To successfully pass a course in the DMSc program, the student must earn at least 73% cumulatively on all graded assignments and activities. Students are expected to complete all required reading, video, and other media-based assignments, and turn in all written assignments, including discussion-board posts by the posted deadlines. Failure to do so may result in a lower grade.

Incomplete Assignments

Any student who receives an incomplete grade in a course will meet with the course instructor to develop an Action Plan to guide the student and spell out terms of how and when the course work will be completed. In general, a student has three weeks following the end of the quarter to complete missing coursework. In rare circumstances, the Program Director may authorize a longer period of time for missing coursework to be completed for an incomplete (I) course. If the student fails to meet the terms of the Action Plan, the student will receive a failing grade for the course. Any incomplete course may affect financial aid eligibility, and the student may incur additional tuition and/or costs.

Discussion Boards (DB)

To ensure academic engagement and regular and substantive interactions with faculty and fellow students, many courses will have a discussion board (DB). The DB is an asynchronous written electronic discussion that will occur each week when other major assignments are not due. The faculty will initiate these discussions by posting a question or statement relevant to that week’s lessons that requires a response from each student by midnight on Wednesday (Pacific Time). Once a student has posted their response to the instructor’s prompt, they will then be able to see what their classmates have posted. Students will then be required to respond to at least two of their classmates’ posts by midnight (Pacific Time) on the Sunday before the next week begins.

• The initial post should be 300 to 500 words and be supported by two references in the AMA 11^th edition style
• The two subsequent responses to classmates’ initial post should each be 200-to-300-words and contain at least one reference using AMA 11^th edition style.

Discussion board posts will be graded as part of the overall grade for each course and are worth 10 points[LL1]  each. There will be no graded DB posts required during weeks when other assignments are due. Please see Appendix A for the Discussion Board rubric.

Written Assignments

Written assignments will be due by 11:59 PM Pacific (2:59 AM Eastern) on Sunday at the end of the week in which it is due. Students may negotiate an extension directly with the instructor if extenuating circumstances prevent them from meeting this deadline. It is the student’s responsibility to initiate this communication.

Late assignments will incur a 10% grade reduction and must be submitted within seven calendar days of the original due date or by a mutually agreed upon due date approved by the course instructor.

Assignments will be submitted in a format that is compatible across both Mac and PC systems, using the template found in Appendix B. MS Word is preferred. All assignments should be in 12-point Times New Roman Font and double spaced. Assignments should be organized, clearly written within assigned word-count limits, and free from grammatical or spelling errors. Use of spell/grammar check, Grammarly, reading aloud for clarity, and seeking additional proofreaders are encouraged. Assignments should include high-quality references in AMA 11th Edition style that are:

• The original primary source of the information
• Peer-reviewed through a journal, professional organization, or the government
• The most current for the given topic and ideally within the last 5 years, unless being cited for historical purposes.

A template for written assignments can be found in Appendix B at the end of this handbook.

Graduation

To be eligible for graduation and to receive the Doctor of Medical Science Degree, the student must successfully pass all required courses, complete their scholarly project, and be recommended for conferral of the degree of Doctor of Medical Science by the DMSc Program Director. The student must also settle all financial accounts with the University. If a student has not met all graduation requirements, the student may be eligible to walk through and participate in the graduation ceremony with their class, but will not receive a diploma until all requirements have been met.

Attendance

Participation and engagement in all required portions of the courses the student is enrolled in is expected of all students. Full engagement in Discussion Boards is encouraged to enable learning and growth through interaction with your classmates.

Time to Complete the Program

Students are required to complete the doctoral program within three years of matriculation. Students with extenuating circumstances may petition the Program Director for consideration of longer timeframes.

Preferred Name Policy

We recognize that a student may use a first name other than their legal first name in certain instances. The DMSc program will honor approved preferred name requests on any scholarships or awards, and in printed programs for commencement and other ceremonies. Please refer to the MBKU Student Handbook for the University's Preferred Name Policy (https://catalog.ketchum.edu/university-student-handbook/ university-policies/preferred-name-use/) and procedures.

Part-Time Status/Deceleration

The MBKU School of PA Studies does not permit students to matriculate on a part-time basis, nor does the curriculum lend itself to a decelerated learning schedule. Deceleration is never an option for academic reasons. 

Transfer Policy

The DMSc program at MBKU does not accept transfer students or transfer credits from other schools. All students are required to complete the entire DMSc curriculum. Admission to advanced standing is not considered or accepted. The DMSc program does not allow students to take proficiency exams to test out of any course within the DMSc curriculum.

Advanced Placement

We do not accept previous experience, medical, or other training for advanced placement in the DMSc  program. All students are expected to complete all elements of the program.

Disability and Accommodation Statement

Your access to this course is important. If you experience barriers, whether you have a disability or a personal circumstance that will affect your learning in this course, please let your instructor or advisor know as soon as possible so that we can discuss the best ways to meet your needs. You are also encouraged to contact Disability Services (StudentAffairs@Ketchum.edu). If you have a diagnosis, Disability Services can help you document your needs and create an accommodation plan. It is never too late to request accommodations as our bodies and circumstances are continuously changing. By making a plan through Disability Services, you can ensure appropriate accommodation without disclosing your condition or diagnosis to course instructors. Please keep in mind that accommodations are not provided retroactively. More information may be found in the MBKU Student Handbook, under Disability Services, on the "Student” tab of the My.Ketchum.edu Portal, or by contacting StudentAffairs@ketchum.edu or calling 714-449-7445.

