Standard Course Policies
As a member of this campus community all students are expected to be aware of, and to adhere to, all relevant policies that relate to this course. University policies can be found at The following are intended to highlight relevant course policies:
ACADEMIC INTEGRITY
Academic integrity is the foundation of scholarship and the policies will be strictly enforced. Any indication of academic dishonesty (outlined here: will be referred to the Office of Student Conduct ( without hesitation.
ACCOMMODATIONS FOR DISABILITIES
Students requiring specific academic accommodations should contact their instructor with the appropriate documentation from the Accessibility and Disability Service (ADS) within the "drop/add" period for the semester (
ABSENCES FROM ASSIGNED WORK
The University of Maryland's policy on excused absences is provided here:
This section highlights the key elements of attendance policies. Since my courses don’t involve classroom sessions, I have translated this into my expectations:
Single Late Assignments Due to Illness or Injury (Assignments Worth Less Than 10% of Your Grade)
University of Maryland policy dictates that a single absence during the semester due to illness or injury will be excused with a self-signed letter attesting to the date of the illness and acknowledging that the information is true and correct. You are expected to contact your instructor by phone or email prior to an assignment due date if you expect to be unable to meet a deadline. Complete and submit the form at the end of this documentby the next due date for any assignment if an unexpected illness or injury prevented you from meeting a deadline and you did not ask for an extension in advance.
Missing a Deadline for a Major Scheduled Grading Event (Assignments Worth 10% or More of Your Grade)
University policy excuses absences due to (1) the illness of the student or the illness of a dependent as defined by Board of Regents policy on family and medical leave ( (2) religious observance (where the nature of the observance prevents the student from being present during the class period); (3) participation in university activities at the request of university authorities; and (4) compelling circumstance beyond the students control. Students claiming excused late submission of assignments must apply in writing and furnish documentary support for their assertion that failure to meet a deadline for a major assignment resulted from one of these causes immediately after the failure to meet a deadline.
Not meeting the deadline for a major scheduled grading event (worth 15% or more of your grade) requires written documentation of the illness or injury from the Health Center or an outside health care provider. The letter must verify the dates of treatment and the time period during which you were unable to meet academic responsibilities.
ABSENCES FROM INTERNSHIP
Students are expected to make-up time missed in case of inclement weather or illness. In cases of extreme hardship please contact the instructor to discuss accommodations and incompletes. Students interns are expected to design their scheduled hours around holidays or vacations (Labor Day, Veteran’s Day, Columbus Day, spring break,Thanksgiving, etc.) in order to ensure they reach the hours the Maryland Higher Education Commission requires. Student interns are not given credit for holidays or vacations.The student intern is solely responsible for ensuring they are able to complete their correct hours prior to the end of classes each semester:
- 1 credit internship—45 hours on site
- 2 credit internship—90 hours on site
- 3 credit internship--135 hours on site
- 4 credit internship--180 hours on site
- 5 credit internship--225 hours on site
- 6 credit internship--270 hours on site.
If there is a weather closure or delay from which you wish to be excused, your time logs must document that you regularly intern on the affected day, and you must document that your internship organization was closed that day. You may request to be excused from a maximum of five hours for a one credit internship, 10 hours for a two credit internship, 15 hours for a three credit internship, 20 hours for a four credit internship, 25 hours for a five credit internship or 30 hours for a six credit internship for weather closures. You must request to be excused from making up any hours for weather closures or delays, and hours above those outlined above in this paragraph must be made up.
COURSE COMMUNICATION
Please do not use the ELMS communication tool (e.g., inbox messages, comment boxes on assignments orgrades) - Please send questions and comments directly to the instructor’s email: .
GRADES
Grades are not given, but earned. Your grade is determined byyour performance on the various assessments and assignments inthe course and is calculated individually (not curved).
Details for each assignment are provided on ELMS.
LETTER GRADES - Letter grades are assigned based on the percentage of total pointsearned. Being close to an absolute cutoff is not the same thing as making that cut (89.99≠ 90.0), so please do not ask if I will round up your letter grade just because you are close.
With the exception of calculation errors, no grade changes will be made to your final gradeat the end of the semester. To treat all students fairly I have to hold each to the sameexact standard. If earning a particular grade is important to you, please speak with me atthe beginning of the semester so that I can offer some helpful suggestions for achievingyour goal. Do not wait untilthe end of the semester to review earlier assignments and exams.
Students should make themselves fully aware of all grading policies and seek clarification when needed prior to the established academic deadlines for the course.
Students who believe that their final grade is not an accurate representation of their scholarly performance are expected to first resolve the matter with their instructors. All students have the right to appeal a final grade underthe University of Maryland’s policy on “arbitrary and capricious grading.” Visit details to the policy and appeals process.
CALCULATING HOURS INTERNED
Students may only earn hours while working on siteor at an official event of the organization for which they are organized. Hours cannot be earnedremotely or by working from home. Commute time and breaks are not included. Time spent working on your papers and on the internship review, even if allowed to do this at your internship site, are NOT included.
FAILURE TO WORK HOURS REQUIRED
Students failing to work the correct number of hours will have their grade reduced as follows:
- .1 to 5 hours – 1 step (e.g. A- to B+)
- 5+ to 10 hours - 2 steps (e.g. A- to B)
- 10+ to 15 hours – one full grade (e.g. A- to B-)
- Further shortfalls will result in further comparable grade reductions
LATE APPLICATIONS
The instructor will accept late applications (a completed and signed learning contract attached to an up-to-date unofficial transcript) from students with a declared primary major in the College of Behavioral and Social Sciences early in the semester. Note when students apply late, they generally may not earn credit for hours previously worked at their internship. If they have been communicating with me about enrolling, however, they may be allowed to request credit for hours for up to one week (seven days) prior to the day they register, as long as the hours fall after the first week of classes.
LATE ASSIGNMENTS
Failure to submit time logs or other assignments when due, without procuring the instructor’s approval in advance, will result in a loss of points. Assignments turned in late without prior approval of the internship coordinator will not be eligible for full credit. If a time log is submitted late, but before the next time log is due, .25 point will be deducted. If other assignments are submitted late, or the quiz in BSOS 386 is taken late, but before the next assignment is due, .5 point will be deducted. Note: The final time and activity log and Internship Review will not be accepted after the last day of exams.
RESUBMISSION OF ASSIGNMENTS
Students are permitted to submit a rewrite for Paper 1 if their initial grade was below 90%. This is the only assignment for which resubmissions are allowed. The maximum grade awarded for a resubmission of Paper 1 is 13.5 in BSOS 288I and BSOS 386 and nine in BSOS 355. Resubmissions are due five days after the original Paper 1 graded assignment is posted to ELMS.
MORE INFORMATION on course related policies can be found here.12/15/17
Template for Exceptions from Late Deductions for Assignments
On (date)______, I was unable to submit my assignment on time due to an illness of such severity as to prevent me from meeting my academic obligation. I understand that providing false information to University officials is prohibited under Part 10(j) of the Code of Student Conduct (V-1.00(B) University of Maryland Code of Student Conduct) and may result in disciplinary action. I pledge on my honor that I have not provided false information Signature:______
Printed name:______
University ID Number:______