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Student Expectations

What to Expect from a WPI Corporate and Professional Education Graduate Program

Homework

Graduate programs conducted through WPI Corporate Education meet the same rigorous standards of our on-campus graduate programs.  You should expect to spend between one (1) and three (3) hours on homework for each hour of classroom instruction.  The number and frequency of homework assignments vary by instructor, but students should be prepared to set aside time each week for homework.

Educational Background

Each program assumes some prior knowledge in prerequisite subject matter.  For instance, if you are interested in participating in an Electrical Engineering program, you should either have an undergraduate degree in Electrical Engineering or a degree in another technical discipline with considerable practical experience in Electrical Engineering.  Your background will be reviewed as part of the application process (see below).

Applying to the Certificate Program

Each student must complete two forms:

• Registration Form
  Each student in a Corporate Education program must fill out a Corporate Education Registration form.  This form provides WPI with important information that will be used by the registrar’s office and Corporate Education to process your participation in each course.  After registration, each student will be sent a confirmation that you have been registered, along with instructions about how to set up the necessary WPI computer accounts (typically Web Information System, UNIX, and myWPI).

• Application Form
  Each student wishing to complete the Corporate Education Graduate Certificate program must also fill out an application for admission to graduate study.  This form should be submitted to the Office of Graduate Studies & Enrollment.  It is also required that official transcripts from all colleges be sent to the Office of Graduate Studies & Enrollment.  Students must be accepted into the program prior to the completion of the second course.  There are no application fees for Corporate Education corporate certificate programs.

If you have already been admitted to a part-time Graduate Degree program at WPI, you may take courses through Corporate Education with the approval of your advisor or department head.

Attendance

Corporate Education corporate courses are conducted at the company’s workplace, one of WPI’s campuses, or through online distance learning.  In the case of classroom-based courses, you are expected to attend all classes.  In the case of hardships that prevent your attendance, the student must let the instructor know in advance so that missed class time can be made up.  For online courses, each student will need to set up a myWPI account in order to access course content and participate in discussion boards.

Access to WPI Facilities

As a WPI graduate student, each student has the same level of access to our facilities as any full- or part-time graduate student.  A student ID is required to check books out of the library, and a WPI UNIX account is required to access online resources (such as online journals).  ID’s can be obtained Monday through Friday 8AM to 5PM by visiting Student Services, located in the first floor of Daniels Hall on WPI’s Worcester campus (508-851-5150).  Instructions for setting up computer accounts will be sent electronically before the start of the program.

Successful completion of the Certificate Program

In order to receive a graduate certificate, accepted students must complete all courses in the program and receive a grade-point average of 3.0 or higher (A=4.0) with all grades being a C or better.

Applying for Admission to Master of Science or MBA

Many students who complete Corporate Education graduate certificates decide to continue their studies at WPI to earn an MS or MBA.  All students are welcome to apply to a degree program of their choice.  Please keep in mind that successful completion of a certificate program does not guarantee admission into a degree program.  Students must be accepted into an MS or MBA program before taking any classes beyond the certificate program, so students are encouraged to submit your application prior to the completion of the certificate program.

Class Cancellation Policy

Class cancellations are made on a case-by-case basis by the individual instructors.  Students will be informed via e-mail of the status of class cancellations.  Any class time lost due to cancellations will be rescheduled by the individual instructors in addition to subsequent class times.

Withdrawal Policy

Notice of withdrawal must be received in writing in the Corporate Education office.  If the withdrawal is received before classes begin, a full refund will be given; after the first class but before the second, refund minus $500; after the second class, no refund will be given. A grade of W will be recorded if written notification of withdrawal from the course is received after the third meeting of the class and not later than the half-way point for that course.  Notice to the instructor of discontinuance of attendance does not constitute withdrawal.  Such notice must be submitted in writing to the Corporate Education Office. Incomplete grades are transitional grades and can only be changed at the discretion of the instructor within 12 months.  If course work is not made up by this time, the grade automatically becomes an F.

Qualifying Exam Policy for Management Courses

These rules apply to all Corporate Education students who wish to count a Management course toward a graduate degree at WPI:

All Corporate Education courses that are classified as management courses by WPI require the additional step of passing a qualifying exam following the completion of the course.  The qualifying exam is above and beyond the normal course requirements.  It is not the final exam.  This requirement is mandated by AACSB International - The Association to Advance Collegiate Schools of Business.  AACSB is the accrediting body for WPI’s Department of Management.  AACSB accreditation is the highest level of business school accreditation in the world.

• Qualifying exams are one-time, pass/fail exams.  A passing score is defined as 70+.
• Qualifying exams are in-class, timed exams (typically 3 hours each).
• Students will be given one month from the conclusion of a given course to complete the qualifying exam. 
• WPI’s Corporate Education division will schedule one proctored qualifying exam date at the corporate site per course. 

Students who cannot make the scheduled proctored exam must make arrangements through WPI’s director of graduate management programs to come to the Worcester campus to take the qualifying exam within the one-month, post-course timeframe.

Qualifying exams in subject areas classified as “foundation” by WPI are available at the student’s convenience and are not bound by the one-month rule stated above, though WPI strongly encourages all students to complete all qualifying exams within a month of course completion.  A list of foundation area courses may be viewed at http://www.mgt.wpi.edu/Graduate/MBA/curriculum.html

Exceptions to the above qualifying exam policy must go through WPI’s director of graduate management programs.  All qualifying exams must be taken within one year of course completion, after which students will be ineligible to sit for the exam.

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Last modified: September 12, 2007 15:42:41