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

              2025-2026 PIMS Bulletin – Revised June 2025 

               2024-2025 PIMS Bulletin – Revised March 2025

2024-2025 PIMS Bulletin – Revised Dec. 2024

2023-2024 PIMS Bulletin – Revised Oct. 2023

2021-2023 PIMS Bulletin  – Revised Jan. 2022

PIMS Student Manual

2024-2025 PIMS Student Manual – Revised Dec. 2024

2023-2024 PIMS Student Manual – Revised Oct. 2023

2022-2023 PIMS Student Manual – Revised Jun. 2023

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. All students regardless of their financial aid ELIGIBILITY or USAGE are subject to the PIMS SAP policy. The review period for campus students is every one trimester and for online students is every two class terms for GPA, Pace, MTF, and SP.

1. Grade Point Average (GPA) Evaluation – At the review period, all students must have earned a cumulative GPA of a 2.0 (of a possible 4.0) or higher 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.

       a.   All students in the ASB program must have successfully completed all Related Core courses before enrolling in any Core course.

2. Pace of Progression (Pace) – 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.

3. Maximum Timeframe (MTF) – 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 attempted.

4. Stop Policy (SP) – Because practical aspects of this program must be fulfilled in a timely and relevant manner, students must meet the benchmarks set by PIMS for all experiential graduation requirements. These benchmarks were detailed in the above Embalming and Funeral Service Skills Policies and Requirements section of this catalog.

  1. Failing the Same Course Twice (2Fs) – If a student fails a course, meaning they earned a grade of F or WF, they will be placed immediately on Academic Warning, regardless of if they are at a review period listed above or not, and granted one retake. If the student fails that same course a second time, they are academically dismissed.

Definition of SAP Status

 GPA, Pace, MTF, and SP are evaluated at the end of each Campus trimester and at the end of every two consecutive Online terms. At this point, each student is assigned a status of “Meets SAP” or “Does Not Meet SAP”. Students who “Do Not Meet SAP” requirements will be placed on Academic Warning.

 2Fs is evaluated any time a student earns an  F or WF.

SAP Stage 1: Meeting SAP

 The student met satisfactory academic progress in GPA, Pace, MTF, and SP in the most recent review period and is matriculating into the next class term and did not earn any F or WF in any course.

This is the stage that all students should strive for at all times.

 SAP Stage 2: Academic Warning

 The student did not meet satisfactory academic progress in GPA, Pace, MTF, and/or SP in the most recent review period and/or failed (F or WF) a course and receives a formal warning. This student is afforded one review period to meet the SAP requirements. During this time, they are still able to utilize Federal Financial Aid, and no appeal is required.

 If a student meets satisfactory academic progress during this review period and/or passes the retake of the failed course, they resume “Meeting SAP” status and return to SAP Stage 1.

If the student does not meet satisfactory academic progress during this review period and/or fails the retake of the failed course, they are academically dismissed.

SAP Stage 3: Academic Dismissal

The student did not meet satisfactory academic progress in GPA, Pace, MTF, and/or SP in two consecutive review periods and/or fails the retake of the failed course, they get academically dismissed from the program.

In order to reenroll in the program, this student must appeal their dismissal. For an appeal to be accepted for review, it must include a detailed explanation of what occurred during both unsuccessful time periods and documentation of the mitigating circumstances that occurred and prevented their success.

    1. A detailed letter (typed in a Word.doc) that includes:
      1. Explanation of what occurred during both review periods.
      2. Thorough report of what has changed since this time period.
      3. A description of what will be different during the next review period to ensure academic success.
    2. Documentation of a mitigating circumstance(s) that occurred during both review periods. Examples of Mitigating Circumstances:
      • Bereavement of a close relative/significant other
      • Unforeseen caring responsibilities for immediate family member
      • Illness or injury
      • Victim of a crime
      • Severe unforeseen personal or psychological problems
      • Serious worsening or acute episode of an ongoing disability/medical/mental health condition
      • Automobile accident resulting in injury and/or major repairs needed
      • Natural disaster

All items should be emailed to or printed and handed to the Registrar.

*****If the appeal is missing any of the required items, it will automatically be denied.

If the appeal is denied, the student remains in a dismissal status and must wait one calendar year to appeal a second time.

SAP Stage 4: Academic Probation

If a student’s appeal is approved, they are reinstated into the program, provided a Reinstatement Plan, and placed on Academic Probation.

During this time, the student is NOT eligible to use Federal Student Aid.

If a student meets satisfactory academic progress during this review period, they resume “Meeting SAP” status and return to SAP Stage 1.

 SAP Stage 5: Permanent Academic Dismissal

 Permanent Academic Dismissal is not appealable and  can occur in either of these ways:

 Student did not meet satisfactory academic progress while on Academic Probation.

  1. Student failed the same course a third time.
  2. Student appealed their Academic Dismissal twice (one year apart) and both were denied.

Incomplete Grades

If a student receives an “I” or “Incomplete” grade at the end of a trimester/term, the student has a two-week period of time from the last day of the trimester/term to makeup the missed work and earn a grade for the course. If the student fails to earn the grade by the required date the “I” is converted to an “NC” (No Credit). At that point, the course will need to be repeated.

Withdrawals

A “W” (Withdrawal) grade is assigned to a course from which a student withdraws prior to the 10th week of the trimester for resident students and the 6th week of the term for online students. If the student withdraws during or after the 11th week of the trimester or 6th week of the term, respectively, the student will be awarded a Withdrawal- Failure (“WF”) for the course if they are failing the course at that time. Otherwise, the student will receive a “W” grade.

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.

Course Registration

Registration Process and Schedule Adjustments

The Registrar’s Office manages registration. Upon acceptance into the Institute, students are registered for the cohort (campus or online) for which they applied. Students will receive their schedules before orientation

On-Campus Students: Accelerated vs. Standard Pace

On-campus students can choose between an accelerated or standard pace for program progression. While both options lead to the same program outcome, the difference lies in the pace of coursework:
 – Accelerated Pace: 20 credits per term, with a minimum attendance of one year.
 – Standard Pace: 8-12 credits per term, with a minimum attendance of two years.

 – Accelerated & Standard Campus Program Sequence – AST & DIP

 – Accelerated & Standard Campus Program Sequence – ASB

Students who have questions or wish to switch between these options must consult the Registrar’s Office.

Distance Education Students

For students pursuing a distance education alternative, courses are offered in an accelerated, modular format with eight-week terms.

  – Online Program Sequence

Course Registration Requests Outside the Standard Sequence

Both online and on-campus courses follow a specific, logical sequence to ensure optimal progression through the program. All students are provided with a comprehensive schedule of the entire program and course sequence at the beginning of their studies.

Any requests for course registration that deviate from the standard sequence will be reviewed on a case-by-case basis. Students interested in such requests should contact the Registrar’s Office for further guidance.

Automatic Registration

Students do not need to select or register for classes. Course registration will occur automatically, except in the following cases:
 – The student has an outstanding balance by the last day of finals.
 – A course must be repeated; in this case, you will receive communication from me with instructions on the next steps.
 – Academic or experiential progress standards are not met.

 

 

© 2022 Pittsburgh Institute of Mortuary Science  |   All Rights Reserved  |  Privacy Policy  |  Designed by JC Design and Media