Academic Standards

Attendance

Regular attendance and consistent study are student responsibilities. A college student is expected to attend all class meetings. Failure to attend class may prevent a student from participating fully in the educational process, thus causing the student to under perform academically. Failure to attend class may also result in being dropped from class. Each instructor establishes the attendance requirements in the syllabus. It is the student’s responsibility to know the attendance requirements in each class and to be aware of their attendance status. When the student has been absent or expects to be absent from a class, they should notify the instructor of the reason for the absence.

Veterans – Attendance and Progress

Veterans and eligible dependents must initiate their claim for educational benefits through the Veteran’s Resource Center on campus. After classes begin, students are required to promptly notify the Veteran’s Resource Center of any changes in their classes or contact information.

The College maintains a written record of previous education and training of the veteran or eligible person. The College is required to report the appropriate credit accepted by the College for previous education and training.

Students receiving VA education benefits must maintain both satisfactory attendance and a grade point average (GPA) of 2.00 or higher. If a student is placed on academic or progress dismissal or GPA is below 2.0, the student will not be certified for VA education benefits until the student has seen a counselor and petitioned for readmission. If readmitted, a veteran who is dismissed should contact the MPC Veteran’s Resource Center for specific details concerning continued certification of VA education benefits.

Final Examinations

A schedule of final examinations for on-campus day classes is available on the MPC website. Students are expected to take examinations when scheduled. Final examinations for classes are documented on the syllabus. Please contact your instructor for more information. Students may not take final exams after courses have ended unless an approved Incomplete Contract is on file with the Admissions and Records Office.

Plagiarism and Cheating

Academic honesty is a cornerstone of the educational community; therefore, students are expected to understand the standards of academic honesty as they pertain to students’ behavior in the classroom.

Plagiarism: It is important for students to acknowledge sources that are used for completing classroom assignments. Plagiarism is a form of academic dishonesty.

Plagiarism may be any one of the following:

  • Verbatim copying without proper documentation of the source(s).
  • Paraphrasing without proper documentation of the source(s).
  • Unacknowledged appropriation of information or ideas from someone else.

If students have any questions about these forms of plagiarism or about an assignment they are preparing, they should ask their instructor for clarification rather than risk unintentional plagiarism.

Cheating: It is important for students to act in an honest and trustworthy manner. Work performed on examinations or other forms of evaluation must represent an individual’s own work, knowledge and experience of the subject matter. Students are expected to follow the classroom rules established by the instructor.

Cheating may be any one of the following:

  • Unauthorized looking at or procuring information from any unauthorized sources or from another student’s work during an examination or from any work that will be graded or given points.
  • Unauthorized acquiring, reading or learning of test questions prior to the testing date and time.
  • Changing any portion of a returned graded test or report and resubmitting it as an original work to be regraded.
  • Presenting the work of another as one’s own for a grade or points.
  • Knowingly assisting another student in cheating.

This list is not all-inclusive and the list itself is not meant to limit the definition of cheating to just these items mentioned.

Consequences: The disciplinary action for cheating or plagiarism is up to the discretion of the instructor. The instructor may select one or more of the following options:

  • Issue an oral or written notification and warn the student that further acts of this sort will result in additional disciplinary action.
  • Issue an “NP” or a failing grade (“F”) or “0” for the assignment in question.
  • Refer the student to the Vice President of Student Services for disciplinary action.