Student Handbook
Please see Toronto Metropolitan University's Senate Policy 168.
Students can request academic consideration for health, medical, or compassionate reasons with supporting documentation (e.g. Toronto Metropolitan Health Certificate https://www.torontomu.ca/senate/forms/medical.pdf). ACRs with documentation must be submitted within three working days of the missed essay, assignment, or exam. Instructors may grant a deadline extension that is appropriate to the severity of the student’s health, medical, or compassionate circumstances. In no case, including those involving mental health concerns, is the student or health practitioner required to divulge the exact diagnosis; however, the impact of the condition on the student’s ability to complete required course work must be provided. Submission of supporting documentation does not guarantee that academic consideration will be granted.
In limited instances, once per semester, students may request consideration without documentation when they experience short-term extenuating circumstances that have a significant impact on their ability to fulfill an academic requirement (e.g. to attend classes, write a scheduled term exam, submit an essay, etc.). ACRs without documentation must be submitted within three standard days of the missed essay, assignment, or exam. In this case, the extenuating circumstances are only of a short-term duration, and instructors may grant a deadline extension of one to three days. ACRs without documentation cannot be submitted for final exams or final assessments, or in cases where the temporary absence lasts more than three standard days.
Students must submit their ACR (with or without documentation) through the online system before the applicable essay, assignment, or exam due date. Students must also contact the relevant course instructor to discuss the request.
In all cases, the instructor has discretion to accept or reject the ACR (with or without documentation).
See Senate Policy 167.
Plagiarism and academic misconduct are offences that are taken very seriously by the Department of Criminology.
Among other things, plagiarism includes claiming, submitting, or presenting the words or ideas of another person, including information found on the Internet and unpublished materials, as if they are one’s own, without appropriate referencing. It also includes minimally paraphrasing someone else’s work by changing only a few words and not citing the original source.
Academic dishonesty extends to submitting fraudulent doctor and other notes for extensions, cheating, submitting stolen or purchased assignments or research, submitting the same work (in full or in part) in more than one course, misrepresentation of personal identity, unauthorized use of intellectual property, and more.
Contributing to academic misconduct is also an offence, and includes offering, giving, sharing, or selling essays, questions and/or answers to tests or exams, quizzes or other assignments unless authorized to do so. It also includes allowing work to be copied during an exam or for assignments.
Penalties and consequences for academic misconduct include Disciplinary Notices, Disciplinary Suspensions, Disciplinary Withdrawals, Expulsion, and Revocation of a Degree or Diploma.
Students are strongly advised to keep an extra copy of all work submitted and to retain all rough notes used in the preparation of assignments.
Refer to the Academic Integrity Office for more information.
Also see Toronto Metropolitan University's Senate Policy 60.
Please see Academic Standing Reference Guide.
Please see Toronto Metropolitan University's Senate Policy 150.
Please see Toronto Metropolitan University's Senate Policy 159.
The Undergraduate Calendar is your official source for curriculum and course information at Toronto Metropolitan University. The Calendar is updated each spring for the next academic year. The (PDF file) Undergraduate Student Guide is a companion to the Calendar that lists the policies, fees, services and administrative procedures that you’ll need to know as a Toronto Metropolitan student.
The Department of Criminology expects that all registered students will attend classes as scheduled, arriving on time. The course instructor has the right to refuse admission to students who arrive late, as this can be very disruptive to the rest of the class.
Students are expected to attend, and meet all the deadlines for, the courses in which they are registered. The instructor is not obliged to brief or re-instruct students who fail to attend a scheduled class. Instructors do not provide notes about what students may have missed. Students who miss class carry the entire responsibility of learning what they have missed; obtaining notes, if desired, from others; doing required work; and in general fulfilling any obligations set forth in the class in which they were absent.
Instructors are free to make oral announcements in class about assignments and other course matters.
Students who expect to miss class for a substantial period of time are expected to consult their Program Departments. It is not considered appropriate for students to miss substantial amounts of class time for any reason. Consult the Departmental policy on deadlines.
From time to time, students may have concerns and complaints about a course or an instructor. Usually, these issues are best addressed by students and faculty members discussing them directly. Such issues might concern any relevant academic or pedagogical concern. In the event that either party might wish to meet with a third party present, for example the Departmental Chair or another mutually agreed upon person who can be of assistance, such a meeting should be sought.
