Professional Behaviors Procedures 

The purpose of the professional behaviors procedures is to help remediate students who have been identified as having professional behavior issues in an academic, cooperative, or clinical education setting. Professional standards are outlined in the student manual and may include, but are not limited to, the APA Ethical Principles of Psychologists and Code of Conduct; NASP Professional Standards or CAC Ethical and Professional Standards; and the Ethics Code for Behavior Analysts to discuss the issue. If the faculty member has met with the student and there is satisfactory resolution of the unprofessional conduct, only a form for tracking purposes is needed.  

  1. The tracking form shall be stored in SharePoint in order to track these students while they are in the program. Once students graduate, these records should be expunged from SharePoint. 
  2. A request for committee review, as indicated on the tracking form, must occur under the following conditions:  
  • A faculty member has attempted to correct the behavior and it has not been corrected after meeting with the student and taking initial steps to improve the identified professional behavior issues.  
  • The incident is egregious (e.g., yelling at a faculty member). 
  • A second breach of professional standards has occurred.   

4. The chair of the Department of Applied Psychology Academic Standing Committee will review the tracking forms when submitted to determine when a committee review is necessary (see 2, above).   

5. Full Review Process:  

a. The chair of the DAP ASC will send a letter to the student(s) about whom concerns have been raised and instruct each student to complete a Self-Assessment of Professional Behaviors. A meeting date will be set to discuss the concern. If the committee finds there is sufficient evidence to support a violation of the professional standards previously defined, one will be noted in the student’s record. 

b. The DAP ASC will develop an appropriate remediation plan in collaboration with the student and appropriate faculty including the student’s advisor.  

c. Depending on the situation, students may have the opportunity to improve professional behaviors. 

d. Any of the following may result in a dismissal from the program: 

  • A third breach of professional standards 
  • A second offense of the same professional standard 
  • An egregious breach of a professional standard as outlined in the student manual and/or behaviors that may include but are not limited to violation of the relevant codes of professional ethics 

6. If a student believes they have been erroneously, capriciously, or otherwise unfairly treated in the process or decision, the student may appeal decisions made by the DAP ASC to the chair of the DAP and then to the dean of the Bouvé College of Health Sciences as outlined in the graduate catalog.  

7. If the student has been suspected of cheating or in any way violating the Academic Code of Conduct, the faculty member should complete the tracking form, as well as follow the steps outlined by the Office of Student Conduct and Conflict Resolution.  

8. Any concern regarding a student’s professional behavior will be brought to the attention of the faculty, as appropriate, at the program faculty meeting.