Online Learning Academic Support

1. Before posting your question to a discussion board, check if anyone has asked it already and received a reply. Just as you wouldn’t repeat a topic of discussion right after it happened in real life, don’t do that in discussion boards either.
2. Stay on topic. Don’t post irrelevant links, comments thoughts, or pictures.
3. Don’t type in ALL CAPS! If you do, it will look like you’re screaming
4. Don’t write anything that sounds angry or sarcastic, even as a joke, because without hearing your tone of voice your peers might not realize you’re joking
5. Always remember to say “Please” and “Thank you” when soliciting help from your classmates
6. Respect the opinions of your classmates. If you feel the need to disagree, do so respectfully and acknowledge the valid points in your classmate’s argument. Acknowledge that others are entitled to have their own perspective on the issue.
7. If you reply to a question from a classmate, make sure your answer is accurate! If you’re not 100% sure when the paper is due, DO NOT GUESS! Otherwise, you could really mess things up for your classmates and they will not appreciate it.
8. If you ask a question and many people respond, summarize all answers and post that summary to benefit your whole class.  
9. Be brief. If you write a long dissertation in response to a simple question, it’s unlikely that anyone will spend the time to read through it all.
10. Don’t badmouth others or call them stupid. You may disagree with their ideas, but don’t mock the person.
11. If you refer to something your classmate said earlier in the discussion, quote just a few key lines from their post so that others won’t have to go back and figure out which post you’re referring to.
12. Before asking a question, check the class FAQs or search the internet to see if the answer is obvious or easy to find.
13. Check the most recent comments before you reply to an older comment, since the issue might have already been resolved or opinions may have changed
14. Be forgiving. If your classmate makes a mistake don’t badger him or her for it. Just let it go – it happens to the best of us.
15. Run a spelling and grammar check before posting anything to the discussion board. It only takes a minute, and can make the difference between sounding like a fool and sounding knowledgeable.

Students do not need to register to take an on-campus exam. However, students must sign-in at the campus location and show a photo ID. Sign-in starts 30 minutes prior to the exam start time.

Identify a possible nearby testing site, community college, or four-year college.

Contact the testing, academic counseling or career development offices at the college or your local library.

Ask for the director of the office or the person in charge.

Explain to your contact person that you are taking an online course with Mercy University and you are inquiring about the possibility of their office providing a proctor to administer your paper/pencil midterm and/or final exam. (Some colleges refer to this as "courtesy testing.)

Note: Students must make arrangements to pay the proctor themselves, if necessary.

Should the exam center agree, you should have available possible exam dates, times, and the allowable length of time for your exam (Remember, they are providing you a courtesy, so please have as much information on hand and be flexible as possible.) Try to confirm the date and time of the exam at the time of the agreement.

In order to allow the Testing Office staff time enough to process your remote exam request, please submit the form no later than two weeks before the exams start. Thank you for your cooperation and good luck on your exams!

REQUESTING A REMOTE PROCTOR FOR EXAMS ADMINISTERED BY TESTING OFFICE

Students who live outside of a 100-mile radius of a Mercy University campus may request that their exam be sent to a remote proctor.  To request an exam from the Testing Office, students are to first schedule an appointment with a proctor from a college/university testing center, testing center, or library in their area that regularly proctors exams.

Then, students are to fill out the Remote Proctor Application Form below in its entirety and submit it to the Testing Office. All forms must be submitted at least 10 days prior to the first midterm or final exam date of the semester.

Students must submit one Remote Proctor Application Form to request a midterm exam, and a second Remote Proctor Application Form to request a final exam.

Students are responsible for payment of the proctor.

Students who live within a 100-mile radius of a Mercy University campus are required to take exams on campus on the designated exam dates/times. Students who live within a 100-mile radius from a Mercy University campus do not qualify for a remote proctor.

Please complete the Remote Proctor Application Form.

Targeted emails have been sent to all online students as reminders with the exam schedule. If you miss an exam, you MUST contact your professor and gain approval to have the exam proctored in the Testing Office by the Testing Office staff. The Testing Office staff will agree to proctor your exam(s) after the testing schedule dates only in extraordinary circumstances that can be verified. The grace period for taking exams after the specified exam dates is three (3) working days from the Monday following the date of the last Saturday exam. Beyond three days, the grace period is over. There are no exceptions to this policy.

• Please remember to bring a valid photo identification and present it to the exam proctor(s).
• On the sign-in sheet, as you enter, please print your name, course(s), and time in.
• We do not provide calculators or rulers for exams, so be sure to bring your own if permitted for your exam.
• Please turn cellular phones OFF before entering the exam room.
• Children are not allowed in the exam room.
• The exam must be completed in one sitting. No one is allowed to leave the exam room once an exam has been started.
• If you do not give yourself adequate time to complete your exam (3 hours), you will be asked to sign a "Waiver of Time" form.
• When your exam is completed, notify the testing proctor and sign out. You will be required to place your signature on the sign-out sheet and on your exam or exam booklet. Be sure to put the time that you finished your exam on the sign-out sheet. You must turn in all testing materials (including scrap paper) to the proctor before you leave.

REMOTE PROCTOR NEED: If you need a remote proctor because you live/work 100 miles or more from the main campus, please note that there are deadlines in place for submitting the application which can be found on the application itself; please fill out the online remote proctor request form. Verification of the proctor information is performed by the Testing Office staff when you submit the form. An exam is then sent to that location with a letter of instruction. Please be sure to give the EXACT address of the proctor you choose—if exams are returned for inaccurate addresses, they will NOT be resent. You must make arrangements for the time of exam and any payment involved for services rendered by your proctor.  Thank you in advance for your cooperation—good luck on your exams!