No matter where you live, you won't have to travel far! Graduate & Professional Studies classes are offered all over East Tennessee

From our regional centers in Knoxville and Greeneville, to our permanent classroom sites in Gray, Morristown, Oak Ridge, Harriman, Dandridge, Sevierville, Crossville, Sweetwater, Maryville, Huntsville and Chattanooga, your class is always close by!

This could be easier than you thought! With our reasonable tuition and outstanding reputation, you are just one step away from earning the respected college degree you've dreamed about.

Graduate & Professional Studies Academic Information and Policies

Academic Advising
Academic Schedule
Class Attendance
Class Representatives
Computer Access
Course Load
Drop/Add Class
Facilities
Grade Appeals
Plagiarism
Repeating Courses
Tuition & Fees
Withdrawal



Academic Advising

The Professional Studies Academic Advising Program is designed to provide students with academic counseling. Students are advised by Professional Studies staff and faculty in each program. Each group of students is assigned an advisor by the Director of Student Services. Advisors meet advisees at orientation and maintain contact with class members in person or by telephone.

A student may also seek assistance from any member of the Professional Studies staff or the Director of Student Services when the assigned advisor is not available. Please contact your Academic Advisor to drop or add courses to your schedule.

Back to top


Academic Schedule

The Tusculum College Professional Studies Programs follow a non-traditional academic calendar. Courses in each program are offered sequentially, allowing students to study one subject at a time. Classes are held at times and in locations convenient to students. See our focused calendar for more detailed information.

Back to top


Class Attendance

Classes are held one evening a week for four hours with the instructor. In addition, study group assignments require up to four hours of small-group work each week. Class attendance is mandatory and is recorded by the faculty member, who submits student attendance records to the administrative office.

A grade of “F” is automatically assigned to any student who misses more than one third of a class. This is an institutional policy and is not left to the discretion of the faculty member. Individual faculty members often adopt more stringent attendance requirements as detailed in their syllabi and require any missed work to be made up. Students should realize that failure to attend class or study group meetings may also impact financial aid. Refer to sections on “Financial Aid” and “Withdrawal” for further information.

Back to top

Class Representatives

The main function of the class representative is to serve as liaison between the class and the Graduate and Professional Studies faculty, administration, and staff. Class representatives disseminate information to members of the class, such as course syllabi, announcements, and other communications. The class representative is the spokesperson for the class when the class wishes to convey information to members of the staff and faculty.

Back to top

Computer Access

Students who enroll in Graduate and Professional Studies programs are responsible for having access to a computer and email capabilities and Internet connectivity capable of linking to the Tusculum College website. Tusculum College provides for computer/Internet accessibility at its instructional sites. If any students are unable to obtain access to the Internet connectivity and email capabilities either on their own or through the use of College-supplied facilities, the College will assist them in identifying other convenient Internet access locations.

Back to top

Course Load

Undergraduate students in Gateway and BSOM may not enroll in more than two courses concurrently. A Bachelor of Science student will be permitted to register for only one major course at any given time.

On rare occasions, exceptions to this policy may be granted under special circumstances. The student must request such a waiver in writing and submit it to the professional academic advisor for approval.

Back to top

Drop / Add Classes

Complete a Drop/Add form (.pdf) and return it to your academic advisor to drop or add any courses to your schedule. Course Registration closes one week prior to the class start date. Courses are filled on a first come / first serve basis.

Please provide payment (or note to your academic advisor that you use financial aid) when adding a class. Refer to Tuition & fees to determine the amount of tuition to be refunded when you are dropping a course.

Back to top

Facilities

Most classes are held in the Knoxville Regional Center and on-campus facilities. These classrooms are evaluated by Tusculum College staff members to certify that course goals and objectives can be met. This evaluation exemplifies the commitment by the College to meet the needs of all students. Written evaluations of facilities are also completed by instructors at the end of each course and by students at the end of the program.

Directions to the Greeneville campus (.doc) and the Knoxville campus (.doc).

Back to top

Grade Appeals

When appealing a grade, a student must first send a written appeal to the instructor of the course accompanied by reasons for the appeal and the documentation providing evidence to support a grade appeal within 30 days of the last date of the course. The instructor must respond in writing within 30 days after the receipt of the appeal.

If, after receiving the instructor’s written response, a student wishes to continue an appeal, he/she must send the original materials presented to the instructor, the written response from the instructor, and a new appeal to the regional Department Chair or Coordinator of the program in which the student is enrolled. If the instructor is also the Department Chair or Coordinator, the new appeal is submitted to the Director of the School. If deemed appropriate, the appeal will be forwarded to the Admissions and Standards Committee or the Graduate Committee. The course instructor and these committees are the only two institutional bodies that may change a grade. The decision of either of these committees is final.

