If you didn't realize it before you started medical school, you almost certainly know it now: Duke University School of Medicine holds all its students to the very highest standards of both academic excellence and professional conduct.
Of course, you're bright, hard-working, and capable. And you want your med school program to be challenging. This is Duke, after all. A medical degree from here is more than just entry into the profession. It's verification to your patients and your community that you are among the best the medical profession has to offer.
Even a Duke medical student, though, can make a mistake. We all struggle in class every once in a while. We all run into professional situations we don't know how to handle. And life happens. Maybe last fall, you were dealing with a death in the family, or you wound up in the hospital after a car accident. It can be hard to study under those conditions.
The Lento Law Firm Student Defense Team doesn't believe a mistake should jeopardize your future. We believe in you. We know the hard work you've put in to get to this point. And it's our job to make sure you make it to the finish line. That means holding your school accountable for treating you fairly. It means making sure your school gives you every reasonable opportunity to earn your degree. If someone has mentioned the possibility of dismissal to you, we're on your side, and we're ready to help.
Common Reasons for Dismissal
Most medical school dismissals happen for one of two reasons: either you've failed to meet the school's academic requirements, or you've committed some form of professional misconduct.
- Academic Deficiencies: Academic expectations at Duke are high, and there are serious consequences for failing to meet these expectations. According to the academic standing policy, failing one course means probation. Failing two clinical courses, failing the same course twice, or failing any combination of three classroom-based courses/ clinical-based courses/ clerkships/ elective courses is grounds for dismissal from the program.
- Professional Misconduct: The Duke Medical School's academic requirements are strict; its professionalism requirements are stricter. Mistreating a patient, insubordination, or failure to abide by medical ethics can all get you dismissed. In addition, though, more general misconduct, violations of Duke's academic integrity policy, and any type of sexual misconduct can call your professionalism into question. In fact, even your personal behavior can get you into trouble, even if that behavior has no direct relationship to your studies. A DUI, for example, or a domestic abuse charge, can put your career in jeopardy.
Promotion decisions are in the hands of the school's Promotions Committee. This committee meets quarterly to review all student progress. It has the power to recommend remediation or to assign sanctions, including probation, suspension, and dismissal.
However, only the Vice Dean for Education may actually implement a sanction.
Appealing Dismissal
Dismissal is a scary proposition, and you should always take the threat of dismissal seriously. However, the Duke School of Medicine cannot simply dismiss you without cause. You have due process protections, and the school must follow procedures before it can issue any sanctions. Here's how the process typically works.
- Promotion decisions are in the hands of the Promotions Committee. That committee normally meets in a closed-door session and makes its decisions without input from other faculty or students. In other words, there is no way to appeal directly to the committee regarding any promotion issues.
- Should the Promotion Committee determine you have failed to meet academic expectations or in some way violated your professional obligations, it recommends sanctions, up to and including dismissal, to the Vice Dean for Education.
- Assuming the Vice Dean doesn't overrule the committee, you are then provided with notification of the sanction.
- Once you've received notification of a sanction, you may then file an appeal with the Vice Dean. This appeal must be in writing, and it must include all supporting documentation.
- The Vice Dean then submits this appeal to the Academic Appeals Committee (AAC).
- As part of the process, you are given the opportunity to speak directly to the AAC. The Promotion Committee, of course, gets to make its case as well.
- Ultimately, the AAC decides whether or not to uphold the sanction and transmits its decision to the Vice Dean.
- You have one final opportunity to appeal the AAC's decision, but only if you can show that the school violated its own judicial procedures in some way.
The Duke University School of Medicine does not provide you with any specific right to legal representation during meetings or hearings. However, it's essential that you have an attorney by your side as you're preparing your case. While an attorney from the Lento Law Firm Student Defense Team may not be able to accompany you when you address the AAC, they can be invaluable in preparing your case. They can help you develop a defense strategy, work with you to draft documents and gather evidence, and coach you on how to present your arguments. Most important of all, an attorney from the Lento Law Firm Student Defense Team can keep track of your case and ensure you're treated fairly.
Fighting for Your Future
Make no mistake: if you're facing dismissal, everything is on the line. You've worked for many years to get to this point. You earned an undergraduate degree; you spent dozens, maybe hundreds of hours studying for the MCAT; you filled out applications, convinced referees to write on your behalf, and sat through demanding interviews. The threat of dismissal puts all of that in jeopardy. It means having to look for a new career. It means having to pay back thousands of dollars in student loans without a medical degree to help you do it.
There's simply too much on the line to go into this situation alone. Judicial rules and procedures can be complex, and your school is not on your side in this instance. You need someone who is, someone who has your best interests at heart and who is willing to fight for those interests. You want an attorney from the Lento Law Firm Team.
The Lento Law Firm Student Defense Team was built to help students. The firm's attorneys know the law as it applies to education. They also know how campus judicial systems work. They're highly experienced with all aspects of investigation, adjudication, and appeals processes and have helped hundreds of students just like you get the justice they deserve.
If you're facing disciplinary action, don't wait to see what might happen. Find out exactly what the Lento Law Firm Student Defense Team can do for you. Contact the Lento Law Firm today at 888-535-3686 or use our automated online form.
