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To: Students on the Quarter System Welcome to the Spring Quarter at Drexel!
Please review news, key policies, and dates for the upcoming quarter. COMMENCEMENT 2013
IMPORTANT ANNOUNCEMENTS
CRITICAL DATES
IMPORTANT POLICY REMINDERS
KEY PRACTICES
IMPORTANT ANNOUNCEMENTS The Steinbright Career Development Center (SCDC) and the Office of Institutional Research, Assessment, and Effectiveness conduct an online survey of all graduating seniors. The survey opens in May, and is designed to provide the university with feedback regarding academic and administrative experiences as well as information on the future plans of the senior class such as job placement and how the job offer was achieved, or plans for graduate study. The data from this survey is utilized by the university to better understand the outcomes of the Drexel experience. The survey is required for all graduating seniors. Clearing week for graduating seniors will run from June 20-July 5, 2013. Clearing representatives will review students' records during this time to ensure that all students have fulfilled their graduation requirements. A list of Graduation Clearing Collegiate Representatives can be found at the OUR website. For more information on commencement, please see below. Commencement will be held on the University City Campus on Friday, June 14, 2013 and Saturday, June 15, 2013 in the Daskalakis Athletic Center. Ceremonies include:
All students graduating at the end of Spring term will have their diplomas mailed to the primary address established in DrexelOne at the time that they applied for their degree. Diplomas will be mailed between six to eight weeks following the ceremony. To specify a different mailing address to which the diploma should be mailed, students must update the mailing address information in DrexelOne through the degree application process. Senior Privilege affords seniors a one-time opportunity to take an additional final exam to make up a failing grade in a course required for graduation. The following criteria apply:
Senior Privilege does not exempt students from attending class and/or taking final exams in courses for which they are enrolled during the last term of their senior year. Students are required to adhere to class attendance requirements for all other courses as specified by university policy.
Final Examinations for Seniors in the Spring Quarter In the Spring Quarter only, senior undergraduate students in their last quarter of academic work who have applied for a degree may petition to be exempted from a final examination. It is the prerogative of the instructor to approve or deny the petition to grant this exemption based on the following considerations, that:
If a final exam is given for a graduating senior, then the exam must be given during the last week of classes (6/3/13 - 6/10/13), regardless of the final examination schedule for the course. Final grades for all students, (graduating and non-graduating) are due via DrexelOne on June 19, 2013 by 12 PM. Behind Every GraduateAs graduating seniors embark on their careers, they are invited to nominate that special high school teacher who inspired them to pursue a college education and their professional or academic ambition. The Harold W. Pote "Behind Every Graduate" Selection Committee will review the nominations and select awardees. Please visit the Behind Every Graduate page to review the selection criteria. Nominations are due by April 12, 2013. To nominate a former high school teacher, please complete the Nomination Form. Graduating seniors should have begun their application for degree starting the summer before the onset of their senior year through to the application deadlines listed on the OUR Graduation Dates and Deadlines Page by completing and submitting the Application for Degree via DrexelOne. Indicating one's senior status by applying for a degree prior to the start of senior year assists the University in assessing accurate billing for the final year at Drexel. However, students who are eligible to graduate in Spring 2013 have until May 6 to apply for their degree. For more information, please visit the online guide for applying for your degree. The Drexel University Department of Public Safety has developed a number of crime prevention and awareness programs to educate the Drexel community in the various aspects of public safety. Information is provided to students, faculty, and staff to increase awareness of their surroundings, to provide safety and security recommendations, and educate everyone on what to do in emergency situations. We view these informational communications as an integral part of the development and implementation of the University's public safety program. The University's safety and security initiatives focus on the importance of the community and partnerships. We enjoy excellent professional relationships with many public and private institutions, agencies and groups that play an important role in the Drexel community. One of our most important principles is that safety and security is a shared responsibility. It is imperative that our community members know, understand and practice a realistic approach to creating and maintaining the safest possible environment that is based on awareness, practices, partnerships, experience and common sense. The Public Safety website contains a great deal of information that will help guide you. Here are some of the links that we think will be of great interest and benefit to you: Your advisor is a highly skilled individual dedicated to helping you navigate your way through Drexel from Orientation through to your graduation. Your advisor is here to help you make informed decisions, connect you to available resources, and help you develop as an individual both personally and professionally. To make the most of your experience at Drexel, your advisor is available to guide you. Contact information for undergraduate advisors can be found in Undergraduate Advising Directory. Contact information for graduate advisors can be found in Graduate Advisor Directory. Satisfactory Academic Progress (SAP) Policy The Satisfactory Academic Progress Policy is in accordance with federal guidelines. The SAP policy mandates that students maintain the following two requirements in order to be eligible to receive federal financial aid.
