Catalog
Faculty Office Hours and Classroom Policies
Faculty Office Hours
Information about the office hours of individual members of the faculty is available from the Provost's Office.
Attendance
It is the responsibility of students at Washington College to attend promptly each class meeting scheduled in every course in which they enroll. Students on probation are expected to attend all classes without exception and should contact the Provost's Office about any absences that are truly unavoidable.
Each faculty member is requested to have a clear policy regarding class attendance and to adhere to it. The instructor's policy may include failure for excessive absences. The instructor should explain the attendance policy to each class at the beginning of the semester. If instructors fail to explain it, students may ask them to do so.
Each faculty member must provide in writing to each student a statement of his or her attendance policy. A copy of that statement will be forwarded to the Provost.
Members of the faculty are under no obligation to accept any student who misses the first day of class. Students are expected to inform their instructors promptly, as a matter of courtesy, of the reasons for any absence.
Students may occasionally be excused from other College obligations if they are involved in a field trip regarded as an integral part of the work of a particular course. The Provost's Office or faculty member involved will send out to the faculty an advance listing of those students participating in such a field trip. Field trips should be arranged as far ahead of time as practicable.
As soon as arrangements have been completed, and in any event no less than one week before the trip, the Provost of the College should be informed of the date and inclusive hours of the trip and of the names of those students participating. If actual attendance differs from what was anticipated, a revised list of names should be sent to the Provost's Office immediately upon conclusion of the trip.
A student who is repeatedly absent, or whose attendance continues to be unsatisfactory following a warning from the instructor, will be reported by his or her instructor to either the Registrar or the Associate Provost for Academic Services to investigate cases of prolonged absence in which the reasons are unknown to the instructor.
When an instructor is more than ten minutes late to a class, the students may leave without penalty.
Smoking
Washington College is committed to providing a smoke-free environment for all members of the College community. Therefore, smoking is not permitted anywhere in Washington College buildings.
Eligibility and Academic Policies for Athletes
Washington College is committed to developing students who excel in both academics and athletics. All athletes must satisfy the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA), the Centennial Conference, and Washington College eligibility rules, which are as follows:
- Student-athletes must be enrolled for 12 or more credits in the semester of participation and must be making satisfactory progress toward the baccalaureate degree to be eligible.
- Student-athletes have 10 semesters to complete four years of athletic eligibility.
- Student-athletes who are on academic probation may be scheduled for a conference with the Athletic Director or coach and the Associate Provost to determine whether it is appropriate for the student to continue athletic participation.
Because travel to athletic events may result in missed class time, class attendance at all other times is expected. The student-athlete is responsible for notifying professors in advance and arranging to make up missed work if the student-athlete misses class because of regular and post-season contests. Practices, scrimmages, and off-season athletic events are not valid reasons for missing classes; student-athletes should attend the class and arrange with the coach to make up missed practice time.
To facilitate faculty awareness and cooperation with students regarding absences, the varsity sports offered at Washington College and their competitive seasons are as follows:
Men
Fall: Crew, Soccer; Winter: Basketball, Swimming; Spring: Baseball, Lacrosse, Sailing, Tennis
Women
Fall: Crew, Volleyball, Field Hockey, Soccer, Sailing; Winter: Basketball, Swimming; Spring: Lacrosse, Sailing, Softball, Tennis
Testing Policies
Regular Examinations
Instructors may give quizzes and tests with sufficient frequency to enable students to have a reasonably accurate measure of the level of their work in a course as the semester proceeds. This rule applies with special force to freshmen and sophomore courses.
Final Examinations
Normally, examinations are given at the end of a course as well as at other points during the semester. Whether this is a traditional "Final," that is, an examination testing the entire course, or simply the last in a series of written exercises, the final examination is to be given during the week following the end of classes at the time scheduled officially by the Registrar. Examinations that conclude a series may be given during the last week or so of classes only if there is a comprehensive final during the regular exam week as well.
The rules above in no way affect the right of the instructor to give quizzes at any time he or she finds it useful to do so.
Occasionally, the final exam schedule prepared by the Registrar creates unusual difficulties for a faculty member or for individual students. Change in the established time of a course examination may be made, in very exceptional cases only, by permission of the Registrar.
