INSTITUTE POLICIES

The Pittsburgh Institute of Mortuary Science (PIMS) ensures compliance with state and federal regulations by publishing all student policies and procedures in the PIMS Bulletin and the PIMS Student Manual. Both documents are provided to students upon acceptance into the Institute and are shared at least once a year. An archive of these documents is available here for reference.

PIMS Bulletin

2024-2025 PIMS Bulletin – Revised Dec. 2024

PIMS Student Manual

2024-2025 PIMS Student Manual – Revised Dec, 2024

Satisfactory Academic Progress

The United States Department of Education requires that all schools develop a Satisfactory Academic Progress policy in order to appropriately administer financial aid to its recipients. PIMS concurs with the need to regularly review each student’s academic progress in order to effectuate positive academic outcomes. All students regardless of their financial aid eligibility or usage are subject to the PIMS SAP policy. The review period for campus students is after every one trimester and for online students is after every two class terms.

A. Grade Point Average (GPA) Evaluation

At the review period, all students must have earned a cumulative GPA of a 2.0 or higher (of a possible 4.0) to move forward with the program. If a 2.0 is not earned at the time of review, courses must be retaken until a 2.0 is achieved.

B. Pace of Progression

The Pace of Progression is the ratio of successfully completed credits divided by attempted credits. Grades A, B, C, P and D before 09/22/2022 are considered successfully completed. A student at PIMS must maintain a Pace of Progression of at least 67% at each review period to ensure that they will complete their academic program within the maximum timeframe described below.

C. Maximum Timeframe

The Maximum Timeframe a student can take is 150% of the credits needed for degree completion. For example, a degree that requires 60 credits to complete has a Maximum Timeframe of 90 credits.

D. Stop Policy

Additionally, because practical aspects of this program must be fulfilled in a timely and relevant manner, the following considerations have been added to the PIMS SAP policy:

• FUNERAL SERVICE PRACTICUM COMPLETION REQUIREMENT:
o All students must secure a funeral home to perform their practicum, submit the signed agreement and appendices, have the site approved—by either a physical or virtual visit, and begin performing their practicum tasks by a point no later than 2/3 of the way in the core funeral service program (40 of 61 credits have been earned);
o If a student has not fulfilled this requirement by the stated time above, they will not continue with pace/progression and may be dismissed from the program;
o All must have completed their practicum tasks and submitted their project binder to be signed off by the Program Director before the end of their last term (3 or 3B on campus, 10 online) in the core funeral service program;
o If a student has not been signed off for completing the practicum by the stated time above, they may be dismissed from the program.

• CLINICAL EMBALMING COMPLETION REQUIREMENT:
o All students must secure a funeral home to perform their clinical embalming, submit the signed agreement and required information, have the site approved—physical or virtual, and begin performing their embalming requirements by a point no later than 2/3 of the way in the core funeral service program (40 of 61 credits have been earned);
o If a student has not fulfilled this requirement by the stated time above, they will not continue with pace/progression and may be dismissed from the program;
o All students must have completed their clinical embalming requirements, submitted all embalming reports, and be scheduled or have completed their CLEAN-UP embalming case on campus by the end of their last term (3 or 3B on campus, 10 online) in the core funeral service program;
o If a student is not at this point in the clinical embalming program by the stated time above, they may be dismissed from the program.

The full policy is available within the PIMS Bulletin.

Attendance Policy for Campus Students

The curriculum at the Pittsburgh Institute of Mortuary Science is rigorous and diverse. Regular attendance and preparation have been found to be essential for successful completion of the program. Attendance of all classes and laboratory sessions is expected of all students and all courses are conducted with this understanding. It should also be noted that attendance on the job is a key part of becoming a funeral service professional. Moreover, failing to attend class may have adverse consequences on a student’s financial aid.

Thus, the Institute has adopted a definitive policy regarding student attendance. In general, some absences may be considered excused (Faculty or Dean’s discretion). However, if/when students miss >20% of the TOTAL number of hours, (note: this depends on the number of credit hours per course as one credit courses allow for less absences per hour compared to 3 credit courses), they may be removed from the class.

