You've made the decision to go back to school. Good for you. A continuing education (CE) degree or certificate can be the key to opening a whole new world for you. It can allow you to move up at work; it can prepare you for an entirely new career; if nothing else, it can prove to you that you're not too old to learn new tricks.
Like anything worthwhile, though, you can expect your CE journey to be a challenge. Drexel University instructors maintain rigorous classroom standards, and in this day and age, your non-academic behaviors will be under just as much scrutiny. More importantly, you're facing a very different situation than you did when you were 18. You aren't just a student this time around. You're a spouse, a parent, an employee, a homeowner. 18-year-olds have to juggle coursework with their social lives. You have a lot more to worry about.
Luckily, you're not alone. The LLF Education Law Team are here to help. They've worked with hundreds of CE students, and they know exactly what you're up against. They know the law, but they're also familiar with the Drexel campus and how it works. Most of all, they're on your side. They believe in your quest to improve yourself, and they'll do whatever they need to to make sure you have every chance at success.
Below, you'll find useful information on how to navigate some of the most difficult aspects of going back to school. You'll find out the kinds of things that can go wrong and what to do about them when they do. More important than all of that, though, is remembering that The LLF Law Team is just a phone call away. You can get help any time, just by calling 888-555-3686.
Academics
Generally speaking, a CE program can be divided into two parts: academics and fitting into the university community. Let's start by talking about the issues that come up in terms of academics and all the many potential problems that relate to your work in the classroom.
Drexel's Professional Studies program is housed in the university's Goodwin College. Goodwin prides itself on providing educational pathways that fit a variety of different needs. That is, you can get your feet wet by taking individual courses just to see what a subject is like; you can take courses to help you prepare for professional license exams; you can choose a skill hub you want to improve and take several related courses; or you can enroll in one of Goodwin's Master's levels programs.
Of course, all of these options come with different expectations.
- Single Courses: You can take traditional, instructor-led courses or sign up for online learning modules that allow you to learn at your own pace. Subjects include Sigma Six, Web Development and Coding, Project Management, and Cybersecurity. You can even choose courses specifically devoted to test preparation, such as the college's course on the CompTIA Security+ Certification Exam.
- Skill Hubs: If you prefer, you can concentrate your studies in a single hub, such as the Project Management hub or the Information Technology hub. Completing a hub usually requires completing 3-4 courses, but you can earn certification as you do so.
- Graduate Degrees: Finally, Godwin also offers a master's degree in either Nonprofit Management or Professional Studies generally. Both require 45 total hours of course work including core courses, electives, and a capstone project.
CE graduate degrees at Drexel are under the same academic standing requirements as any other graduate degree at the university. That is, you're expected to earn a minimum 3.0 GPA for all your coursework. Should your cumulative grade point fall below this level, you are placed on Academic Probation. And, should you continue to struggle, you face additional penalties up to and including complete dismissal from the program.
While there are no grade point requirements for Drexel's single course, skill hubs, and certification programs, you can expect your instructors to hold you to high standards. Many courses include attendance and participation requirements, for example, and you cannot earn credit without a passing grade.
Satisfactory Academic Progress Policy
In addition to the school's academic standing policy, if you receive financial aid, you'll also be subject to the Satisfactory Academic Progress (SAP) policy. The federal government mandates that all colleges and universities maintain such policies as a way of preventing financial aid fraud. These policies set specific academic standards students must meet in order to remain eligible to receive aid.
Drexel's policy includes three separate criteria.
- First, you must meet a minimum cumulative GPA requirement. For undergraduates, the number is 2.0. For graduate students, it is 3.0.
- Second, you must complete the appropriate percentage of the courses you attempt. For undergraduates, that percentage varies from 60 to 80 percent. For graduate students, it is 75 percent.
- Finally, you must complete your degree in at least 150 percent of the published number of courses required for that degree. If, for instance, your degree requires 30 hours, you must complete it in 45 hours in order to continue receiving financial aid.
Drexel evaluates SAP at the end of each academic year. Failure to meet any one of these criteria means the loss of financial aid. The university does offer an appeals process for financial aid. If your academic deficiencies are the result of extenuating circumstances, you can fill out an SAP appeal form. If your appeal is successful, you'll receive an additional probationary semester of aid. However, evaluation standards are strict.
Of course, you don't have to have financial aid to continue as a student at Drexel. You can still earn your degree, even if you aren't meeting SAP criteria. However, many students find it difficult to continue without some type of funding.
The LLF Education Law Team have helped hundreds of students to file SAP appeals. They are skilled at collecting evidence to document extenuating circumstances; they know what kinds of arguments work best with appeals committees; they know how to make you look your best on paper. Keep in mind, though, that SAP appeals are time-sensitive. Drexel offers a small window of opportunity for filing them, and once your aid is gone, it is gone forever. In short, it is vital that you contact the LLF Law Firm any time you're struggling academically.
Academic Misconduct
Drexel University also maintains a strict Academic Integrity Policy designed to ensure that no student has an unfair advantage in completing their certification or degree. That policy specifically mentions
- Plagiarism: Passing another person's words or ideas off as your own without giving them credit
- Cheating: an “act of deception” designed to misrepresent mastery of a skill you haven't actually mastered
- Fabrication: Inventing information as part of an academic exercise
For good measure, the policy also prohibits “academic misconduct” generally, listing examples like buying exam answers, bribing someone to obtain exam answers, using unauthorized electronic devices during an exam, and signing in to class for someone who's absent.
