Student Policies

Division of Online Learning

Attendance Policy

Online MSJ/MLS, LLM, and Graduate Certificate Students

Any student who does not attend a course for two consecutive weeks, after having attended for at least the first week of the course, will be administratively withdrawn. For purposes of this policy, “attendance” requires submitting responses to Tutorial Questions, posting at least the minimum weekly requirement on the Discussion Board, or submitting a completed Writing Assignment. Students who are administratively withdrawn from a course will not be eligible for a refund. The course will appear on the student’s transcript with the designation WD. Withdrawal can have implications on financial aid status and eligibility. It is the student’s responsibility to confer with our financial aid office to determine the nature and extent of any financial aid implications.

Minimum Grade

for Graduate Certificates

Students enrolled in a graduate certificate program will receive a graduate certificate upon completion of the program (3 courses/9 credits) provided they earn a final cumulative GPA of B or higher. No certificates will be awarded to students whose final cumulative GPA is below B.

Maximum Number of Credits: Attempted & Completed

for MSJ/MLS Students

The MSJ/MLS degree requires students to successfully complete 31 credits, including required and elective courses, after attempting no more than 40 credits. Repeated courses, withdrawn courses (WD), incompletes (I), or failures (F), are considered attempted but not earned hours. Any withdrawals from a course during the drop/add period are not counted as attempted credits. For purposes of this policy, “credits completed" refers to credits for which the student has received a grade. MSJ/MLS students may complete no more than 40 credits of courses in pursuit of the MSJ/MLS degree. Any student who does not achieve a GPA of 3.0 or higher after completing 40 credits of coursework will automatically be dismissed from the program.

Application of Graduate Certificate Credits

towards the MSJ/MLS Degree

Students who successfully complete an online graduate certificate course and subsequently enroll in the Master of Legal Studies (M.L.S.) program may apply up to 9 certificate credits (3 courses) toward the M.L.S. degree, provided the student’s final grade in each graduate certificate course sought to be applied was a B or higher.

Drop/Add

for all MSJ/MLS, LLM, and Online Graduate

The Drop/Add period for all MSJ/MLS, LLM, and Online Graduate Certificate Courses ends the first Saturday of the term, at 11:59 p.m., EST. Students must drop courses within this period of time in order to not have a “WD” (withdrawal) appear on their transcript. Students are entitled to a full refund of tuition, less the initial enrollment deposit for new students, for courses dropped within the Drop/Add period.

Automatic Drop for Failure to Begin Course

Online MSJ/MLS, LLM, and Graduate Certificate Students

Any student who does not attend the course for the first two weeks of a term will be automatically dropped from the course. The course will not appear on the student’s transcript. An automatic drop can have implications on financial aid status and eligibility. It is the student’s responsibility to confer with our financial aid office to determine the nature and extent of any financial aid implications.

Incomplete Policy

for all MSJ/MLS, LLM, and Graduate Certificate Students

Students are expected to complete all required course work by the course end date. However, in the event students encounter unanticipated personal or professional circumstances, they may request an Incomplete. The grade of Incomplete (“I”) indicates non-completion of all course assignments by the course end date. The following rules govern the granting of an Incomplete:

1. To be eligible to request an Incomplete, students must have completed at least 75% of each category of graded course requirements for the entire course (i.e. 75% of all discussion boards in the course, 75% of all written assignments in the course, etc.).
2. Students must obtain written permission to receive an Incomplete from the professor before the course end date.
3. The professor will inform the student in writing of the amount of time allowed for completion of the work, up to a maximum of eight (8) weeks after the course end date.
4. If the missing course requirements are completed within this time period, the grade of I will be replaced with the student’s final letter grade for the course.

If a grade of I is not resolved within the time allotted, this grade will be changed automatically and permanently to an F. In extenuating circumstances, written request for a limited time extension to complete course requirements may be submitted in advance of the deadline to the Associate Academic Director for the Division of Online Learning.

Payment and Refund Policy

for Online Graduate Certificate Students

For more information, please visit the Refund of Tuition for Online Students section here >>

Refund of Tuition

for MSJ/MLS and LLM Students After Withdrawal

For more information, please visit the Refund of Tuition for Online Students section here >>

Voluntary Withdrawal Policy

for MSJ/MLS, LLM, and Graduate Certificate Students

MSJ/MLS, LLM, and Graduate Certificate students may voluntarily withdraw from a course after the course start date at any time up to and including the last day of the course. Notice of withdrawal must be submitted to [email protected]. The course will appear on the student’s transcript with the designation WD. A course from which a student withdraws does count as an attempted course.