If there are ways in which the overall structure of the course and general online interactions could be adapted to facilitate full participation, please do not hesitate to raise your ideas with your instructor. Comments and suggestions about the format of readings, recorded lectures, and discussion board discussions are welcome.

Diversity Statement

Respect for Diversity: It is our intent that students from all backgrounds and perspectives be well served by this course, that student learning needs be addressed, and that the diversity that students bring to this class be viewed as a resource, strength, and benefit. It is our intent to present materials and activities that are respectful of all kinds of people: gender, sexuality, ability status, age, socioeconomic status, ethnicity, race, and culture. Your suggestions are encouraged and appreciated. Please let us know ways to improve the effectiveness of the course for you personally or for other students. In addition, if any of our class requirements conflict with your religious events, please let us know and as always, please inform University Student Affairs for any accommodation needs.

Non-Discrimination Statement

Marshall B. Ketchum University is committed to providing a learning environment where all students are respected, included, and supported. Discrimination, harassment, or retaliation based on race, color, national origin, religion, sex (including pregnancy and gender identity), sexual orientation, disability, age, veteran status, or any other protected characteristic is not tolerated. Sex-based discrimination, including sexual harassment, is prohibited under Title IX and addressed through the University’s Title IX Sexual Harassment and Non-Discrimination Policy. If you have questions, experience or witness any form of discrimination, or need support, please contact MBKU’s Title IX Coordinator at TitleIX@Ketchum.edu. Additional information is available on the MBKU website under the Title IX and Non-Discrimination Policy section.

Inquiries regarding the University’s equal opportunity policies should be directed to University Student Affairs at StudentAffairs@Ketchum.edu for students and Human Resources at HumanResources@Ketchum.edu for employees.  

For further information on notice of non-discrimination, visit https://ocrcas.ed.gov/contact-ocr for the address and phone number of the office that serves your area, or call 1-800-421-3481.

Intellectual Property and Copyright

MBKU believes that our community is best served by creating an intellectual environment whereby creative efforts and innovations can be encouraged and rewarded, while still retaining for the University and its learning communities reasonable access to, and use of, the intellectual property for whose creation the University has helped. Material created for teaching use in the classroom and in department programs, such as syllabi, PowerPoint presentations, assignments, and tests, shall remain the property of the faculty author and the University. MBKU students are granted permission to use these course materials for their personal educational use only and may not make any of the material available to others without the express written permission of the instructor and the University. Copyright infringement is against the law. Violations of this policy will be considered unethical and unprofessional behavior. Such violations are grounds for disciplinary action, program dismissal, and possible legal action.

All students and employees are expected to maintain academic integrity and respect others’ intellectual property rights.

Breach of Academic Integrity/lack of Proper Use of sources/Plagiarism and Social Media Policy:

All academic work submitted to fulfill course requirements is expected to be the result of each student’s own thought, research, and self-expression. A student will have committed plagiarism if someone else’s work is reproduced without acknowledging its source. Examples of sources that must be acknowledged include any verbiage, ideas, or other direct quotes from published articles, chapters of books, computer programs, graphic representations, research papers and other kinds of work from a source not generated as a part of the public domain. The internet is not a public domain.

Student Requirements/Expectations

Students are expected to:

1. Complete all required activities by the posted deadlines.
2. Actively participate and contribute to Discussion Board conversations.
3. Purchase required textbooks, if not available electronically through the MBKU Library and complete reading assignments in the week they are assigned.
4. Treat classmates and faculty with dignity and respect.

Social Media Policy

Social media and technology-driven applications for online storage and sharing are internet-based tools designed to create a highly accessible information highway. They are a powerful and far-reaching means of communication that may have a significant impact on a student’s professional reputation and status. Examples include, but are not limited to LinkedIn, X, Meta or Facebook, YouTube, Instagram, Snapchat, Reddit, PA Forums, Google Cloud, iCloud, and Dropbox. Students are liable for anything they post to social media and storage/ sharing sites. The same laws, professional expectations, and guidelines are expected to be followed as are required in personal interactions. The following guidelines have been developed for student conduct on social media and in using the internet to protect the student’s reputation and the reputation of the School and to comply with privacy and confidentiality laws.

• Students must take responsibility and use good judgment when posting information. Incomplete, inaccurate, threatening, provocative, or harassing posts or use of profanity on postings is strictly prohibited. It is inappropriate to use social media sites as a venue for venting.
• Students must apply all HIPAA laws to all social networking and internet storage/sharing sites.
• Students must protect their own privacy so as to not let outsiders see their personal information.
• Students must identify themselves, and their role in the program and use a disclaimer stating that their views are their own and do not reflect the views of the University if they state a connection to MBKU.
• Students must follow all laws governing copyright and fair use of copyrighted material.
• Students must consult their faculty advisor or the Program Director if they have any questions regarding the appropriateness of social networking or internet storage site/ sharing use.
• The student is responsible for how and what they store or share.

Failure to follow the above-stated guidelines may be considered a breach of appropriate professional behavior and be subject to discipline, up to, and including dismissal from the program. Students may not communicate with a member of the media or an outside source attempting to gather information regarding the MBKU DMSc program through social networks. Refer all questions regarding program information, policies, and procedures to the Program Director. Questions regarding MBKU should be referred to the MBKU Office of University Advancement.