Professional Licensure Disclosure

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Effective Date: February 1, 2023
Issuing Authority: Provost
Policy Contact: Vice Provost for Institutional Effectiveness, 478-301-2070

Purpose

The purpose of this policy is to ensure Mercer University discharges its obligations under federal law and regulations, accreditation requirements, and state reciprocity agreements to make a good faith effort to determine if its Licensure Programs meet the educational requirements for licensure or certification for each state and territory in the United States and to disclose its findings to prospective students and those enrolled in a Licensure Program.

Scope

This policy applies to prospective and current students of academic programs leading to professional licensure or certification.

Exclusions

None

Definitions

As used in this policy, the following terms have the meaning specified below:

Current Student: a student who is enrolled in and attending courses in a professional licensure program OR a student enrolled in and attending any courses who has declared a major in a professional licensure program.

Licensure (or Certification): an official process administered by a state-level or territory level authority that is required by law for an individual to practice a regulated profession in that state or territory.

Professional Licensure Disclosure: A disclosure by Mercer University to enrolled and prospective students concerning whether a licensure program meets educational requirements for licensure or certification in the various states and U.S. territories.

Program: an academic program at Mercer University, which, in some cases, prepares a student to practice in a field that requires licensure or certification to practice in a particular state or U.S. territory.

Prospective Student: someone who has applied and been admitted to a program leading to professional licensure or certification OR someone who has applied and been admitted for general admission to the University as an undergraduate and has indicated an interest in a program leading to professional licensure.

Policy Statement

All Mercer University programs that lead to professional licensure, whether offered online or on-campus, must distribute disclosure statements to current and prospective students that indicate whether the program meets or does not meet the educational requirements for licensure or certification for each U.S. state and territory. Public disclosures are required when the university meets the educational requirements for licensure or certification. Direct disclosures are required when prospective or current students are located in a U.S. state or territory where the institution does not meet educational requirements for licensure or certification.

Professional Licensure Disclosure
For each program, the professional licensure disclosure must include:

A list of U.S. states and territories for which Mercer University has determined that the program meets the educational requirements for licensure or certification.

A list of U.S. states and territories for which Mercer University has determined that the program does not meet the educational requirements for licensure or certification. If Mercer University has been unable to make a determination, the state or territory will be included in the list as not meeting educational requirements for licensure or certification.

A statement that outlines the educational requirements for professional licensure or certification and notes other requirements, such as passage of national exams, work or clinical experience, background checks, and fees.

A statement that indicates that each state board, department, or agency has the ultimate authority and discretion to determine whether professional licensure or certification will be issued.

Public Disclosures
Mercer University must make the disclosure publicly available to all students on a webpage dedicated to professional licensure disclosures. Student Affairs must provide links to the public disclosures to students as part of their notifications of student rights and responsibilities every semester.

Mercer University must make direct disclosures via email or through the appropriate student information system (Slate or Anthology Student) when a student is located[1] in a state where Mercer does not meet the educational requirements for licensure.

Programs That Do Not Meet Educational Requirements
Federal regulations require that Mercer University cannot admit a student from a state or territory for which the institution does not meet the educational requirements for professional licensure or certification unless the student attests to an intention to seek licensure or certification in a state where the university does meet such requirements.

[1] As determined by the Student Location Policy.

Additional Resources

Associated Regulations: 34 CFR 668.43(c)(3)(ii) Institutional Information

Student Location Policy: policies.mercer.edu/student-location/

History

Previous version “Policy on Disclosure Requirements for Academic Programs Leading to Professional Licensure,” approved by the Provost October 7, 2020
Revised February 1, 2023

Appendix

Procedures

Various offices/units and employees have responsibility to ensure that this policy and related processes are executed. The subsections below describe the disclosure process and who is responsible for ensuring compliance.

Office of Institutional Effectiveness

  1. Conduct an annual review of this policy to assess its relevance and alignment with current practice and the Higher Education Act disclosure requirements.
  2. Maintain the Professional Licensure website with linked program disclosures. This site is embedded within the university Federal Disclosure Requirements website.
  3. Provide Enrollment Management and Student Information System administrators with an updated list of states that required direct disclosures.
  4. Request an annual review of the program disclosures by program directors/coordinators.
  5. When notified by program directors or coordinators of a change in status of a state, communicate with the Student Information System Administrator so that a direct disclosure is distributed to the student within 14 days of the notification.
  6. Archive the documentation of policy review, communication, and compliance.

Enrollment Management

  1. Based on the location of the applicant[2], provide the appropriate disclosure through the admission student information system (Slate).
  2. When a student is located in a state where Mercer does not meet the educational requirements for licensure or certification, provide the student an opportunity to complete an attestation stating that the student intends to seek licensure in a state or territory where Mercer meets the requirements. If a student does not complete the attestation, the student cannot be admitted to the university.
  3. Ensure that advertisements and admissions websites about programs that lead to professional licensure or certification include a link to the Professional Licensure website’s page for the program.
  4. Annually, update the student information system so that changes in the status of where Mercer University meets or does not meet the educational requirements for licensure are reflected.
  5. Annually, provide the Office of Institutional Effectiveness a spreadsheet that tabulates applicants, location, and attestations.

Program Directors/Coordinators

  1. Make a good faith effort to determine if the program meets the educational requirements and provide those determinations to the Office of Institutional Effectiveness. Review and, if necessary, send updates to OIE annually, prior to July 1.
  2. If, during the annual review of the Professional Licensure Disclosure information or at any time during the year after that review, the Program Director/Coordinator determines that the program no longer meets a state’s requirements, notify the Office of Institutional Effectiveness of the change.
  3. Ensure that the program website links to the Professional Licensure website.

Student Information System Administrator

  1. Ensure that the student information system (Anthology Student) distributes direct disclosures based on the student’s current location.
  2. When notified by the Office of Institutional Effectiveness of a change in the status of states and U.S. Territories that meet or do not meet the requirement of licensure, update the student information system so that disclosures are distributed appropriately.

Registrar

  1. Log the notifications of change in student location2 to track that disclosures are being distributed.
  2. Annually, provide the Office of Institutional Effectiveness documentation of notifications.

Student Affairs
As part of the regular student notifications every semester, provide the Higher Education Act document with links to the Professional Licensure Disclosures webpage.

[2] As determined by the Student Location Policy