On those occasions when students are not satisfied with the outcome of such a meeting, or when for specific reasons a student does not wish to meet with a faculty member, the student may discuss his or her concerns with the Chair. Any such conversation with the Chair will be either: (a) informal, or (b) formal:
- Informal Discussion with Chair:
Informal conversations are confidential; and what is said will be kept secret. The Chair will take no action based upon the conversation, with the exception that the student may ask the Chair to speak to the faculty member privately and informally (with explicit agreement about whether or not the student will be identified). It should be recognized that sometimes the faculty member will recognize the student anyway, simply from the nature of the concern or complaint. - Formal Process:
If the Chair is to proceed to investigate formally, there must be a signed written complaint from the student, a copy of which will be provided by the Chair to the faculty member, who will have the opportunity to respond.
Please note that vexatious complaints constitute a violation of the Student Code of Academic Conduct and Toronto Metropolitan University's Harassment Policy, and will be dealt with in accordance with those policies.
Students are not permitted to publicly post materials that the instructor has created onto any website or other online location. This includes lecture notes, videos, PowerPoint slides, and other supplementary materials for the course. By providing these materials, it is implied that students are using them for the purposes of that course only. It is copyright infringement of the instructor’s intellectual property to upload verbatim transcripts of lectures or materials provided such as recorded lecture videos or PowerPoint slides. The instructor holds the copyright in the works of all original materials used. There can be no sale or transfer or use of the work for any other purpose without explicit permission of the professor.
Extensions on deadlines for essays and assignments are entirely at the course instructor’s discretion. Instructors have the right to impose a 5% per day penalty for late work. Assignments and essays will not be accepted if submitted 10 working days after the due date without explicit permission of the instructor.
All students must observe deadlines for assignments and dates of scheduled class tests or exams unless:
- They have notified the instructor in writing in advance, with an appropriate explanation. Students may be required to submit an Academic Consideration Request. (Note: late penalties may still apply in this situation.)
or - In the case of emergencies, they have informed the instructor on the day of the assignment deadline or scheduled test/exam.
or - In cases where advanced notice is not possible, they have notified the instructor within 3 days and submitted an Academic Consideration Request.
University Email Policy requires that all Toronto Metropolitan students to activate and maintain a Toronto Metropolitan email account. All email communication with professors and staff must be through your Toronto Metropolitan email account. Please do not set up your Toronto Metropolitan account to forward to another email account.
It is vital that you have an active and valid Toronto Metropolitan email account during your undergraduate program of study. Please make sure your account is active. It is also very important to be regularly checking your Toronto Metropolitan email account, as it is a major method of communication from the University to students. This includes during the Spring/Summer term.
Please see Toronto Metropolitan University's Senate Policy 135.
The Department of Criminology does not prepare or administer make-up final examinations in any course for students who miss timetabled final examinations, unless there are serious extenuating circumstances and an Academic Consideration Request (ACR) with supporting health, medical, or compassionate documentation has been submitted within 3 working days. Students should notify the instructor in writing in advance of the exam date if they are unable to attend.
ACRs without documentation cannot be submitted for final exams or final assessments.
The Department will not make exceptions or set make-up exams for students who make travel plans or commit to other engagements during examination periods.
Please see Toronto Metropolitan University's Senate Policy 167.
A (80%-100%): Well organized, clear thesis. Superior understanding of the subject matter. Careful, concise, critical analysis. Evidence of original thinking and an extensive knowledge base. Shows a capacity to analyze, synthesize, and evaluate material. Shows a grasp of all the scholarly issues involved. Well-researched and documented.
B (70%-79%): Generally organized with a relatively clear thesis. Generally acceptable analysis and some critical reasoning. At times there is a need to be more concise or precise in details and a more careful development of arguments. Evidence of some original thinking though lack of depth in some areas. Generally well researched. Some careless stylistic errors.
C (60%-69%): Some problems with organization. Thesis needs to be articulated a little more clearly. Demonstrates an understanding of the basic facts and elemental concepts. Shows an ability to deal with simple issues arising out of the material. Needs to explore the subject matter more fully and formulate ideas more clearly. Little original thinking and closer attention should be given to stylistic elements including sentence structure and paragraph organization.