Final examinations are not more than two and one half hours in duration. "Take-home" examinations may be distributed at the last class meeting for submission to the instructor during the examination period.
Final examinations will be retained by the faculty at least until the middle of the semester following their administration in order to permit students to review them if they are interested in doing so.
Making Up Work
Responsibility for handing in all announced papers, reports, and projects on time rests entirely with the student. Instructors may penalize late work.
A student who has missed an examination or test is responsible for making it up and must take the initiative in making arrangements to do so with the instructor. Instructors are not obliged to prepare make-up exams unless the student's absence was occasioned by serious and unavoidable reasons. Students who are members of varsity sports teams and who must miss an exam because of a scheduled sports event may make up exams. In such cases, responsibility for informing the professor of an absence for an exam and for scheduling a make-up exam date rests solely with the individual student.
If illness or some other emergency should prevent the completion of course work, the student's work in that course may be temporarily graded "I" (Incomplete). Notice of necessary absence from an examination must be given by the student, or the Associate Provost, to the Registrar and to the instructor of the course within 24 hours preceding the scheduled time of the examination. See page 44 for additional details.
Policies Regarding Independent Study
Students interested in pursuing a course of study not offered within the standard curriculum may undertake an independent study. Independent studies may be credit or non-credit bearing. Where a faculty member agrees to work with an individual student in a reading course (or equivalent project) for academic credit, approval must be obtained from the Department Chair before the faculty member is committed to this supervision.
Students may pursue independent, non-credit work with the permission and under the direction of the major department. Such studies are usually undertaken as a vehicle for honors work in the Senior Capstone Experience. Successful completion of a non-credit independent study project is acknowledged on the student's permanent record.
Policies Regarding Credit-Bearing Independent Internships
Credit-bearing internships may be part of an already existing program or they may be independent internships proposed by a student and a faculty member.
For independent credit-bearing internships, before beginning the internship students should obtain the required forms (the Internship Proposal Form, Learning Contract, and Evaluation forms) from the Office of the Assistant Dean for Academic Resources or at http://internships.washcoll.edu.
Students must submit the Internship Proposal Form for review and signature to the faculty member in the appropriate field of study who has agreed to serve as the internship supervisor and then obtain the signatures of their advisor and the Assistant Dean for Academic Resources. The Internship Proposal form must include the department course number, academic term, credit hours to be earned for the internship experience, and grading scale (Pass/Fail or letter grade, A-F). The faculty internship supervisor, the student, and the Assistant Dean retain copies of this form.
The student must also establish the Learning Contract and Supervision Schedule, working with the faculty internship supervisor and the worksite supervisor to develop a learning contract outlining skills to be emphasized during the internship and learning objectives incorporating active reflection on classroom theory and its application to practice.
Students must return completed internship evaluation forms (Learning Contract, Student Evaluation of Worksite, Midterm, and Final Worksite Evaluations) to the Assistant Dean for Academic Resources and to the faculty supervisor for consideration in final grading. These documents must be submitted in a timely manner upon completion of an internship.
Credit-bearing internships may count toward the degree. No more than four of the thirty-two courses required for graduation can be internship credits. Credit may be awarded for either paid or unpaid internships
Students should not assume that they will receive academic credit for internships undertaken and completed without having received approval from an academic advisor/faculty member in their discipline before beginning the internship.
Credit-bearing internships, with the approval of the chair and academic advisor, may be used to satisfy course requirements in a major or minor. Internships may not be used to satisfy Distribution Requirements or to fulfill the Senior Capstone Experience.
A worksite supervisor shall be designated for each internship. The internship supervisor will communicate with the worksite supervisor on a regular basis. The student must submit all written work to the supervisors at a time specified in the learning contract.
When approved academic programs require that a student be off campus during his or her senior year, the College waives the residency requirement.
