The Campbell University Jerry M. Wallace School of Osteopathic Medicine (CUSOM) earned its second decade of accreditation in 2024, meaning that North Carolina’s first osteopathic medical school will continue to produce future medical professionals for the foreseeable future.
If you’re enrolled in CUSOM, you surely plan on becoming one of those medical professionals-to-be. Yet, because you’re reading this, we can only assume that your best-laid plan is at risk of being derailed. Students are not always able to salvage a medical career after suffering a dismissal from a medical program (including DO programs). Fighting a pending dismissal from CUSOM may be a make-or-break undertaking for your professional dream.
There is one group that doesn’t take medical students’ dismissals lightly: The LLF National Law Group Student Defense Team. We deliver value by helping students negotiate alternatives to dismissal, averting catastrophe through deft, relentless representation.
Call the LLF National Law Firm Student Defense Team today at 888-535-3686 or contact us online about how our team can fight for your best interests with CUSOM’s faculty and general counsel.
An Order for Your Dismissal Is Not Always Final. Contact Us Even If You Think the Fight for Continued Enrollment Has Concluded.
CUSOM policies may refer to “final” decisions regarding student dismissal. If you relied solely on those policies, you might think that the respective Dean who makes “final” disciplinary decisions controls your fate.
This may not be so.
Even if you have received a dismissal order you believed to be “final,” the fat lady may not have sung yet. Our Student Defense Team deals directly with universities’ offices of general counsel, as schools’ attorneys often have unrivaled authority to make decisions regarding students’ dismissal—even when the university’s faculty disagrees with the general counsel’s decision.
The ramifications of student dismissal are far too significant to accept the decision without a fight. Even if you previously felt that the fight was over, tag in our Student Defense Team to keep your hopes alive.
Potential Reasons for Dismissal from CUSOM
Students preparing to become medical professionals are held to a high standard. Actually, they’re held to multiple standards and might be subject to dismissal based on:
Failure to Progress Academically
CUSOM’s Academic Standing and Academic Progress Policy explains how students who don’t demonstrate sufficient academic progress might first face an Academic Warning. They may then be placed on Academic Probation. Ultimately, they could be dismissed.
DO programs often require preceptors, instructors, and others responsible for evaluating students’ performance to make judgment calls. Grading can be more subjective than most assume, which can lead to unjustified academic dismissals from DO programs such as CUSOM.
Alleged Behavioral Misconduct
CUSOM’s Student Ethics and Professionalism Policy outlines several prohibited behaviors, including, but not limited to, academic misconduct and unprofessionalism. Students may be dismissed based on alleged behavioral misconduct when
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The alleged misconduct is regarded as egregious
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The student is on Conduct Probation at the time they’re accused of behavioral misconduct
Cheating, disrespect toward faculty, and arrest are among the many offenses that violate the CUSOM Code of Conduct. If you face any form of discipline for alleged behavioral misconduct, don’t wait to contact our Student Defense Team.
How Students at CUSOM End Up Dismissed (The Adjudication Process)
CUSOM’s Academic Performance, Progress and Standards (APPS) Committee plays an instrumental role in evaluating students’ academic performance and behavioral conduct. The school’s Academic Bulletin details the procedures by which the APPS might eventually dismiss a student.
Dismissal Procedures for Alleged Academic Underperformance
An academic review process may be triggered by several conditions, from a student failing their attempt to remediate coursework to a student failing a course while on academic probation.
After reviewing a student’s case, the Chair of the APPS Committee can order intermediate action. This might include ordering the student in question to meet with an Associate Dean to resolve the academic issue in question.
However, the student might ultimately meet with the APPS Committee, and that meeting might entail:
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Committee members discussing the student’s academic performance
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Members asking the student questions
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The student giving oral statements on their own behalf
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The student presenting any evidence that they believe is relevant to the proceedings
The APPS Committee will decide how to respond to perceived academic underperformance after this meeting, and that response may include dismissal of the student.
Dismissal Procedures for Alleged Behavioral Misconduct
The CUSOM Office of Student Affairs or the Associate Dean typically receives complaints of student misconduct. After an investigation to verify the complaint’s credibility, an accused student may be required to attend a hearing or meeting conducted by the APPS Committee.
Following such a meeting or hearing, the student may be informed of the APPS Committee’s recommendation that they be dismissed from CUSOM.
Can I Appeal Dismissal at Campbell University Jerry M. Wallace School of Osteopathic Medicine?
CUSOM lists several “non-appealable APPS Committee sanctions” in its Academic Bulletin. Dismissal is not on that list, as the APPS Committee’s recommendation is generally appealable.
When a student chooses to appeal an APPS Committee dismissal, they do so to the Dean. If the Dean decides to dismiss a student, though, their decision is described as “non-appealable.” Our firm will guide you through any necessary appeals processes, which are almost always time-sensitive and critically important to the appealing student’s future.
Remember that the LLF National Law Firm does not stop or fight when faculty members say it’s over. We exhaust non-traditional resolution avenues, including contacting DO programs’ general counsel, so our students have every chance at remaining in school.
Dismissal Is Not the Only Form of Discipline. Let Our Student Defense Team Fight for a More Merciful Resolution for You.
Dismissal is an extreme measure. Whether a student has hit a rough patch in academic performance or has acted in a manner inconsistent with their character, dismissing them will change that student’s life in a way they may not be able to recover from.
From grade changes to probation and even suspension, there are many alternatives to dismissing a student that CUSOM officials might deem reasonable. We simply need to make an impassioned case and help them see why these measures are more fair and merciful than dismissing you from the program.
Dismissal is as serious as a heart attack, and you should call the experienced, proven LLF National Law Firm Student Defense Team today at 888-535-3686 or contact us online. Let us show you why we’re so trusted by university students nationwide.