About 50 percent of Medaille's students are older than traditional college-aged students. Medaille offers some unique programs and services to accommodate the special needs of students of all ages.

Class Times
Times for class meetings, day and evening, are varied and scheduled to meet the needs of individual programs and their students. The number of class meetings varies according to the length of the course and credits earned. If you are a person with day-time obligations, you'll appreciate the convenience provided by our evening classes. A traditional evening semester is divided into two academic modules. By attending classes only two or four evenings per week, you may earn a master's degree. Evening courses are taught on Monday/Wednesday and Tuesday/Thursday sequences, beginning at 6:00 p.m. and 8:15 p.m., each class running two hours and five minutes. Students are not permitted to register for more than six credits in a single module. All programs provide eligibility for financial aid benefits. Students who need additional information or who need specific questions answered should contact the Financial Aid Office.

Unit of Academic Credit
Generally, one credit represents the equivalent of one hour of lecture or recitation or at least two hours of laboratory work each week and at least 30 hours of supplementary assignments for one semester term or its equivalent.

Student Classification
A full-time graduate student is one who carries a minimum of nine semester hours per semester. A part-time student is one carrying fewer than nine semester hours per semester. Students who wish to qualify for state and/or federal financial aid may need to register for at least 12 credits per semester. A matriculated student is one following a prescribed program of study. A non-degree or non-matriculated student is one taking classes of study but not applying for a degree. A student must matriculate after completing 12 credit hours.

Class Load
The normal class load of a full-time graduate student each semester is 9-12 hours. Students must have a GPA of 3.5 or higher in order to carry more than 12 hours during one semester or more than six hours during one module. A student is not allowed to carry more than 15 credits in any one semester.

Pre-Graduation Review
A pre-graduation review listing outstanding requirements, a Program Requirement Form, and a Diploma Information Form will be mailed to all potential graduates in August preceding the May Commencement. These forms are sent to all master degree candidates who apply for May graduation with a minimum of 21 credit hours earned in the M.B.A. or the M.S. in Ed. program by the end of the spring semester. A potential graduate who does not receive this material by September 15 should notify the Office of the Registrar immediately.

General Requirements for College Degrees
Graduation from the College with the award of the appropriate degree will be granted upon fulfillment of the following general requirements:

1. The student must complete all prescribed courses in a specific program and sufficient elective credits to make up the minimum total required credit hours with a cumulative grade point average of at least 3.0.
2. The student must earn his/her final 15 credits at Medaille if enrolled in the master's degree program.
3. All College property on loan to the student must be returned in satisfactory condition to the College and all financial obligations to the College must be met prior to degree conferral and transcript release.

Note: Each graduate program may have specific requirements; therefore, check the individual program in this catalog.

Any person who wishes to participate in the annual commencement, held during the month of May each year, must complete all academic requirements for graduation in order to participate, except for (1) those students in the process of completing requirements in the semester during which commencement takes place and (2) those students lacking one to six credit hours who, prior to the ceremony, register to take those outstanding credits during the Summer Session of their graduation year.

Course Substitution
Deviation from a prescribed curriculum will be permitted only under extraordinary circumstances. A course substitution must be approved by the student's academic advisor, department chairperson, the Registrar, and the Vice President for Academic Affairs. No student should begin attendance in a requested substitution unless a copy of the approved Course Substitution Form has been received by the student. No course substitution will be granted retroactively. Students graduating in May must have course substitutions approved by December 1 of the preceding year.

Policy Waiver
Deviation from a prescribed policy will be permitted only under extraordinary circumstances. An academic policy waiver must be approved by the student's academic advisor (where appropriate), department chairperson, the Registrar, and the Vice President for Academic Affairs. If the waiver is approved, the student will receive a copy of the completed Policy Waiver Form. No policy waiver will be granted retroactively.

Directed Study
Directed Study is individualized instruction identical in regard to the title, course objectives, course content, and evaluative criteria of the course.

Directed study is made available only under the most extraordinary circumstances and is implemented to fulfill a graduation requirement that is not otherwise available to the student. GPAs of 3.0 are required of students who wish to undertake Directed Study. The faculty and College do not guarantee that this is available during any particular semester.

Students may not take a Directed Study to replace a course in which a failing grade was earned.

Before completing an application, a student should discuss the matter with the department chairperson and the appropriate instructor. The instructor should be aware of what the student intends to accomplish and be willing to direct the study. The student and the instructor must agree on the time that will be devoted to supervision and the manner in which the instructor will evaluate the study.