D (50%-59%): Substantial problems with organization. Thesis not clear. Very little original thinking – more “summary” than critical analysis. Written expressions frequently exhibit difficulty in creating or sustaining a coherent argument or point. Ideas/concepts under-developed and presented simplistically. Inadequate grasp of some of the basic concepts/issues developed within the course.
Fail: Little organization – no clear thesis. Lack of understanding or misunderstanding of the essential subject matter. Incoherence in sections, little evidence of even basic understanding of the course content/issues.
A student may request an INC if some course work (e.g. the final course essay) was not submitted due to documented medical or compassionate grounds, or the final exam was missed due to documented medical or compassionate grounds, and when the completion of the outstanding essay or exam may result in a passing course grade.
Students must petition their instructor to receive an INC grade within 3 working days of the missed final exam or assignment deadline. An Academic Consideration Request (ACR) with supporting health, medical, or compassionate documentation must be provided.
Instructors approving an INC grade must then provide the student with a written statement of outstanding work to be completed and the specific date by which it must be submitted (or the date of the alternate final examination). This date may be early in the following semester, and not longer than three months from the INC request.
Failure to submit the outstanding work by the precise deadline will result in an F grade on the work in question.
The INC will be replaced by an official course grade after the deadline has passed.
Assignment due dates are listed in the course outline. Any assignment submitted after the specified time will incur a 5% penalty. An additional 5% penalty will be applied for each day, or 24-hour period, that the assignment is late.
Assignments will not be accepted if submitted 10 working days after the due date without explicit permission of the instructor.
Students must be formally registered in course sections prior to the final deadline to add courses, which for both semesterized and full-year courses is published annually in the Toronto Metropolitan University Calendar.
Students can be registered in course sections only if there is an available spot prior to the add deadline. Any action taken by the student in attending class sections, meeting with the instructor, obtaining course texts, etc., when the student does not have an official course registration in place, is entirely the student's responsibility. The Department will not normally arrange special registrations for such students or in any way to violate the university's add deadline which is published.
The maintenance of a proper registration status in any Criminology course is the full responsibility of the student. Students must ensure that the courses in which they are registered count in the Criminology program by referring to their Advisement Report and the Criminology curriculum in the Toronto Metropolitan University Calendar.
Under normal circumstances it is not possible for course credits earned in professionally related courses (those courses marked "PR" in the Toronto Metropolitan University Calendar) to be exchanged, transferred or otherwise modified to course credits in Liberal Studies (courses marked either "LL" or "UL").
Students who wish to query their course registrations, or make a request to have them altered, may inquire in writing but should be aware in advance that PR courses are not normally convertible to LL or UL courses; and vice versa.
Drop and add dates for each semester are published in the Calendar, as are notices about requirements for course attendance and proper academic conduct. It is the student's responsibility to be familiar with these dates as published in the Calendar; and with Department of Criminology policies in general.
Please see Toronto Metropolitan University's Senate Policy 61 (Student Code of Non-Academic Conduct).
The making of audio recordings, photographs, films, and/or videotapes in the classroom without the express written permission of the instructor is strictly prohibited.
Unsanctioned recordings of any kind in a class constitute a violation of the Student Code of Academic Conduct and will be dealt with in accordance with that policy.
Students have a right to request a reassessment of a graded essay or assignment if they believe their grade does not reflect the academic merit of their work. This request must be made directly to the instructor within ten working days of when that particular assignment is handed back or the grades for it are posted.
Requests for a grade reassessment must be based on sufficient academic grounds and be supported by evidence and documentation (e.g. from the course outline, course notes, textbooks, assignment grade rubric, etc.). Merely asserting that the work deserves a higher grade, that the student disagrees with the grade, or that the assignment was the result of a great deal of effort, is insufficient support for a grade reassessment.
The instructor should make every effort to reassess the work quickly, usually within five working days.
A reassessment may result in the grade being maintained, raised, or lowered.
If the student remains unsatisfied, they may appeal directly to the department Chair. The result of this appeal is itself non-appealable.
Under no circumstances should the instructor re-examine or re-evaluate work, or even discuss doing so, after the 10-day window has passed.
For more information, see Grade Reassessment and Grade Recalculation.