Policies Regarding Advanced Credit
The College may grant credit up to the equivalent of one year of work for advanced credit. Students may be awarded advanced credit toward graduation by presenting satisfactory scores on the following standardized tests:
- CEEB (Advanced Placement) In Certain Subject Areas
- The Department of Mathematics requires a minimum score of "3"; other departments require a minimum score of "4" or "5." Department Chairs review the examinations, and the number of credits and course placement as a result of the AP credit are determined by the Chairs in consultation with members of their department. Advanced placement and course credit are given to transfer students with Advanced Placement provided that documentation from the College Board is received within one semester of enrollment at Washington College.
- Students entering Washington College with Advanced Placement credit may apply that credit toward distribution credit. This credit does not exempt students from GRW seminars.
- CLEP (College Level Examination Program)
- This test is normally used by adults who have been out of school for some time, veterans, or those who have never taken college-level work, but have acquired a solid background through their own broad experiences and efforts. A score placing the student in the 50th percentile or better will be required in the various sections of the general test.
Policies Regarding Credit for Courses Taken Elsewhere
Students at Washington College may receive credit for courses taken at another college or university if they follow certain rules. The course must be comparable to the kind of courses offered at Washington College. Students attempting to accelerate their education to graduate in three or three and a half years must take care to accumulate the proper number of courses and credits. They should attempt to take a four-hour course at another college, the equivalent of one Washington College course. The procedure for obtaining transfer credit is as follows:
- Obtain a Transfer Course Permit Form from the Registrar.
- Consult the faculty advisor and secure approval for the proposed course from the Chair of the department which offers similar courses at Washington College.
- Return the completed form to the Registrar.
- Upon request, the Registrar writes to the other institution stating that the Washington College student is in good academic standing and has permission to take courses at the other institution.
- At the completion of the course, the Washington College Registrar must receive an official transcript of the courses from the other institution so that proper notation may be made on the student's transcript.
- Transfer credit is only given for courses in which a final grade of C- or higher is earned.
Policies Regarding Transfer Students
Transfers with an A.A. degree from community colleges with whom Washington College has a "Direct Transfer" agreement will be granted junior standing, but they must meet General Education and Major requirements; the Registrar determines which requirements remain to be completed. A maximum of 72 credits can be accepted in transfer. Therefore, a minimum of 56 hours of credit must be taken at Washington College. The last eight courses must be taken at Washington College or in a Washington College-administered program. Exceptions to these rules can be granted on appeal to the Committee on Academic Standing and Advising.
Transfers from colleges with whom Washington College does not a have a "Direct Transfer" agreement, even though the students may hold an associate degree, will have their course work evaluated and will be granted appropriate standing according to total number of credit hours accepted.
The College accepts courses similar to those offered here which have been completed with a grade of "C-" or better. Credits earned by examination (CEEB or CLEP) are transferable but are listed with a Pass grade only. Advanced placement and course credit is given to transfer students with Advanced Placement provided that documentation from the College Board is received within one semester of enrollment at Washington College.
Policies Concerning Credit for Study Abroad Programs
Students participating in approved study abroad programs, with institutions with whom Washington College has contractual agreements, receive Washington College credit and grades for their coursework. The following policies apply:
- All courses must be pre-approved by appropriate Department Chairs and by the student's faculty advisor. The required form is available in the Office for International Programs. GRW-like courses must be approved by the Associate Provost for Academic Services. Students who take GRW-like courses abroad must complete the Writing Obligation in the semester(s) immediately following completion of the study abroad program. Students should consult with the Associate Provost for Academic Services immediately upon returning to Washington College regarding ways to complete this requirement.
- When the official transcript from the foreign institution is received by the Registrar's Office, the courses are given equivalent Washington College course numbers, and all grades and credits become part of the Washington College transcript.
Students participating in non-approved study abroad programs, with institutions with whom Washington College does not have agreements, are not entitled to receive transfer credit for their coursework. The following policies apply:
- Students may seek transfer credit approval, as with courses taken at other domestic institutions. Such courses must be pre-approved by the appropriate Department Chairs and by the student's faculty advisor. Students may use the Transfer Course Permit form for this purpose. Forms are available in the Registrar's Office.
When the official transcript from the foreign or linked domestic institution is received by the Registrar's Office, the courses are given equivalent Washington College course numbers and credits. No credit will be given for any course grade below "C-." The grades will be recorded, but they WILL NOT become part of the grade average.