Servicemember's Opportunity College
Medaille College has been identified as a Servicemember's Opportunity College (SOC) providing educational assistance to active duty servicemembers. An SOC institution offers the following benefits for servicemembers:

1. Use of admissions procedures which ensure access to higher education for academically qualified military personnel;
2. Evaluation of learning gained through military experiences and academic credit awarded where applicable to the servicemember's program of study;
3. Evaluation of non-traditional learning and awarding of academic credit for such learning where applicable to the servicemember's program of study;
4. Evaluation of request for inter-institutional transfer of credits and acceptance of such credits whenever they are appropriate to the servicemember's program and are consistent with the College's curriculum;
5. Flexibility to servicemembers in satisfying residence requirements by making adjustments for military students who transfer when there are other assurances of program balance;
6. Designation of personnel with appropriate academic qualifications and experience to administer and supervise SOC-related activities and to develop policies and procedures appropriate to the scope of their voluntary education programs;
7. Educational services for veterans.

The Grading System and What It Means
Graduate programs require that students maintain at least a B (3.0) average for all courses taken in fulfillment of degree requirements at Medaille. The following system of grading has been adopted by the College:

Quality Grades Points

	Grades	Quality Points
High distinction, an exceptionally high achievement	A	4.0
	A-	3.7
High achievement	B+	3.3
Average, average achievement	B	3.0
Pass, below average achievement	B-	2.7
	C+	2.3
	C	2.0
Failure, unsatisfactory grade	F	0.0
Official withdrawal	W
Incomplete	I
Audit	AU

(GPA) Grade Point Average
Grades received earn quality points as indicated on the preceding table. A grade point average is computed by dividing the number of quality points earned by the total number of credit hours for which you were registered. Grade point averages may be computed for one semester's courses or on a cumulative basis. To compute a semester grade point average, multiply the number of quality points earned for the grade (see preceding table) by the number of credits awarded for the course; add the quality points and divide by the number of quality credits for the semester.

Cumulative Average
The cumulative average is computed for all of the courses you have taken at Medaille. It changes whenever a new semester's grades are calculated and is a reflection of how a student is doing in all of his/her work. In cases of repeated courses, only the last grade earned is utilized in the cumulative GPA calculations.

(W) Course Withdrawal
In order to withdraw from a course after the drop/add period, a student must obtain a Course Withdrawal Form from the Office of the Registrar. The signature of the advisor should be obtained. If the student's advisor is not available, however, the student must write on the Withdrawal Form that he/she takes full responsibility for withdrawing from the course, sign and date it. The completed form is returned to the Registrar's Office.

A student may withdraw from a course during the first two-thirds of a semester or module. See the Academic Calendar for specific dates. A grade of "W" appears on the transcript for an official withdrawal. No withdrawal is permitted after the deadline. Depending upon the withdrawal date and the number of credits a student is carrying during a particular semester, course withdrawal may affect tuition. (See Tuition Liability Policy.) There is the possibility of reduced financial aid if withdrawing from a course means the student would carry fewer than 12 credits.

Please note: Discontinuance of attendance in one or all classes does not constitute an official withdrawal. A student who does not follow the proper procedure and/or stops attending class (an unofficial withdrawal) will receive from the instructor the grade earned according to the student's performance.

(F) Failing Grade
If a graduate student receives a failing grade in a course, they may retake the course once to improve the failing grade. Graduate students may take advantage of this repeat policy only twice during the length of their program.

(I) Incomplete
Incompletes may be assigned if a student is unable (for valid reasons) to complete the course work, has a passing grade average and a well-defined plan to complete the remaining course work. Requests for an Incomplete must be made in writing to the course instructor no later than two weeks prior to the ending date of the course and, if granted, the Incomplete must be made up by the end of the following academic term. If the course work is not completed by the end of the following term, the grade becomes the designated alternate grade assigned by the course instructor or an "F".

Students are allowed to request a total of two (2) Incompletes during the course of their graduate study at Medaille College.

(AU) Audit
A student desiring to audit a course must receive the approval of the appropriate instructor and complete the normal registration process. Only officially audited classes will appear on the transcript. Students who audit are expected to attend classes but their work is not subject to review by the instructor and they will receive no grade at the completion of the class.

Repeating a Course
Students are allowed to repeat a particular course only once (1). Only two (2) courses may be repeated during a students career in their graduate program. In cases of repeated courses only the last grade earned, whether higher or lower, is used in calculating the grade point average. All grades earned for courses taken at Medaille, however, remain a part of the student's permanent record.

Students must complete and submit the appropriate form at the time of registration. Students should take note that if the repetition is not required by the College, New York State will not allow the credit hours for the course to be counted in determining the minimum course load required for financial aid purposes.

Students may not take a Directed Study or have a course transferred from another college to replace a course in which a failing grade was earned.

Academic Warnings
Students who are in danger of failing a course receive an academic warning. Students who receive a warning should immediately talk with the instructor to find out how the grade can be improved.