"Publication" of Written Work and Assignments

for MSJ/MLS, LLM, and Graduate Certificate Students

By enrollment in any course and by submitting written assignments and work, students understand they are granting the professor permission under the Federal Education Records Act and a limited license to publish that work for the purposes of grading. That limited license extends to submission of the work, within the professor’s sole discretion, to various electronic grading tools (e.g., grading books, cite checkers, SafeAssignment within Blackboard etc.) and to other faculty members.

Academic Assistance

for MSJ/MLS, LLM, and Graduate Certificate Students

The purpose of the Seton Hall University Writing Center is to provide support for all students, staff, and faculty who require assistance with writing. Please note the assistance provided via the Writing Center is to help with sentence structure, grammar and other technical writing issues. The Writing Lab is not a tutoring resource and does not provide assistance with legal writing or subject matter expertise. The Online Writing Lab is also available for assisting students who are not able to visit the Writing Center in person. Contact the Writing Center by calling (973) 761-9000, extension 7501. The Writing Center is available at https://www.shu.edu/writing-center/

Accommodations

for MSJ/MLS, LLM, and Graduate Certificate Students

If you have a documented disability you may be eligible for reasonable accommodations in compliance with University policy, the Americans with Disabilities Act, Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act, and/or the New Jersey Law against Discrimination. To request accommodations or assistance, please self-identify with the Office for Disability Support Services (DSS), Duffy Hall, Room 67, Main Campus at the beginning of the course. For more information or to register for services, contact DSS at: Email: [email protected] Phone: 973-313-6003 Fax: 973-761-9185 Website: http://www.shu.edu/offices/disability-support-services-index.html.

Transfer of Credit

for MSJ/MLS and LLM Students

Seton Hall Law School may accept transfer credits earned in a program offered by an ABA-Accredited Law School. Applicants for admission to the Seton Hall Law MLS or LLM program should request a review of their transcript during the application process.

A maximum of 12 transfer credits may be transferred to the MLS degree, 8 credits to the LLM degree, subject to the following conditions:

1. All transfer credits are awarded at the sole discretion of the Seton Hall Law faculty and the number of transfer credits accepted and applied will be provided in writing prior to enrollment at Seton Hall Law.
2. All transfer credits must be for courses relevant and appropriate to the MLS or LLM degree at Seton Hall Law.
3. The grade earned in each course must have been a B or better.
4. Pass/Fail courses are not eligible for transfer credit.
5. The credit(s) sought to be transferred must not have counted toward the completion and award of any other degree.
6. The applicant must submit an official transcript and description of each course sought to be transferred.
7. Transfer credits must have been earned within 4 years of application for admission to the MLS or LLM program.
8. Grades for transfer credits will not be reflected in the student's GPA in the MLS or LLM program.

Netiquette Rules

for MSJ/MLS, LLM, and Graduate Certificate Students

While distance learning has many advantages, a potential disadvantage is the misinterpretation of written communications.  You will be communicating with your peers and professors primarily through written text, including discussion boards, tutorial questions, and email communications.  A potential issue with written communication is that it can be difficult to convey the subtleties of meaning often expressed by tone of voice, facial expression, or body language.  As a result, a comment that might be offered in person with a wry smile, and interpreted as humorous, can be misinterpreted as sarcastic or disrespectful in a purely written format.  These issues are compounded by the fact that most of your communications will be in an asynchronous format, which means that your comments may not be read until several hours or days after you write them.

Accordingly, we require that all students and professors comply with standard rules of “netiquette” when engaging in any written communications.  Netiquette requires that you communicate in a respectful manner, avoiding all offensive, emotionally charged, and abusive language. Thus, when communicating in a written format, you should adhere to the following rules:

1. Refrain from using exclamation marks, except if appropriate for a positive comment or feedback, because they can be misinterpreted as anger.
2. Avoid using ALL CAPS in any communication, as this gives the impression of yelling.
3. Refrain from using any profane, foul, offensive, abusive, or emotionally charged language.
4. Do not engage in name calling or make ad hominen attacks. If you disagree with what another person has said, explain your disagreement rationally.
5. Be careful with sarcasm and irony.  Assume that your words will be taken literally.
6. Write clearly and succinctly, and proofread your work.  It is impolite to force others to decipher confusingly worded, longwinded, or error-filled posts.

In addition, please utilize your Seton Hall email only for communications related to course content and assignments.  While we encourage students to communicate with each other on matters unrelated to the coursework, we ask that you engage in those communications via your personal email addresses.

If you believe that another student has violated any of the netiquette rules, you should immediately email your professor to report the alleged violation.  The professor will pursue appropriate action in conjunction with law school administration.  Please do not engage in a direct confrontation with the other student through email or the discussion board.