Therefore, all senior students are required to participate in final evaluations in their graduating quarter.
Family Education Rights and Privacy Act (FERPA) Policy
The Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act ("FERPA") affords a student certain rights with respect to his/her Education Records.
Please take a moment to review the FERPA policy.
Final Examinations
Please note that in order to comply with state and federal regulations regarding class hours, classes will end on Monday, March 19. Final examinations will be administered Tuesday, March 20 to Saturday, March 24.
- No final examinations may be given during the last week of class
During finals week, no student is obligated to take more than two finals on any given day. Students with more than two examinations in one day may appeal to the Office of the Provost for relief. The Final Examination policy states that students must appeal to the Office of the Provost for accommodation at least three (3) days before the examination date. Students may download the download the appeal form and submit it to the Office of Academic Advising, Retention and Diversity in 308 Main Building. Winter Quarter 2011-2012 student exam schedules will be reviewed to provide relief as follows:
- Instructors for those courses with the lowest course number will be asked to give a special exam for the Winter Quarter 2011-2012
Please take a moment to review the Final Examinations policy.
Grade of Incomplete (INC)
A grade of "INC" (Incomplete) may be reported in place of a letter grade for any course in which the instructor deems that the incomplete work can be completed by the student within an agreed upon time (which must be in accordance with University policy and the statute of limitations governing grade changes). The conditions and terms for the completion of the course are at the discretion of the instructor and are to be mutually agreed upon by the instructor and the student before the end of the term. It is strongly recommended that a written agreement be developed between the student and instructor to clarify expectations, deliverables and timeline.
General guidelines for considering an INC are:
- Student has completed at least 80% of course requirements
- Student has a grade average of a “C” or better in the course at the time the incomplete is sought
The grade of "INC" will be entered for the student at the time grades are submitted for the course. Students are expected to fulfill the requirements of the agreement within one year of the incomplete. If the outstanding coursework and grade are not submitted within one full academic year, the "INC" will turn into an "F" on the student's record and be reflected in the student’s GPA. The grade of "F" will be considered a permanent grade. Once a student has received an incomplete, withdrawal from the course will not be considered.
Grade Not Reported (NGR)
The system generated grade of NGR is a temporary indicator. A grade of NGR will be recorded only if the student has never attended the course.
Students should be advised that the NGR is not a grade, but a temporary indicator that requires prompt resolution leading either to the removal of the course from the student’s record or the assignment of a grade.
Students have one term to resolve the NGR on their record. If a final grade is not reported by the end of the following term, an administrative grade of “F” will be reported and recorded on the student’s transcript. This grade will be calculated as a failure in the student’s GPA and is considered a permanent grade.
Late Add/Drop/Withdraw Form Submission After Week 6
Late Add/Drop/Withdraw appeals will only be considered in the event of exigent circumstances. All submissions after Week 6 must be coordinated with the student’s academic advisor. All form submissions after Week 6 should be sent by the advisor to the Office of Academic Advising, Retention and Diversity in 308 Main Building or in the case of graduate students, to the Office of Graduate Studies in Randell 240.
Exceptional consideration is afforded to military veterans who are called upon for active duty and thus must seek late withdrawal from courses. Military veterans called to active duty should coordinate with their academic advisor as soon as possible. For a list of academic advisors, please visit www.drexel.edu/provost/advising/advisors.html.
KEY POLICIES & PRACTICES
Code of Conduct and Academic Integrity Policy
Undergraduate Students
We encourage students to review and abide by the University policy on Academic Integrity. The Academic Integrity policy is written in support of the University's strong commitment to high academic standards and integrity and has been endorsed by the Undergraduate Student Government Association (USGA). The Academic Affairs Committee of the USGA has authored a Statement of Honor, which furthers these ideals; the Statement of Honor was approved by the USGA on August 4, 2006.
As members of the Drexel University undergraduate student body, we seek to uphold a learning environment that embraces preeminent standards of education, integrity, and community. We strive to conduct ourselves in a manner that is beyond reproach, adhering to the University's Code of Conduct and Academic Honesty policies. Devoted to the principles of mutual respect, equality, and honor, we assume an obligation to serve one another.
Graduate Students
As a Drexel University graduate student and aware of the University’s mission, I commit myself to excellence in research, teaching, and service. In furtherance of that aim and because I understand that my actions affect all members of the Drexel community and my profession, I pledge to conduct myself with the highest integrity, honor, and respect in all my endeavors.
Disability Accommodations
Through the Office of Disability Resources ("ODR"), formerly known as the Office of Disability Services (“ODS”), the University provides reasonable accommodations to qualified individuals with disabilities to ensure equal educational and employment access, including equal access to University courses, programs, facilities, services, and activities. ODR also provides resources to students with disabilities to assist them in becoming self-sufficient, independent, and successful members of the University's community and of the workplace communities they will join after graduation.
Students seeking reasonable accommodations for their disabilities must register with ODR to receive an accommodation. The staff of ODR will work closely with students to review medical documentation, assess their individual needs, and link them to the resources necessary to ensure them the opportunity to participate fully in college life. The Office of Disability Resources website can be found at drexel.edu/oed/disabilityResources/. The Office of Disability Resources is a department within the Office of Equality & Diversity.
Religious Observances
The University is committed to promoting an environment that supports cultural and spiritual diversity. It is essential that students contact their instructors at the beginning of the term for religious observance accommodation requests. For more information, please review the Office of the Provost Statement on Religious Observances.
Drexel Student-Veterans
Drexel is proud to sponsor the Yellow Ribbon Program and provide educational opportunities for military veterans across all of the University’s programs. The Office of Veteran Student Services unifies services and support, and provides mentorship for veterans. These services include the provision of: Admissions Assistance, Financing & Certification of Benefits, Academic Resources and Support Services Referrals.
The University is committed to promoting an environment that supports student-veterans at Drexel by assessing their individual needs and linking them to the services necessary to ensure the opportunity to participate fully in college life while meeting their service requirements.
To achieve this, the University takes into account the unique demands of student-veterans’ military requirements; for instance, deployment and readmission. In those instances, the University will uphold the “Higher Education Opportunity Act” (posted September 18, 2009) which is posted on the Provost’s Academic Policies web page.
If you are a student-veteran and have questions regarding how to manage your deployment requirements or other service oriented issues, please consult with your School/College Academic Advisor who will assist you with the development of a plan of action.
In addition, feel free to contact Dr. Rebecca Weidensaul, Associate Dean of Students at (215) 895-2501 or rebecca@drexel.edu. For more information visit the Office of Veteran Student Services.
Promoting a Diverse and Fair Learning Environment
The mission of the Office of Equality & Diversity is to promote, support, and sustain a welcoming University environment of equality, fairness, and respect that fosters life-long learning through diversity and inclusion. The Office of Equality & Diversity is responsible for ensuring equal opportunity and compliance with University policies and federal, state and local laws prohibiting discrimination based upon race, color, religion, gender (sex), marital status, pregnancy, national origin, age, disability, veteran status, sexual orientation, gender identity and expression, genetic information, and any other prohibited characteristic. In addition to investigating complaints, OED utilizes various conflict resolution processes to address complaints of discrimination, harassment, and retaliation.
Students, faculty and professional staff with questions about or complaints concerning discrimination, harassment, and/or retaliation should contact Michele M. Rovinsky-Mayer, J.D., Associate Vice President of Equality and Diversity at 215-895-1405 or mrovinsky@drexel.edu. The Equality and Diversity website can be found at www.drexel.edu/oed.
This message to Students via Drexel Official Mail was approved by
Dr. Mark Greenberg, Provost and Senior Vice President for Academic Affairs
|
