A Transcript's Value
Academic transcripts are a graduate's gold. A college or university's record of a student's graduation can win the graduate a professional license or certification, job, and career, not to mention a host of other networking and reputational benefits. A transcript showing academic honors and special accomplishments can be even more rewarding, gaining the graduate premier employment, promotions, and teaching, publication, and leadership opportunities. Many college and university graduates can, in the middle or at the end of a good career, look back to see that they built their career and community engagement around the academic accomplishments that their transcript reflects. College can be a great investment. The transcript proves the investment.
A Transcript's Use
Transcripts are so valuable because professional associations, state boards, employers, and other institutions request and require them to document their necessary credentials. A physician, nurse, lawyer, engineer, social worker, or other professional can generally not get a license without proof of graduation from the required degree program. The transcript is that proof. A graduate can generally not get a job in the graduate's academic field without proving that they completed the degree program. Once again, the transcript is that proof. And when graduates compete for preferred positions, they often distinguish themselves based on their academic accomplishments, once again proven by transcript.
Negative Transcript Notations
Unfortunately for many college and university graduates, institutions don't just record positive information on transcripts. They also make negative transcript notations. Negative transcript information can close the same doors that positive transcript notations open. Licensing boards, employers, and others don't just look to transcripts to confirm the terminal degree. They also examine transcripts for what they reveal of the student's academic performance and social or professional behavior. The negative information that a transcript may reveal can include, among other things:
- failed and incomplete courses;
- courses from which the student withdrew;
- courses in which the professor reduced the grade for misconduct;
- transcript holds for misconduct investigation;
- coursework, training, counseling, or service rectifying misconduct;
- academic or behavioral reprimand;
- academic or behavioral probation;
- academic or behavioral suspension;
- academic or behavioral dismissal and reinstatement; and
- academic or behavioral misconduct charges unresolved or withdrawn.
Avoiding Negative Transcript Notations
If you or someone you know faces an academic or behavioral issue that could result in a negative college or university transcript notation, then don't ignore the issue. Ignoring the issue invites a negative transcript notation. If the institution proceeds with its misconduct investigation, decision, and rectifying action without the student's response and advocacy, then the institution is far more likely to reach a negative finding that finds its way to the student's transcript. Colleges and universities charge many kinds of misconduct including:
- plagiarism, exam cheating, unauthorized collaboration, and other academic misconduct;
- theft, trespass, vandalism, computer misuse and hacking, and other property misuse, destruction, and damage;
- sexual assault and harassment, bullying, hazing, soliciting, trafficking, voyeurism, invasion of privacy, and other relationship misconduct; and
- alcohol abuse, drug abuse, disorderly conduct, bookmaking or gambling, and other behavioral misconduct.
Even if the student is entirely innocent of the charged misconduct, indeed, especially if the student is innocent, the student needs to raise a prompt, firm, and vigorous defense to the charges. To do so, get the expert help of national academic attorney Joseph D. Lento. The high value of a clean transcript warrants treating most seriously the prospect of a negative transcript entry. Attorney Lento has successfully represented hundreds of college and university students nationwide, around all kinds of misconduct issues. An aggressive response to false, exaggerated, or unfair charges can prevent or clear negative transcript notations. Don't gamble away the high value of your academic investment. Get attorney Lento's help.
Negative Transcript Gaps or Suspicions
The transcript problem, though, is not just with negative transcript notations such as investigation holds, probation, suspension, or dismissal. Colleges and universities vary in what they record on transcripts. Some institutions restrict transcript entries to academic matters, meaning that misconduct charges or findings may not show up directly on the academic transcript. So far, so good. Yet professional boards, employers, and others who review transcripts know that not everything shows up on the transcript. So, they look for these and other hints of college and university misconduct that could be the result of investigation, probation, suspension, or dismissal and reinstatement:
- unnatural terms off or other gaps in regular academic progress;
- severely reduced course loads for one or more consecutive terms;
- courses carried over as incomplete from term to term;
- loss of credit for courses apparently completed, or required excess credit;
- courses repeated twice or more without apparent explanation;
- courses inexplicably dropped, substituted, swapped, or replaced;
- unusual remedial courses, service components, or behavioral training; and
- transfer from one institution to another, especially with gaps.
