I. PURPOSE
The purpose of this policy is to establish guidelines for the time limit on courses accepted for degrees in the Graduate School of Biomedical Sciences (“GSBMS”).
II. POLICY
Only courses completed within the previous ten years shall be counted towards fulfillment of the degree requirements for any degree in GSBMS Ph.D. and M.S. degree programs.
III. SCOPE
This policy applies to students in all GSBMS Ph.D. and M.S. degree programs.
IV. DEFINITIONS
Ph.D.: Doctor of Philosophy Degree
M.S.: Master of Science Degree
NYMC: New York Medical College
V. PROCEDURES
A. Only courses completed within the previous ten years shall be counted towards fulfillment of the degree requirements for any degree.
B. The ten-year limit on courses must not elapse before the final semester of graduation. For example, if a student is graduating in Spring 2024, a course counting toward degree requirements may not have been completed prior to Spring 2014.
C. Exceeding the ten-year rule on courses may result in the student having an insufficient number of credits or inadequate representation of required core courses to count toward his or her degree, therefore prohibiting them from graduating from the program.
D. The graduate program director may submit a letter in support of the student to request the Dean and the Academic Standards Committee to allow remediation of the expired course. With the approval of the Dean and the Academic Standards Committee, acceptable plans for remediating courses that exceed the ten-year limit include:
1. repeating the course
2. substituting a new course that covers an equivalent body of material
3. passing a special examination to confirm the student's mastery of up-to-date knowledge in the field represented in the outdated course
E. Outdated courses that are not repeated or remediated shall remain on the student's official transcript along with their grades, and shall contribute to the grade point average, but the courses will not count towards fulfillment of degree requirements.
F. The ten-year limit also applies to courses that have been completed at another university and transferred to the student’s academic record at NYMC.
VI. EFFECTIVE DATE
This policy is effective immediately.
VII. POLICY MANAGEMENT
Executive Stakeholder: Dean, Graduate School of Biomedical Sciences
Oversight Office: Graduate School of Biomedical Sciences, Dean’s Office