Students who do not meet these requirements will lose your federal financial aid. For more information on SAP please see the Satisfactory Academic Progress policy. Withdrawing from courses may impact your academic progression and financial aid award. 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. Contact the SRC/Financial Aid Office to determine the potential consequences of withdrawal on fulfillment of federal financial aid criteria. Information on federal financial aid criteria can be accessed at Drexel’s Satisfactory Academic Progress policy. Vacation Term Temporary Leave of Absence The forms and policies relating to vacation terms and TLOAs may be found here. Withdrawal from the University Readmission to Drexel Direct questions about any of the above to intlprog@drexel.edu & 215-895-2502 or refer to our website: Office of International Students and Scholar Services (ISSS). DegreeWorks – Degree/Graduation Requirements Audit Software DegreeWorks is a web-based academic advising system for degree auditing and course planning. DegreeWorks can assist you in assessing progress toward degree completion by providing a clear picture of degree requirements and courses completed. Advisors monitor student progress through DegreeWorks with the goal of helping students understand requirements and achieve their academic goals. Graduate and Undergraduate students have access to DegreeWorks. 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, Term Master Schedule, AskDrexel, DegreeWorks help, catalog pages and lists of Writing Intensive Courses. Wait-listing for Courses at Capacity Colleges have the ability to 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 wait-list and notified by email of their placement on the wait-list. 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 been added to the newly created course by email. This capability will enable departments and colleges to better anticipate and plan for course schedule needs each term. Reserved Seating capability enables departments to "reserve" a certain number of seats in identified classes for those students who must take a class for proper program progression, such as a graduating senior majoring in a field. By reserving "seats" in courses for special cases, departments can ensure that no student will be "closed out" of a course that they need or that is required for progression in their academic plan. Drexel Express for Online Students 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. CRITICAL DATES The Academic Calendar provides detailed information regarding important academic deadlines; critical SCDC/Co-operative education dates; and University holidays in particular. Please note the academic deadlines below. Spring Quarter Examination Period Spring Quarter Examinations Begin
Spring Quarter Examinations End
Spring Term Courses Course Add/Drop
Classes During Co-op Registration
Course Withdrawal
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 from courses (see Satisfactory Academic Progress policy). Accelerated Courses Course Add/DropTerm A
Term B
Course Withdrawal Term A
Term B
Saturday Scholars Course Add/Drop Term A
Term B
Course Withdrawal Term A
Term B Closed Section OverridesIn 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, you 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, April 11, 2013. 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 (click here to review criteria for override consideration). If you meet the criteria, you 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. Late Add/Drop/Withdraw Form Submission After Week 7 Late Add/Drop/Withdraw appeals will only be considered in the event of exigent circumstances. All such requests made after Week 7 must be coordinated with the student’s academic advisor. All form submissions after Week 7 should be sent by the advisor to the Office of Academic Advising, Retention and Diversity, Main Building Suite 308 or in the case of graduate students, to the Office of Graduate Studies in Randell Hall Suite 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 undergraduate academic advisors, please visit the Undergraduate Advising Directory. For a list of graduate academic advisors, please visit the Graduate Advisor Directory. HoldsThe placement of a financial hold on a student’s record prohibits course registration. A student who has not registered for a course by the add deadline will not be permitted to attend that course after the deadline, the end of the second week. Accordingly, students should be encouraged to resolve all “holds” on their record by the week two 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, April 12, 2013 at 5:00 PM) to resolve the holds placed on their account in order to add courses or participate in co-op by the deadline. "Being on hold" during the first two weeks of the term (the adjustment period) is not considered an acceptable reason for a late or retroactive add. Students on hold with unpaid balances who would like to discuss financing options should be referred to the Student Resource Center / Office of the Bursar in the Main Building, Suite 222. Student ProgressMonitoring Academic Progress Instructors for accelerated sessions are also asked to abide by this practice by providing information - such that all of their students have an assessment of their standing in the course - by the end of the second week of the accelerated session. Satisfactory Academic Progress (SAP) Progress Towards Degree IMPORTANT POLICY REMINDERS Students are 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. For perspective, please review the Absence from Class policy which includes the protocol for absences due to University-sponsored activities, religious observances, medical illnesses, and extended absences. 