University of St. Augustine for Health Sciences 2012 – 2013 Student ...

Master of Orthopaedic Physician Assistantcourse. If the absences occur after the withdrawal date, the student can take a leave of absence orreceive a NO GRADE (NG) for the course.3. Excused Absences include (but may not be limited to)• Illness• Required work events• Attendance at special services (e.g. wedding, funeral) for a member of the immediate familyPlanned absences must be approved in advance by the Program Director.4. Procedure for excused absences in MOPA LabsStudents are strongly encouraged not to miss any portion of any lab. If a student misses morethan 20% of the total lab hours in a course, the student must repeat the course. In the event of anoccurrence or emergency that necessitates missing any part of an OPA weekend lab, theprocedure is as follows:First contact should be the MOPA Director. If the MOPA Director gives approval to proceed, thestudent next contacts the course online instructor to seek permission for an excused absence. Ifthe course online instructor approves, the student must then contact the lab instructor to requestapproval for the absence. If all three (program director, online instructor, and lab instructor)agree, the student will be granted an excused absence. Failure to follow this sequence will resultin an unexcused absence which results in forfeiture of the right to review with the instructor allor any part of the material. This also includes taking written or practical exams. Unexcusedabsences are considered to be unprofessional behavior which could result in the final coursegrade being reduced by 5–10% and/or a referral to the Professional Misconduct Committee.5. Unexcused AbsencesUnexcused absences are considered to be unprofessional behavior. With any unexcused absence,students forfeit the right to review with the instructor, all or any part of the material, includingtest reviews, covered during that lab session. If a student misses more than 20% of the total labhours in a course, the student must repeat the course. Students are expected to make travelarrangements that permit them to attend the full lab sessions on each scheduled lab weekend.Arriving late or leaving early for travel is considered unexcused absence except in cases ofunavoidable conflicts or when approved in advance by the program director.6. TardinessTardiness is defined as being late for lab (even if by one (1) minute), and is also considered to beunprofessional behavior. It is expected that if a student is tardy for any class, the student willapologize to the instructor immediately after that class. If a student is tardy twice (2 times), thestudent will receive a warning letter with a copy of that letter placed in his/her file. A thirdtardiness and each subsequent tardiness will result in a 5% reduction per tardiness from a finalcourse grade. This represents the University’s minimal standard, individual faculty may outlineadditional consequences in their course syllabi.For absences related to clinical fieldwork/clinical rotations classes, please refer to: ClinicalEducation section.Professional BehaviorProfessional behavior is expected on campus at all times. The first incidence of unprofessional behavior(other than absences and tardiness described above) will result in a warning letter to the student with acopy to his/her file. A second incidence will result in a referral to the Professional Misconduct Committeewith a recommendation that the final grade in the course be reduced by 5-10%.University of St. Augustine for Health Sciences 93