Back to top

Plagiarism and Falsification of Documents.

Plagiarism is a form of academic dishonesty. It consists of knowingly presenting in writing or in speech the intellectual or creative work of others as if it were one’s own. This includes:

  1. Failing to identify direct or word-for-word quotations by use of appropriate symbols and reference to the source
  2. Restating in one’s own words the work (ideas, conclusions, words) of another without reference to the source
  3. Presenting as one’s own the creative work (for instance, music or photographs) of another without proper acknowledgement

    Besides plagiarism other forms of academic dishonesty include the following:

  4. Submitting the same work in two or more courses without significant modifications or expansion and without the approval of the instructors involved
  5. Submitting purchased, borrowed, copied or specially commissioned work as if it were one’s own
  6. Knowingly permitting others to submit one’s own work under their names
  7. Copying the work of others during an examination or other academic exercise
  8. Knowingly allowing others to copy one’s own work during an examination or other academic exercise
  9. Using “cheat sheets” or any other unauthorized form of assistance during an exam, quiz or other academic exercise

    NOTE: AUTHORIZED HELP is encouraged and includes:
    • attendance at help sessions
    • tutoring received with the instructor’s knowledge (responsible tutoring does not provide answers to specific assignments but focuses on general principles, concepts, rules, and information, as well as on skills development)

  10. Manipulating or fabricating data to support erroneous conclusions. The effect of cheating within a community is to destroy the environment of honesty and trust on which the community depends. A dishonest performance diminishes the achievement of those who have worked hard and demonstrated real mastery of a subject. For this reason, students are encouraged to confront peers who violate the standard of honesty by any form of cheating or plagiarism and, if necessary, to report their behavior to an appropriate authority (instructor, director or authorized college agency or body).

Back to top

Repeating Courses

Students may repeat courses. All attempts will be recorded on the permanent record along with the grade received. For all repeated courses, only the last attempt will be used for determining grade point average and hours completed for graduation. An “R” will be placed on the transcript by all courses which have been repeated.

Back to top


Tuition & Fees for 2007-2008 (after August 2007)

Graduate & Professional Studies Costs
Gateway Program
  Tuition $180 per semester hour
  Audit Fee $100 per course
Bachelor of Science in Organizational Management
  Tuition $285 per semester hour
  Audit Fee $100 per course
  Graduation Fee $75
Bachelor of Arts in Education
  Tuition $285 per semester hour
  Audit Fee $100 per course
  Graduation Fee $75
Master of Arts in Education
  Tuition $300 per semester hour
  Audit Fee $100 per course
  Graduation Fee $75
Master of Arts in Organizational Management
  Tuition $300 per semester hour
  Audit Fee $100 per course
  Graduation Fee $75

Payment Schedule
Charges are due at the beginning of each semester and are payable in full as a part of registration and as a condition for enrollment. No student is eligible to enroll for or to attend classes until registration is completed and all semester charges are paid. A student who is awarded financial assistance under federal, state, institutional, and/or private programs approved by the College may
use documentary evidence of such award as a condition for registration. This privilege, however, does not relieve the student from completing payment in full when actual funds are received and, in any event, prior to the end of the semester.

Students or parents who prefer to pay educational expenses in monthly installments may want to consider Tusculum College’s Installment Plan. A description of the plan will be provided to each student with billing statements. For information or questions about the Installment Plan, please contact the Business Office.

Adjustment of Charges for Dropping a Course
For a Professional Studies student who drops a course, the course’s tuition will be reduced in accordance with the following schedule:
Written request to drop - (complete a drop form (.pdf) and contact your academic advisor to drop a course)

Portion of received by Tusculum College Tuition Refunded
prior to the first class meeting ........................................ 100 percent
prior to the second class meeting ................................. 80 percent
after the second class meeting ...................................... None

Professional Studies audit and laboratory fees are refundable only if the student drops the course prior to the first class meeting. Other fees are not refundable.

Back to top

Withdrawal

A student who must withdraw from any program is required to notify the College in writing and provide information concerning the withdrawal. Failure to notify the Professional Studies Office of intention to withdraw may result in charges for the course being placed on the student’s account. A grade of “F” will be placed on the permanent record if the student fails to withdraw before the end of a course.

Please contact your academic advisor to complete a withdrawal form for the Graduate & Professional Studies program.

Back to top