Catalogue 07-08: Graduation
Please note that this is the March 2007 version of the 2007-2008 Catalogue. Information within is accurate as of this date. Subject to change without notice.
Summary of Graduation Requirements
Graduation Procedure
Reviewing and Verifying Client Care Documentation
General Education Requirements Verification and Transfer
NARM Exam
Summary of Graduation Requirements
To graduate with a Bachelor of Science in Midwifery degree, students must meet the following requirements:
• Completion of all coursework (homework, class presentations, exams, etc.). See CURRICULUM section for complete list of courses.
• Attendance at all courses with no more than one unexcused absence per term per course or a total of two per term, and no more than four unexcused absences per academic year.
• All financial obligations to Birthingway paid in full.
• Documentation of midwifery skills practice and assessment on College approved forms.
• Demonstration of “Midwifery Integration,” an oral exam that demonstrates the candidate’s ability to weave together judgment, knowledge, skills, clinical assessment, decision-making, perceptions, and intuition into appropriate action plans.
• Successful completion of written comprehensive exam; student may substitute NARM exam for the in-house exam.
• Completion and documentation of clinical requirements over a minimum of one calendar year:
- Participant – 25 out-of-hospital births
- Participant – 5 hospital births
- Participant – 25 prenatal exams
- Primary Role – 25 births
- Primary Role – 75 prenatal exams, including 20 initials
- Primary Role – 25 newborn exams
- Primary Role – 40 postpartum exams
- Continuity of Care on 15 supervised primary clients
• Documented completion of 30 semester credit hours of General Education Requirements from an accredited College or University with a grade of at least a C/2.0
- Six semester credit hours of English composition
- Six semester credit hours of Humanities
- Six semester credit hours of Social Studies or Sciences
- Six semester credit hours of Natural Sciences
- Six additional semester credit hours in any Humanities, Social Studies or Natural Sciences course work
• Complete the “Completion of Graduation Requirements” form with an advisor.
• Submit clinical documentation, along with $200 Clinical Documentation fee
• Complete the “Application for Degree” along with the $100 Graduation fee
Graduation Procedure
Birthingway students may qualify for graduation at any time during the year. Each term, students are given the opportunity on the registration form to note if intention to graduate within that term. If the students marks that she does intend to graduate, the Registrar gives her a copy of the Application for Certificate or Degree form. Upon completing the form and paying the $100 Graduation fee, the Registrar will notify the Student Affairs Coordinator (SAC) regarding the student’s intention. The SAC will set up an appointment with the student, give her a copy of the Graduation Requirements Checklist, and go over the items on the checklist with the student.
The Application for Graduation form must be submitted, along with the $100 Graduation fee, no later than the first day of the term in which graduation is anticipated. A meeting must be scheduled with the Student Affairs Coordinator within the first two weeks of the graduating term. At this time, remaining graduation requirements will be evaluated and the oral integration exam will be scheduled.
All clinical documentation (including the Client Care Documentation Notebook and the Skills Assessment Checklist) required to graduate must be submitted to the Student Affairs Coordinator no later than 4 weeks prior to the end of the term in which graduation is planned. The Clinical Documentation Evaluation fee of $200 must be submitted with the clinical documentation. See Reviewing and Verifying Client Care Documentation below.
The SAC and student will review the student’s academic file to confirm that all course work is complete. She will also review the student’s classroom skills documentation to verify that it is complete. If any discrepancies or omissions are noted, the SAC and student will make a plan to follow-up in the areas of concern. If the student intends to earn the BSM degree, the SAC will review her official college transcripts for the completion of the general education requirements and confirm her eligibility for the degree.
The student and SAC will also discuss the scheduling of the oral Integration Exam. The student must select three committee members, including one classroom faculty member she has taken a class with, one preceptor she has worked with, and one additional member who is either a preceptor or faculty. The student is responsible for providing the names of her committee members to the SAC, and for setting up the exam. Once the exam is scheduled, the SAC will forward a copy of the exam with an explanatory letter to the committee members.
The student is required to pass a comprehensive in-house exam in order to graduate. However, the NARM certification exam may be substituted (see NARM Exam below). If the student is taking the in-house exam, the SAC gives her a copy of the study guide, and the student schedules a time in which someone is available to proctor the exam at Birthingway. To take the in-house exam, the student must pay a $75 exam fee.
The student should meet with the Finance Coordinator to confirm that all financial obligation to Birthingway have been met.
Once all items are completed, the SAC will confirm with the Registrar that the student has qualified for graduation. The Registrar will create a diploma a send a copy to NARM (if requested) and to the student.
Graduation ceremonies are held as warranted by number of graduates, usually once a year.
Applying for graduation does not guarantee that the student will be able to graduate at the end of the intended term. Students are ultimately responsible to ensure that all graduate requirements, including General Education requirements, are complete.
Reviewing and Verifying Client Care Documentation
When a student submits her clinical documentation (Client Care Documentation Notebook and Skills Assessment Checklist), the SAC will verify that it is complete and return the book to the student with any required changes within two weeks.
The SAC reviews each signature page, verifying that each entry has a date, client ID, and preceptor signature. If any of these items are missing, the SAC will make a note and require that the student or preceptor fill in the appropriate information. Although the preceptor does not have to place her full signature on each line, some part of her signature must be on each line, otherwise the student must obtain additional signatures from the preceptor (One signature with an arrow indicating that she has approved a number of entries is not acceptable.)
