Academic Policies

Religious Observance

Students who are unable, because of their religious beliefs, to attend classes or to participate in an examination, class, or work requirement on a particular day shall be excused from the class, study, or work requirement and shall be provided with an opportunity to make up the examination, study, or work they may have missed consistent with Massachusetts General Law Chapter 151C, Section 2B. That law states:

Any student in an educational or vocation- al training institution, other than a religious or a denominational educational or vocation- al training institution, who is unable, because of his/her religious beliefs, to attend classes or to participate in any examination, study, or work requirement on a particular day shall be excused from any such examination or study or work requirement, and shall be provided with an opportunity to make up such examination, study, or work missed because of such absence on any particular day, provided, however, that such makeup examination or work shall not create an unreasonable burden upon such school. No fees of any kind shall be charged by the institution for making available to the said student such opportunity. No adverse or prejudicial effect shall result to any student because of his/her availing himself of the provisions of the sections.

Questions about absences for religious observance should be directed to the Office of Student Affairs or the Office of the Registrar.

Jury Duty

During the course of the academic year, students may receive notification that they have been summoned for jury duty. Students who attend college in Massachusetts are required by law to fulfill their civic duty if summoned, even though their permanent or "official" residence may be in another state. If the date for which students have been summoned is inconvenient, they may request a postponement for up to one year.

Students who are required to miss classes because of jury duty may notify the Office of Student Affairs by calling 617-521-2124. Staff members in the Office of Student Affairs will notify the appropriate faculty members, who will work with the students to make up any missed assignments or exams. Upon completion of jury duty, students are expected to bring a copy of the documentation of their service to the Office of Student Affairs.

Human Subjects

The University has established policies on the use of human subjects in all Simmons-initiated research and training projects. The Institutional Review Board (IRB) is charged with overseeing all research involving human subjects at Simmons University. Students undertaking research projects that propose to use humans must do the following prior to beginning their projects: 1) prepare and submit an application to the IRB for review and approval and 2) complete the Collaborative Institutional Training Initiative (CITI) Program, a web-based human subjects research investigator education program. A copy of the Simmons University human subjects research policy, IRB forms, and link to the CITI training program may be found on the Office of Sponsored Programs site. The contact for the IRB is the Office of Sponsored Programs, 617-521-2415. It is expected that all members of the Simmons community will fulfill their legal and ethical responsibilities to ensure that the rights and safety of human subjects are protected.