Student Rights & Responsibilities

NorQuest College is committed to maintaining high standards of non-academic conduct and academic performance and integrity, in order to foster a learning environment conducive to the personal, educational, and social development of its students. This commitment is founded upon the principles of fairness, trustworthiness, honesty, respect, and responsibility.

The college expects that its students will be guided at all times by these principles in the work that they submit and the behaviour in which they engage. As members of this learning community, students have both fundamental rights and consequential responsibilities that NorQuest commits to protect and enforce under the provisions of the specific procedures related to this policy for the benefit of the entire college community.

Student Rights

Students have the right to:

• An educational environment that is safe, secure, and conducive to learning, and protects students from discrimination, harassment, indignity, or injury.
• The protection of their privacy according to college policy and privacy legislation.
• Reasonable and legitimate access to statements of college policies and procedures.=
• Due process and procedural fairness in any investigation of alleged improper student conduct or alleged violations of college policy.
• Freedom of inquiry, expression, belief, political association, and assembly, provided that they are lawful and do not interfere with the rights of others or with the effective operation of the college or violate college policy.
• Reasonable and legitimate access to college buildings and facilities.
• Membership in an independent students’ association, and participation in its governance and activities, subject only to its by-laws.
• Timely and accurate information about the content and requirements of their courses and programs.
• The availability of their instructors for assistance outside of scheduled class periods at mutually agreeable times and through mutually acceptable modes of communication.
• Reasonable and supervised access to their official student records as contained in their permanent file.
• Consult any written submission for which a mark has been assigned and to discuss the submission with the examiner.
• Request an impartial review of any grade.

Student Responsibilities

Students have a responsibility to:

• Assist in making the college learning community respectful, safe, and inclusive by personally refraining from (and discouraging in others) conduct that threatens or endangers the health, safety, well-being, or dignity of any person(s).
• Exercise their rights and freedoms with integrity, respect for the rights of others, and acceptance of accountability for their words and actions, whether acting individually or as a member of a group.
• Abide by all relevant college policies and participate in related procedures, as required.
• Familiarize themselves with academic regulations, including graduation and program completion requirements.
• Comply with the policies of any employer or host organization where the student is involved in a work placement, site visit, practicum, or clinical placement.
• Respect the property of others, including the college’s buildings and facilities.
• Conduct themselves honestly in their academic work and responsibly in their non-academic behaviour.
• Comply with all requirements set out in course outlines, assignments, tests, and examinations.
• Adhere to class attendance policies and notify instructors in a timely manner of unavoidable absences.
• Participate in class activities, as instructed.
• Respect the instructor’s right to determine course content, instructional methodology, and evaluation.
• Respect the instructor’s right to manage the classroom and to set norms for acceptable behaviour.
• Maintain timely and respectful communication with appropriate college offices and personnel, whether in-person or through electronic means.

In addition to these rights and responsibilities, students must familiarize themselves with the college’s overarching Code of Conduct, as stated in Board Policy No. 8 - NorQuest College Code of Conduct (52K pdf), which applies to all members of the college community.