Additionally, to stress the importance of class attendance and participation, it will hold a value of 6% towards the final grade for every class in the curriculum (both core and related-core classes). In some cases, students may lose a percentage of this attendance and participation grade for specific behavior including, but not limited to, chronic absenteeism, lack of obvious participation in class, violations of the Honor Code, or any other reason deemed appropriate by the course instructor. The fact is that student attendance is expected, consistent with the actions of a funeral service professional; students who cannot commit to attending classes for any reason on a regular basis may want to reconsider their decision to begin training at the Institute as well as their choice of career in funeral service.

The following rubric is a breakdown of the assessment for attendance and participation quality points—

depending upon the number of credit hours assigned to the class (it is obvious that the fewer number of credit hours for a course the fewer number hours that can be missed and the greater the impact on a student’s grade for missed hours):
• 3 credit hours/week course = 45 total hours per term— Upon a student’s 10th hour of absence from a specific three-credit hour/week class (which exceeds 20% of the total class hours), said student may be removed from that class. The Registrar’s office will monitor student’s absentee ledgers during the course of a term and typically, the Registrar will send an advisement to students when they have missed (for any reason) their 6th hour in any three-credit hour/week class. Missing class hours does not absolve the student of any and all financial aid obligations for the specific course(s).
• 2 credit hours/week course = 30 total hours per term— Upon a student’s 7th hour of absence from a specific two credit hour/week class (which exceeds 20% of the total class hours), said student may be removed from that class. The Registrar’s office will monitor student’s absentee ledgers during the course of a term and typically, the Registrar will send an advisement to students when they have missed (for any reason) their 4th hour in any two-credit hour/week class. Missing class hours does not absolve the student of any and all financial aid obligations for the specific course(s).
• 1 credit hour/week course = 15 total hours per term— Upon a student’s 4th hour of absence from a specific one-credit hour/week class (which exceeds 20% of the total class hours), said student may be removed from that class. The Registrar’s office will monitor student’s absentee ledgers during the course of a term and typically, the Registrar will send an advisement to students when they have missed (for any reason) their 2nd hour in any one-credit hour/week class. Missing class hours does not absolve the student of any and all financial aid obligations for the specific course(s).

The full policy is available within the PIMS Bulletin.

Attendance Policy—Distance Education Students

The academic rigor of the diverse curriculum at the Pittsburgh Institute of Mortuary Science is notable. When choosing to attend online, the level of commitment on the part of the students regarding attendance and participation is just as important in this modality. While distance students are typically asynchronous (except in certain situations) and do not attend classes on a set schedule, like the campus-based students, there are stated requirements and expectations for attendance and participation.

Such requirements typically involve weekly performance of assignments, discussion forums, and assessments. Regular participation is expected and monitored by the course instructor. Course participation, via weekly discussion forum requirements is worth 9% of an online student’s final course grade.

Accordingly, consistent with the “20% standard” for campus attendance, any distance learning student who misses TWO consecutive weeks of a course will be removed from said course. A tardiness policy is not applicable in the online learning modality, however, assignments, discussions, and assessments submitted after the due date may be subject to mark down (if accepted at all by the course instructor).

The full policy is available within the PIMS Bulletin.

Services for Student With Disabilities

The Pittsburgh Institute of Mortuary Science (PIMS) is committed to providing equal opportunities for students with disabilities in accordance with ADA and Section 504 regulations. Students seeking accommodations must submit a formal request by completing an Accommodation Request Form available here. This form must include documentation of the disability, a statement of diagnosis, and relevant assessment results. The form and all supporting documentation must be submitted to Miss Moyer (jmoyer@pims.edu). PIMS administration reviews each request on a case-by-case basis to determine reasonable accommodations, which may take time to arrange. However, accommodations that are feasible in an educational setting may not be possible in an employment context due to potential undue hardship for employers.

Students must also acknowledge the Admission Health and Wellness Acknowledgement Form, which outlines expectations in funeral service education. Accommodations can be requested at any point during enrollment. However, PIMS does not modify admission requirements or make accommodations that could alter the course of study or result in undue burdens. Students who pose a direct threat to health or safety, or cannot meet basic eligibility criteria, will not be admitted or provided accommodations.

The full policy is available within the PIMS Bulletin.