Most allegations of academic misconduct are handled within the context of the course in which they are made. Faculty have primary responsibility for identifying and punishing violations, and sanctions generally include
- Reprimand
- Makeup assignment or re-submission
- Extra assignment on the nature of academic integrity
- Loss of credit for the assignment
- Loss of credit for the course, up to a course failure
The instructor must also report the violation to the Student Conduct and Care office. This office keeps a record of all offenses and has the authority to punish second and all subsequent violations with more serious sanctions, including
- Suspension
- Dismissal
- Expulsion
In all cases, you have the right to respond to allegations and to appeal sanctions you think may be unfair. That process can sometimes be confusing, though. For example, what type of appeal you file depends on whether you are protesting the accusation, the sanction, or both and whether you've been issued a course sanction or a disciplinary sanction. This is yet another situation, then, when you need a professional at your side to help guide you through the process. The LLF Education Law Team can help you organize evidence and prepare any written documents you need to submit. They can work with you to develop an overall defense strategy. And, perhaps most importantly, they can make sure Drexel treats you fairly and that you get all the due process rights to which you're entitled.
Academics: What Could Go Wrong?
You might be surprised by the idea that a lawyer could help you with academic issues. After all, the LLF Law Firm can't write your papers for you or take your exams.
Often, though, success in college is less about how you do on exams and papers than it is about understanding how to deal with institutional bureaucracy. Sometimes raising your GPA requires delicate negotiation tactics. On occasion, you may have to prove your academic integrity in a formal hearing. Even just convincing a faculty member or an administrator to make an exception because your kid is sick can be a major undertaking. No one knows how to deal with bureaucracy better than lawyers. The LLF Education Law Team know Drexel's rules and procedures; they know how to talk with faculty; they know which arguments are most effective in an academic setting. Ultimately, then, there's simply no one better positioned to help you through an academic crisis than someone from the LLF Law Firm.
Disciplinary Misconduct
Drexel pays as much, or more, attention to student conduct outside the classroom as to how well you're doing in the classroom. This is just as true for CE students as it is for the average undergraduate. The list of potential violations at the school is lengthy, and any one of them can get you dismissed. There are strictures about
- Alcohol use
- Camping on campus
- Complicity in committing violations
- Destruction of property
- Discrimination
- Dishonesty
- Disorderly conduct
- Drugs
- Failure to comply with a directive
- Fire safety
- Gambling
- Guest behavior
- Hazing
- Interfering with the student conduct process
- Intimidation and threats
- Littering
- Pets and animals on campus
- Posting flyers and other materials
- Privacy and electronic media
- Retaliation
- Solicitation
- Theft
- Unauthorized entry
- Unauthorized use of property
- Unmanned aircraft
- Violence
- Weapons
- Wheeled transportation
You can also be sanctioned for violating local, state, or federal laws. A DUI conviction, or a conviction for domestic violence, can get you dismissed from Drexel, even if the activity occurred off-campus.
Note too, that most sexually-based offenses are treated separately from other kinds of disciplinary misconduct. Such offenses are violations of federal law under Title IX, and universities and colleges tend to be zealous in investigating allegations and harsh in sanctioning students found Responsible. The minimum penalty in such cases is usually suspension. The more common penalty is expulsion.
Finally, you should keep in mind that all of the school's misconduct rules apply equally to online activities. Many of Drexel's CE courses are only offered online. Sexual harassment and other kinds of offenses, though, are treated the same whether they happen in an online forum or a brick-and-mortar classroom. In addition, Drexel specifically requires that when taking online courses you:
- Avoid inappropriate surroundings
- Dress appropriately when others can see you
- Behave professionally
- Treat others with respect
- Avoid profanity and socially-offensive language
Continuing Education Student Attorney-Advisor
If you've been out of school for a few years, you need to know that things have changed in education.
- Cheating is on the rise, so professors are more hyper-vigilant.
- Academic expectations grow higher every year.
- In today's political climate, no school can afford to be seen as soft on discipline, and every school conducts rigorous investigations and doles out stiff penalties.
It's worth recognizing, though, that you've changed too. Sure, you care about passing your courses and getting your degree, but that's not the highest priority in your life anymore. You've got a partner, a mortgage, and kids to worry about. Satisfying your boss's demands is probably far more important to you than pleasing your professor.
Most continuing education faculty understand the particular kinds of stresses you're under, and most are willing to work with you to make your educational experience rewarding. If you should find, though, that an instructor won't let you make up an exam you missed because one of your kids was down with the flu or an administrator wants to dismiss you from your program because you didn't put a quotation mark in the right spot, know that you have options.
The LLF Education Law Team have helped hundreds of students just like you deal with school-based issues. They know the law as it applies to education, and they are practiced in dealing with faculty and administrators. Whatever problem you might be facing, from issues with technology to accusations of sexual misconduct, don't wait to see what will happen. If you're in trouble, contact the Lento Law Firm today at 888-555-3686, or use our automated online form.