Academic Standards: Probation, Suspension, Dismissal
Continuation in graduate studies requires satisfactory progress toward a graduate degree. Evidence of such progress includes maintenance of a minimum 3.0 cumulative grade point average each term. The progress of each student is reviewed each term by the Graduate Academic Standards Committee. Failure to maintain the minimum 3.0 cumulative grade point average will result in placement on probation. Any student on probation must not only achieve a 3.0 cumulative avaerage within two successively enrolled terms following the term in which the deficiency occurred, but must also maintain at least a 3.0 term average in any term in which he or she is on probation. Failure to meet either of these requirements will result in dismissal from graduate studies at Medaille.

Graduate students must have a minimum 3.0 cumulative grade point average in order to graduate. The computation of academic standing is based on hours earned each term.

Students placed on academic suspension may, upon signing a Probationary Contract with the Program Director, continue studies after the lapse of one regular (fall, spring) semester; those who have been dismissed may apply for readmission after the lapse of two regular semesters. Such students who then again are placed on probation must earn removal by the end of one semester or be subject to suspension or dismissal.

If a student wishes to appeal an academic standards decision, he/she may do so by appeal through the Academic Affairs Office. The initial appeal must be in writing within 14 calendar days of notification or by the end of the first week of the next semester (whichever comes first) and state, in specific terms, the student's case for appeal.

Attendance
Regular attendance is expected at all classes and academic activities related to a course (for example, field trips) unless otherwise specified. Medaille College subscribes to the "Guidelines on Students and Religious Observance" adopted by the Commission on Independent Colleges and Universities. Absence does not excuse a student from course work and responsibility. Excessive absence is detrimental and it may affect certain types of financial aid. Discontinuance of attendance does not constitute an official withdrawal.

Course Disclosure Policy
At the beginning of every course, the instructor distributes a written course disclosure statement to all students taking the course. The course disclosure describes the objectives and content for the course and the method by which students' work will be evaluated for grades. Make sure you keep all of your course disclosure statements so that you may refer to them throughout the semester.

The Evaluation of Students' Work
An evaluation system is required for each course. Examinations are ordinarily part of the evaluation system, but alternative methods of overall evaluation may be employed. At the first class period of the semester or module, the instructor will inform students through the course disclosure of the type of evaluation system that will be used for that course throughout the semester.

Academic Decorum
Medaille College does not tolerate sexual or racial harassment of students or employees by College faculty, staff, or students. Students are legally protected from such activity by both state and federal legislation and are asked to report any occurrence to the Academic Affairs Office without fear of recrimination.

The College does not tolerate immature or abusive behavior in the classroom setting. Upon receipt of a written complaint from the instructor, the Vice President for Academic Affairs may immediately remove the student from the class. The Vice President for Academic Affairs and the Dean of Students will review the evidence and render a final decision within 30 days.

Academic Dishonesty
Medaille College does not condone acts of academic dishonesty such as cheating or plagiarism. The following process governs students charged with academic dishonesty.

Prohibited Actions:
The following categories of academic dishonesty are prohibited:

Cheating
Obtaining information from another student or other unauthorized source or giving information to another student, in connection with an examination or assignment. This includes, but is not limited to:

Plagiarism
Plagiarism is offering the work of someone else as one's own. This may range from isolated formulas, sentences, or paragraphs to entire articles copied from books, periodicals, speeches, or the writings of other students. Honesty requires that any work or materials taken from another source for either written or oral use must be acknowledged by specific footnoting and quotation marks. Any student who fails to give credit for ideas or materials obtained from another source is guilty of plagiarism.

Procedures for handling academic dishonesty:

At either stage of appeal, the Program Director or the Vice President for Academic Affairs or his/her designee may dismiss the charge or affirm the previous decision. The decision of the Vice President for Academic Affairs is final.

Academic Grievance Procedure
Should a student wish to resolve an academically related conflict with an instructor, the Academic Grievance Procedure should be followed. The student should attempt to resolve the conflict directly with the instructor, if possible. If the conflict cannot be resolved between student and instructor, the student should bring the problem to the department chairperson. If still not resolved, the Vice President for Academic Affairs should be contacted in writing. If still lacking a resolution to the problem, the final step would be to approach the President with the conflict.

Grade Appeal
Students wishing to appeal a final grade in a course must do so in writing within 60 days of the semester's grade report. This written appeal should be directed to the instructor of the course in question. Next, the instructor's department chairperson and, thereafter, the Vice President for Academic Affairs.

Course Prerequisites
Students may not register for a course without the required prerequisite(s) or written approval from the department chairperson.

Course Numbering
Course numbers indicate the following: 500-599 primarily foundation courses 600-699 advanced courses

Placement
The following are overall placement results from the graduating class of 2001 (based on responses from 80% of the 2001 graduates):

Graduates employed 93%
Graduates enrolled in further schooling 26%
Total overall placement 95%

Information regarding completion rates and other student data is available upon request from Medaille College's Office of Institutional Research and Planning.