This program follows all School of Medicine policies in addition to the policies below.

Attendance and Excused Absences

Students are expected to attend all scheduled class sessions. Absences are excused only for unexpected illness, personal emergency, or emergency clinical schedule conflict. Students must notify program faculty in advance of an expected absence. An unexcused absence will have a negative impact on the student’s grade or evaluation. Individual distance course participation policies are set by the course instructors.

Registration and Drop/Add Policy

Registration in the Clinical Leadership Program is offered on a part-time basis as it is assumed the student will continue to work in a clinical capacity during the program. All required course registrations are processed in the Office of the Registrar. As all courses are mandatory, dropping and adding courses is at the discretion of the program director.

Grading Policies

Grades for all courses within the Clinical Leadership Program curriculum are assigned based on the following: H (honors), P (pass), L (low pass), and F (fail).

A grade of (I (incomplete) may remain on a student’s transcript for one year only. After one year, a grade of incomplete is automatically converted to an F if the course instructor does not submit a follow-up grade, based on the student’s additional coursework completed. A request must be submitted in writing by the student to the program director no later than thirty days prior to the expiration of the one year time limit in order to be considered for an extension of the one-year limit. Based on each individual student’s circumstance, the program director has the discretion to grant or deny an extension.

Grade Appeal Process

A student wishing to appeal an official grade must present his/her/their appeal to the program director in writing within two weeks of the grade being posted. If requested as part of the appeals process, a student should have access to the actual checklists or comments that have been compiled as part of the grade, though identity of the evaluators submitting these data may be kept confidential. Within two weeks the program director will review the data related to the student’s performance in the course and the grading criteria for the course and will make a determination regarding preserving or changing the grade. At this time, the program director will either uphold the decision of the instructor or make his/her/their independent decision relative to the documentation submitted.

If the student is not satisfied with the outcome of the grade appeal process, he/she/they may appeal to the chair of the Department of Family Medicine and Community Health within two weeks of receiving the decision of the program director. An appeal to the chair may be made only upon the grounds of improper procedures in the appeals process rather than continued disagreement about the outcome of the process. The chair will review the data related to the process of the appeal and determine whether the process was valid. If he/she/ they finds the process valid, the decision is final and binding. At this time, the registrar’s office will be notified of the final grade and it will be reflected on the student’s permanent record. If the chair finds the process invalid, a new review will be conducted by an independent observer who is also a member of the program steering committee.

Satisfactory Academic Progress

Satisfactory academic progress for students in the Clinical Leadership Program consists of the successful completion of all requirements necessary for the advancement from one semester to the next. This includes successful completion of the clinical leadership seminar and at least one core course each semester. During the clinical leadership longitudinal project period the student must maintain consistent progress in meeting designated project deadlines. In unusual circumstances (including illness, academic remediation, or irregular sequencing of courses) the determination of satisfactory progress for academic purposes is made by the program director of the Clinical Leadership Program.

For financial aid purposes, federal regulations establish the maximum time frame for completion of the program at 150 percent of the minimum time required to complete the program. Any student exceeding the 150 percent maximum time frame is ineligible for Title IV (Stafford and Perkins loans) student financial aid funds.

Academic Status—(Probation, Withdrawal, Dismissal) Policy

A student who receives a low pass grade in any two of the required courses will be placed on academic probation. An academic status of probation is noted on the transcript at the end of the semester in which it occurs. If a student receives at least a pass grade for all courses during the following probationary semester, he/she/they will be removed from academic probation. The academic status of probation is removed from the transcript once the student returns to a good academic standing.

Dismissal

The failure of any required course prevents a student from continuing in the program. Also, a student who receives a low pass grade in three of the required courses will be dismissed from the program. Students dismissed for academic reasons cannot be readmitted.

Appeal of Academic Status Policy

A student wishing to appeal an academic status must begin the process within two weeks of receiving a status change notification. A written request for appeal should be sent to the program director. Within two weeks, the program director will gather the data related to the student’s performance in the program. A three-member committee of faculty and steering committee members will be convened to review the documentation and make a determination regarding preserving or changing the status. The appeals committee’s decision will be communicated to the student within six weeks of the initial application for appeal. The appeal committee’s decision is final.

Leave of Absence

A leave of absence will be granted upon request at the discretion of the program director.

Withdrawal

If a student withdraws, including involuntary withdrawal for academic reasons, tuition is refunded according to the following schedule:

Before classes begin:	100%
During first or second week:	80%
During third to fifth week:	60%
During the sixth week:	20%
After sixth week:	None

Student fees are nonrefundable after classes begin.

