Academics

ACADEMIC POLICIES AND REGULATIONS

Attendance

Regulations
Mercer County Community College does not have a “cut system.” Students are expected to attend all classes of every course on their schedules. Only illness or serious personal matters may be considered adequate reasons for absence.

It is the prerogative of the instructor to excuse absences for valid reasons, provided the student will be able to fulfill all course requirements.

Students in the Medical Laboratory Technology and Radiography programs must arrange with the program coordinator to make up all missed laboratory and clinical hours. Students in nursing courses are required to attend all lecture, recitation, college laboratory, and clinical laboratory sessions.

The college is required by law to maintain attendance reports on students who are funded by Veterans benefits, Social Security payments and various other federal, state, or private scholarship programs.

Attendance Verification and Progress Grades
Student performance in classes is monitored throughout the semester. If a student’s attendance has been infrequent or performance unsatisfactory, he or she may receive notification in the mail. At any time, the instructor may withdraw the student from class as a result of insufficient attendance.

Students who receive an unsatisfactory progress report are encouraged to see their instructor, advisor, and/or counselor and to take the steps necessary to complete the course successfully by the end of the semester.

Withdrawal from Courses

To receive a W grade for any course, a student should consult with the course instructor or an appropriate division representative and then withdraw officially before two-thirds of the course has been completed by submitting a withdrawal form to the Enrollment office. Withdrawal after this point results in a grade other than W (usually F) unless the registrar determines that the student was unable to continue due to extraordinary circumstances beyond the student’s control.

At any time before two-thirds of the course has been completed, the instructor may also withdraw, with a WI grade, any student who has been absent excessively. A student withdrawn by the instructor for excessive absence will not be entitled to any refund of tuition or fees. The student may appeal this action.

It is the responsibility of students sponsored or receiving financial aid to report any change of status (e.g., full-time to part-time) to the sponsoring agency. The college has the same responsibility. Some agencies adjust the amount of benefits; others may cancel the benefits entirely.

Withdrawal from a course does not necessarily release the student from any academic integrity violation consequences.

Repeating Courses

Students may repeat courses. The most recent grade is the student’s official grade for the course unless the grade is S, NC, X, W, WI, or WA. Only the most recent grade will be used in QPA calculations, although any prior grade will also appear on the transcript. A student who wishes to take a course for the third (or more) time is required to obtain formal, written approval from the appropriate division dean unless otherwise specified.

Auditing a Course

A student who wishes to attend a class regularly but does not wish to receive a grade or credit for the course may request permission to register as an auditor. To receive permission to audit, the student should meet all admission requirements expected of students enrolled in the course, including any course prerequisites and corequisites.

Audit students must pay the same tuition and fees for the entire course as students receiving credit. Attendance requirements for auditors are determined by the course instructor. Intention to audit a course should be declared at registration and to the instructor in the first class session. The appropriate form must be completed and submitted during registration.

Changing from an audit to a credit basis during the semester is not permitted. Credit for audited courses cannot be established at a later date except by enrolling in the course for credit in a subsequent semester and satisfying all course requirements.

Independent Study

In addition to earning credits through formal courses, students may earn credit through approved independent study available for many but not all MCCC courses or for a specific plan of study in a course discipline. Students plan specific activities and goals with the help of a cooperating faculty member and receive approval for their plans from the applicable academic division dean. The Independent Study Agreement Form is available from academic division offices.

In general, independent study courses should corre- spond to standard semester lengths so that registration and grading for them can be accomplished within a designated registration period. Should the student take longer than a semester to complete the course, the student will be given an “I” grade when semester grades are processed, subject to change upon completion of the course.

The following guidelines are applicable:

• A student must have completed 15 credits with a minimum quality point average (QPA) of 2.75 to be considered eligible for independent study.

• A student may select no more than one course by independent study during a semester.

• A maximum of four courses may be taken by independent study in degree programs.

• Courses by independent study must be sponsored by full-time members of the faculty whenever possible.

• Students may not select more than two courses by independent study under the sponsorship of the same faculty member.

Permission for any exceptions to the above guidelines may be obtained from the responsible academic division dean.

Readmission

A student who has not attended Mercer for two or more years must complete the admission process again. If returning to a degree or certificate program earlier pursued, all requirements listed in the academic catalog in effect at the time of re-admission to the program must be completed. For more information, contact the Enrollment office.

Academic Restart Program

Students who have had a previous academic experience at Mercer and have a QPA of less than 2.0 may apply for an Academic Restart at any time after a period of non-enrollment of at least three (3) years.

If an Academic Restart is approved, all previous MCCC course credits and grades remain on the student’s transcript, but courses taken prior to the period of non-enrollment are no longer counted in the student’s quality point average and the QPA will be reset at zero.

Up to four courses in which credit was earned with a grade of “C” or better prior to the period of non-enrollment may be counted toward graduation requirements and included in the QPA.

A suitable message on the transcript will designate the point at which the Academic Restart became effective. Students are allowed only one Academic Restart. Once approved, it is irrevocable. Contact the Student Records office or the student advocate in any academic division for further details.

Change of Program/Major

A student wishing to change from one program (major) to another must initiate the procedure with their program advisor or student advocate. Approval for the change must be obtained from the academic division or student advocate responsible for the program to which the student wants admittance. The faculty or staff member will submit the form to the Student Records office. A student who is a veteran must also submit a change of program form to the Military and Veterans Services office.

Requests received during a semester will not take effect until the next semester. For example, the new major for a change request received during the Spring semester will activate starting with the following Summer term.