Avoiding Negative Transcript Gaps or Suspicions
As in the case of negative transcript notations, if someone you know faces an issue that could result in a negative college or university transcript gap or suspicion, be sure to address the issue promptly and proactively. Avoiding formal suspension or dismissal may not be enough if the misconduct charge results in a transcript gap or suspicion that others would read or misread as probable misconduct. The following informal resolutions that colleges and universities alleging or charging misconduct commonly propose the following informal resolutions that may sound attractive but could raise serious red flags on a transcript:
- voluntary course withdrawal or incomplete;
- voluntary repeat of a completed course;
- one or more terms off as substitute for suspension;
- transcript holds until degree completion;
- voluntary program withdrawal in favor of other program or field;
- voluntary enrollment in remedial courses or behavioral training;
- transfer to another institution.
Do not agree to an informal resolution that creates transcript gaps or other suspicions. The natural objective of any student is steady academic progress along the planned program toward the degree goal. Do not relinquish that objective without the review, advice, and advocacy of national academic attorney Joseph D. Lento. Graduates have too great of an interest in their clean and reliable transcript to give up that career-long asset without effective representation. Get attorney Lento's help to ensure that your transcript leaves no gaps and raises no other suspicions.
What Expert Representation Accomplishes
The first thing that expert representation accomplishes is to help you see the big picture, including your substantial interest in a clean transcript reflecting the full value of your hard-won academic accomplishments. Attorney Lento won't let you sell your defense short, leaving your transcript exposed to negative entries and suspicious gaps and anomalies. Attorney Lento's prompt and firm representation ensures that you know and rely on each of the following, before you accept any resolution that may affect your planned academic progress and clean transcript:
- the full nature and detail of any alleged misconduct;
- the institutional codes, rules, and norms allegedly violated;
- the alleged incriminating witnesses and documentary evidence;
- any exonerating evidence contradicting the charges;
- the full procedures available to challenge the charges;
- any mitigating evidence reducing sanctions and penalties; and
- any transcript entry, gap, or anomaly that the outcome may produce.
Only once you have this information are you in a position to protect your transcript as best you can when facing misconduct allegations. You can then rely on attorney Lento to skillfully craft a strategic approach to your defense that maximizes your opportunity to protect your academic record, academic progress, and transcript. If you face any form of misconduct allegation, whether academic or behavioral, that could result in a transcript notation or anomaly affecting your future, then rely on attorney Lento's representation to accomplish the following:
- respond promptly and in writing to each misconduct allegation;
- preserve your procedural, contractual, and constitutional rights;
- gather, organize, and present exonerating and mitigating evidence;
- participate in efforts to informally resolve all charges in your favor;
- demand and participate in such formal hearings as are necessary;
- cross-examine adverse witnesses to expose false allegations;
- summarize facts and present legal arguments orally and in writing;
- appeal any adverse decisions to an independent board or official;
- negotiate outcomes and relief that preserve your clean transcript;
- correspond, meet, and communicate with the institution's officials; and
- win you the best possible relief under all the circumstances.
Retain a National Expert Academic Attorney
National academic attorney Joseph D. Lento devotes his preeminent law practice to student discipline defense and resolving school-related issues and concerns. Through hard work and dedication, attorney Lento has earned the confidence and trust of thousands of college and university students nationwide, helping them successfully defend and defeat academic and behavioral misconduct charges and other issues and concerns that can negatively impact a student's academic career, and by extension, a student's professional goals. He has the knowledge, skill, and experience to know how colleges and universities handle misconduct allegations and other issues and concerns, including to know how they treat transcript entries. Trust attorney Lento and his skilled and experienced team at the Lento Law Firm with your prompt, aggressive, and effective representation. Call 888-535-3686 to schedule a consultation, or use the online service.