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 Health Notes / Excused Class Absence Policy. Class Cancellation due to Unexpected Instructor Lateness or AbsenceOn rare occasions, instructors may be delayed or unable to conduct a class due to unforeseen circumstances. In the event that there is an unexpected delay and the class has not been notified of the instructor’s expected arrival time, class is cancelled after 15 minutes of the scheduled start of class. Please review the full Class Cancellation policy. Audit OptionThe 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-opStudents who are on co-op will be given a time ticket to register for courses. The time ticket for students on co-op in the Summer term will be on Monday, June 3, 2013 through Sunday, June 9, 2013. It is important to understand the guidelines that apply to the policy so that you do not incur additional charges to your bill. The Co-op Coordinator will ensure that the requested course does not interfere with the student's co-op assignment. In some cases, the co-op employer may be contacted. For example, a student working during the day should only register for an evening course whereas a student working evenings would be permitted to register for a day course. Registration is subject to course availability within established enrollment limits. No new course sections will be added. Undergraduate students enrolled in a co-op education program may register for up to four (4) credits during each term for which they are on a co-op assignment without additional charge. If this course carries more than four (4) credits, the additional credits are billed on a per-credit basis. Students on co-op are permitted to register for a maximum of six (6) credits per co-op term. If you are interested in registering for over four (4) credits and/or registering for an enrichment course, you should contact your co-op coordinator. 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. Quarter / Semester Credit ConversionWhen converting credits from semester to quarter or vice-versa, the following conversion can be used: 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 ExaminationsIn order to comply with state and federal regulations regarding class hours, classes will end on Monday, June 10, 2013. Final examinations will be administered from Tuesday, June 11, 2013 to Friday, June 14, 2013.
Please take a moment to review the Examinations and Grading Options 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 the Grade of Incomplete Guidelines 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 the student and instructor enter into an Incomplete Contract to clarify expectations, deliverables and timeline. General guidelines for considering an INC are:
The grade of "INC" should 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 academic year of the incomplete. If the grade is not submitted by the date established with the course instructor in the Incomplete Grade Contract the INC grade will become a failing grade (F) on the student’s academic record; this grade will be reflected in the student’s GPA and will be considered as the final grade without the possibility to change. Students are advised that once an incomplete grade is assigned, withdrawal from the course will not be considered. No Grade 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. 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. If the "NGR" notation is left unresolved by the last day of classes of the next term immediately following the term that the original NGR was reported, it will become an "F". This grade will be calculated as a failure in the student's GPA and is considered a permanent grade.KEY PRACTICES Code of Conduct and Academic Honesty 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. Through the Office of Disability Resources ("ODR") 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. Please see the Office of Equality and Diversity's general policies page to access the Reasonable Accommodation of Individuals with Disabilities policy. 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, faculty or staff 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. Please visit the Office of Disability Resources website for more information. The Office of Disability Resources is a department within the Office of Equality & Diversity. The University is committed to promoting an environment that supports cultural and spiritual diversity. It is essential that students contact their instructors before the conclusion of the add/drop period, end of week 2, in order to request religious observance consideration for the term. For more information, please review the Office of the Provost Statement on Religious Observances. For consultation concerns, please contact the Coordinator of Religious and Spiritual Life in the Office of the Dean of Students. Drexel Student-VeteransDrexel 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. Student-veterans with questions regarding how to manage your deployment requirements or other service oriented issues should consult with your School/College Academic Advisor who will assist them 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. See Drexel's Equality and Non-Discrimination Policy OED-1. Title IX of the Education Amendments of 1972 (“Title IX”) prohibits discrimination on the basis of sex in any federally funded education program or activity. Sexual harassment, which includes sexual violence, is a form of sex discrimination. Drexel University is committed to providing an environment free from discrimination, including discrimination based upon sex. The University provides supports and resources to students, faculty, and professional staff to address concerns related to sex discrimination and has appointed Michele Rovinsky-Mayer, Associate Vice President, Office of Equality and Diversity, as its Title IX Coordinator. See Drexel’s University’s Title IX Resource Page for resources, including a listing of Deputy Title IX Coordinators. 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. Please visit the Equality & Diversity website for more information.
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