Academic and Disciplinary Actions

The Institute reserves the right to initiate disciplinary action against any student whose conduct, academic or clinical performance, or academic integrity fails to meet the standards deemed acceptable by the Institute.

Disciplinary actions are largely carried out by the school that houses the program that a student is enrolled in. More information about the academic and professional standards that students will be held to, and the consequences of not meeting those standards, can be found in the appropriate program manual.

Generally, consequences for academic or professional misconduct will include the following, though program chairs, department directors, and deans of each school may outline additional consequences as they deem appropriate.

Mediation and Informal Resolution: Faculty or administrators of the Institute will, whenever possible, aim to resolve issues with students informally through direct communication. However, faculty and administration retain the discretion to not attempt informal resolution should a student’s breach in conduct be deemed too serious in nature. Corrective actions that are given to a student from faculty or administration through informal resolution will not result in a record being maintained in a student’s academic file.

Warning: Faculty or administrators of the Institute may issue a warning to a student for the purpose of specifying problematic behavior or performance, defining corrective action, and delineating the time frame for corrective action.

  • Oral Warning: As determined by the student's program, a note documenting the oral warning can be placed in the student's permanent academic file in the Registrar's Office. Notification to review the statement will be sent to the student's advisor. In the case of oral warnings, no permanent record is retained after the student leaves the Institute. If expectations related to corrective action are not met in the delineated time, a written warning will be issued.
  • Written Warning: A letter stating "this is a written warning" will be issued to the student and a copy placed in the student's permanent academic file in the Registrar's Office. Notification to review the warning will be sent to the Program Director and the student's advisor. In the case of a written warning, a record is retained in the permanent file with documentation regarding the outcome. If expectations related to corrective action are not met in the delineated time, suspension may commence.

Suspension: Suspension is a disciplinary action in which the student is temporarily and immediately removed from the academic or clinical setting. Written notification of the plan for corrective action(s) that are required of the student prior to their return to responsibilities or initiation of the dismissal procedure must occur within 5 business days of the suspension. This written notification will also include the reasons for and the duration of the suspension or dismissal. A copy of the written notification will be retained in the student's official Institute file. Notification of the suspension with a copy of the plan for corrective action will be sent to the Program Director and/or School Dean and the student's advisor.

Dismissal: Dismissal is expulsion from the Institute when, in the judgment of the Program or School Committee, a student's conduct, academic or clinical performance, or academic integrity is unacceptable. To initiate a dismissal, the Institute faculty member must submit a copy of the documentation of the problems and procedures involved to date to the student's Program Committee. Each program will identify a committee for making recommendations for dismissal and the student appeal process at the program and/or School level. This process must preserve the student's right to receive adequate notice of the problematic conduct, to submit documents for review, and to appear before the programs' designated committee. Based on the findings of this process, the program is responsible for the decision. The student will be informed in writing of the decision. A copy of the written decision will be placed in the student's official Institute file. Once the dismissal procedure has been initiated, the process should be completed within ten business days. The only method to reverse a dismissal decision is through an appeals process.

Students who are subject to any of the above actions will be notified in writing. Students who wish to appeal disciplinary actions have 10 business days to submit an appeal to their dean’s office. Detailed appeal procedures can be found in the appropriate program manual.