The SAC will also confirm that there is a record of the clinical experience correlated with each logged item. The SAC will verify that the dates match and that the record is complete enough to assure that the student did actually meet the clinical requirement. If there are any discrepancies, the SAC will make a note and require that the student correct the information. The SAC will also verify that there are sufficient numbers of experiences in each area to meet Birthingway’s graduation requirements, and that clinical experiences occurred over a minimum of one calendar year.
If possible, the SAC and student should meet face-to-face to review the necessary corrections, omissions, and changes. The student will then be required to make any changes prior to her intended graduation date.
Once all required documentation is verified, the SAC retains the signature pages of the documentation, and returns a copy of the signature page along with a letter confirming that the documentation meets Birthingway’s requirements to the student. The remainder of the Client Care Documentation Notebook is returned to the student. The originals of the signature pages and of the verification letter go into the student’s file.
General Education Requirements Verification and Transfer
If a student intends to earn the Bachelor of Science in Midwifery Degree, 30 semester credits or 45 quarter credits of general education must be transferred from another educational instuition (see Summary of Graduation Requirements above) for distribution of credits. The Student Affairs Coordinator reviews the transcripts for appropriate transferable courses. Even if the student already has a Bachelors Degree, the Student Affairs Coordinator must verify that the correct number of credits are transferable according to Oregon State regulations. Using an official transcript, the Student Affairs Coordinator will confirm that the credits meet Birthingway’s semester (or quarter) credit requirements and determine which courses are transferable.
NARM Exam
Most of Birthingway’s students choose to take the NARM examination in pursuit of the CPM. The NARM board has recently initiated a new policy to allow students who are in their last semester of a MEAC school to take the NARM Written Examination prior to graduation. This policy has been created due to the many school graduates who need to pass the NARM Written Examination in order to receive their state midwifery license, but who graduate several months before the regular NARM test dates thus delaying their ability to get their license well past their graduation date.
In the past, a midwife who did not yet have a MEAC diploma had to apply through the PEP process, which cost extra money and also required the NARM Skills Assessment. After graduation, the student could skip the PEP process and go straight to the CPM Application for the NARM Written Examination. Under the new policy, the student who is in the last semester of the MEAC program and who is expected to graduate within six months, and who has met all the NARM experience requirements, and who has the approval of the director of the school, may submit a CPM application and register to take the NARM Written Examination.
Sequence of Application and Testing Procedures
1. Order your NARM Application: check out www.narm.org for full information.
2. You will need two photos of yourself. These should be head and shoulders photos, similar to a passport photo. One photo is submitted with your Application, and one will be submitted later when you take the NARM Written Examination for certification.
3. Fill out the General Application and the CPM Application (not the PEP application), and submit these applications along with the appropriate fee, to NARM Applications. In lieu of the MEAC diploma, the student may submit a notarized letter from the school. See the Student Affairs Coordinator to begin the process of evaluating your status for this letter 3 to 4 months before you intend to take the exam (i.e. in April or May for the August exam).
Applications are due early: i.e. In 2005, for a MEAC applicant, there is a May 29th deadline for the August 17, 2005 Written Exam. Deadlines change each year, please see the Information Bulletin for the most recent dates.
The application is color coded according to routes of entry, such as Entry Level, MEAC Graduates, State Licensed, and Special Circumstances. All candidates should fill out General Form 100 and the specific pages for their route of entry. You will receive notification that your application materials have been received. In the case of MEAC graduates, the application is only about 2 pages as compared to nearly 50.
4. All candidates should submit the CPM application and the Verification of Education letter with the Certification fee. The school can send the Verification letter separately. The application, documentation, and fee should be sent to the NARM Applications Department: NARM Applications, PO Box 420, Summertown, TN 38483.
5. When the CPM application is approved, you will receive a NARM Written Examination Intent Form which lists the dates and sites for the Examination. Choose your test site and date and submit the Intent Form to the NARM Test Department. You will receive acknowledgment of receipt of your Intent Form. Approximately 2-3 weeks prior to the Written Examination, you will receive an Admission Letter and directions to the test site.
6. After the examination, the student will receive the results from the NARM Test Department. That letter may be used to provide evidence to the state of passing the NARM Written Examination. If the state requires a letter from NARM, the student must request that the letter be sent. (NARM does not notify any state agency of exam results without the written permission of the candidate, except when the candidate registers for the exam through the state agency.)
7. In order to receive the CPM certificate, the candidate will need to send a notarized copy of the MEAC diploma, or an official transcript from the school indicating completion of requirements, to NARM Applications. No additional payments will be needed, but proof of MEAC graduation will be required.
8. If you cancel or change your testing date after submitting the Intent Form but prior to ten days before the test date, there is a $100 fee to reschedule your examination. If you change or cancel your test within ten days of the examination, or if you do not show for your examination, you must pay the retake fee to be rescheduled for the examination.
9. The Test Department will send results of the NARM Written Examination by mail 3-4 weeks after the testing date.
MEAC graduates must apply for NARM Certification within three years of graduation. If application for certification is made after this time, NARM will require documentation of ten (10) primary births, twenty-five (25) hours of continuing education, and five (5) hours of peer review within the three (3) years prior to the application submission. Form available upon request.
Written Examination Administration Schedule
The NARM Written Examination is administered three times a year, as follows:
• 3rd Wednesday in February
• 3rd Wednesday in August
• At the annual MANA Convention in the fall