Historically, voluntary withdrawals are initiated at the request of the student. Working with the program director, the student confirms the request to withdraw. A mutual decision is reached with regard to the effective date of the withdrawal and any academic penalty to be assessed. The program director will notify the Office of the Registrar in the School of Medicine via letter or attrition notice as appropriate. The student should also contact the Office of the Registrar to ensure that they have fulfilled any responsibilities with regard to this process. The Office of the Registrar will process the withdrawal and remove the student from any current and/or future enrollments. The student is responsible for notifying the Office of Financial Aid in the School of Medicine, and the Office of Financial Aid may revoke any financial aid that has been disbursed. The student’s permanent academic record will reflect that he/she/they was enrolled for the term and that he/she/they withdrew (W-Withdrawal) on the specific effective date.

Reenrollment after Course Withdrawal. To meet the credit hour requirement for program completion, students may enroll again in the same course from which they previously withdrew when it is offered again or with the program director’s approval, enroll in another course with credit hours equal to that of the course from which the student previously withdrew.

Readmission after Program Withdrawal. Students who wish to re-enter the Clinical Leadership Program after withdrawing must provide the following to the program director:

a statement detailing:
- the reason(s) for withdrawing from the program, including relevant history leading up to the decision;
- how the issues relating to those reasons have been addressed;
- why the student is re-applying to the program, including information concerning changes in situation and an explanation as to the chosen time for return; and
- a chronological list and brief description of actions since withdrawing from the Clinical Leadership Program;
an updated curriculum vitae;
a transcript of any academic courses taken since the withdrawal; and
a letter of reference from a person with whom the student worked during the withdrawal period.

The applicant then will be scheduled for two interviews with either administrative staff or program faculty. After these meetings take place, a committee composed of the program director, division chief, and one steering committee member convenes to review the information submitted by the applicant, the interview reports, and the student’s previous academic file and to determine if readmission is appropriate. The decision of the committee, which is final, is provided in writing to the applicant and to the financial aid and registrar’s offices.

Code of Professional Conduct

Students enrolled in the Clinical Leadership Program are expected to adhere to the Duke University School of Medicine Code of Professional Conduct, found elsewhere in this bulletin.

Program Statement of Professionalism

Commitment to Learning
- Actively seeks learning opportunities and feedback and uses them to improve knowledge and skills
- Makes significant contributions to team learning
Respect for Others
- Consistently respectful of others and able to adjust to differences in personal or cultural style
- Shares learning materials and information appropriately with team and fellow students
Honesty, Reliability, and Integrity
- Provides a standard of integrity that inspires others; meets expectations for reliability
Conscientiousness
- Meets deadlines for reports, assignments, and exams and appropriately seeks excused absences when necessary
- Completes nonacademic compliance requirements by deadlines and does not need reminders (e.g., course registration, course evaluations)
Professional Boundaries
- Consistently exhibits sensitivity and appropriate social interaction with faculty, staff, and peers
- Meticulous about safe-guarding confidential information

Computer and Technology Policy

All students should possess computer skills that include proficiency with word processing, email, spreadsheets, internet research, and presentation programs. All students in the Master of Health Sciences in Clinical Leadership Program are required to have access to a desktop or laptop computer with reliable high-speed internet access. Mobile devices such as tablets or phones can be used for some areas of the program but should be considered a backup or secondary device. A camera equipped computer and headset with microphone are required for online class meetings.

Minimum system requirements of a Windows-based system are that the operating system be no older than Windows XP. Computing devices should have file space available to install and run apps and computer programs used for course work and communications. Current versions of internet browsers (i.e., Google Chrome, Internet Explorer, Microsoft Edge, Mozilla Firefox, and Safari) are required for access to Sakai, Duke University’s online learning management system, and WebEx, the conferencing system used to facilitate live class sessions.

Graduation Requirements

The Master of Health Sciences in Clinical Leadership is a professional degree awarded by the Duke University School of Medicine. The three-year degree program requires completion of 42 course credits as follows: 26 course credits of graded coursework; five seminars for which 10 course credits are earned; and a project for which 6 course credits are earned.

Commencement Information

Graduation exercises are held once a year in May when degrees are conferred, and diplomas are issued to those who have completed program requirements by the end of the spring semester. Those who complete degree requirements at the end of the summer or fall terms receive diplomas dated September 1 or December 30, respectively. September and December diplomas are mailed within 30 days of the graduation date, as diplomas are issued after approval by the Academic Council and the Board of Trustees.

Since university graduation ceremonies are held only at the end of the spring term, graduates with a degree date of September or December are invited to participate in the May commencement program immediately following their actual graduation date.

A-CLP-MHS - Master of Health Sciences in Clinical Leadership

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