Is UWF an accredited university?

Universities in the United States of America are accredited by regional institutional accrediting agencies sanctioned by the U.S. Department of Education. (This is the entity sometimes incorrectly referred to internationally as the "U.S. Ministry of Education". There is no official governmental agency known as the "U.S. Ministry of Education", as the U.S. Department of Education serves such a purpose in the United States.) As indicated on the U.S. Department of Education Web page located here, the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools, Commission on Colleges, is recognized by the U.S. Department of Education. The status of our accreditation with the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools, Commission on Colleges is described here. As indicated on that page, we were reaffirmed for accreditation in 2005 and our status is "Accredited". Our next affirmation is in 2015. Additional information on other accreditations held by the University of West Florida is provided in the UWF catalog located here. For additional information on quality-related information in the School of Allied Health and Life Sciences, review our Quality Assurance initiatives.

How, when and where can I register for one of your courses?

Mr. Steve Celestial

Academic Advisor and Program Coordinator
School of Allied Health and Life Sciences

Great question! (You just justified my job! :)

Hi, my name is Steve, and I am your first stop in the registration process. I am the Academic Advisor and Program Coordinator for all the programs within the School of Allied Health and Life Sciences. You can contact me at (850) 474-2885 or scelestial@uwf.edu. If I can't answer your question directly, I'll have the name and contact information of someone who can.

Please note that students registering for any courses and using a State Employee Tuition Fee Waiver should send an e-mail to me so we know to look out for your paperwork. You can start the paperwork process early, but you will only be permitted to register on the 1st day of class.

To begin the registration process, first note the upcoming registration dates are as follows:

• SPRING 2008  Registration Deadlines
•  SUMMER 2008  Registration Deadlines
•  FALL 2008  Registration Deadlines



 

Now, the process is slightly different depending on which programs you are interested in and whether or not you want to take a course for college credit. Below I've listed the common scenarios and basic steps. If something doesn't make sense to you, just call or e-mail me. (In the steps that follow, BSHS stands for Bachelor of Science in Health Sciences, and MPH stands for Master of Public Health.)

PLEASE NOTE:
If you are a FL resident and want to be billed at that rate, before you start filling out the on-line registration forms, please have at least TWO of the following documents handy:

• FL vehicle registration information
• FL voter registration card/number
• FL driver's license/number

 

To confirm your status as a FL resident, you may also need to FAX copies of these, with a residency affidavit, to the UWF Admissions Office at (850) 474-3360. The forms do not give an error if you leave these sections incomplete, so please fill them out completely to begin with to ensure your FL resident billing rate.

Medical Informatics students only:

Once you complete the steps below, send an e-mail to Dr. Melanie A. Sutton (msutton@uwf.edu) to let her know that you are in the process of enrolling. She'll review your online records and send you a confirmation message indicating any additional information that is needed.

MPH students, degree-seeking:

• If you are submitting your application as a degree-seeking MPH student by the program application deadlines (~October 1 for Spring, ~June 1 for Fall, ~March 1 for Summer), then follow these instructions.
• Alternately, the general step-by-step registration process for potential degree-seeking MPH students who have missed the application deadlines is as follows:
  1. Submit an online non-degree seeking application.
     
  2. Please complete the application form in its entirety, including the residency affidavit. For area of study, enter “Biology” at this time.
  3. Once you are cleared for admission, you will be able to register approximately 2 weeks before the semester begins. Please contact me then for course registration or for additional information.


BSHS students, degree-seeking:

• If you are submitting your application as a degree-seeking BSHS student by the program application deadlines (~November 1 for Spring, ~June 30 for Fall, ~April 1 for Summer), then follow these instructions:
  1. Submit an online degree-seeking application.
     
  2. Please complete the application form in its entirety, including the residency affidavit. For area of study, enter “Health Sciences.”
  3. Once you are cleared for admission, you will be able to register. Please contact me for course registration or for additional information.
• Alternately, the general step-by-step registration process for potential degree-seeking BSHS students who have missed the application deadlines is as follows:
  1. Complete the online non-degree seeking application.
  2. Please complete the application form in its entirety, including the residency affidavit. For area of study, enter “Biology” at this time. In any other fields of this form requesting a Department, enter "Biology Department".


Other students:


If you are applying to a degree program...
The general step-by-step registration process for degree-seeking students (other than BSHS and MPH degrees) is as follows:

1. If you already know the undergraduate or graduate degree you will be pursuing, you can proceed with an online degree-seeking application.
2. Please complete the application form in its entirety, including the residency affidavit.
3. Once you are cleared for admission, you will be able to register. Please contact me then for course registration or for additional information.

If you are applying to a Certificte program only, but need college credit...
Alternatively, the general step-by-step registration process for non-degree seeking students taking courses for college credit (e.g., you are currently pursuing one of the Certificate programs, but may want to apply the credits to a degree program at a later date, or, your employer will only reimburse your participation if you are taking the course for college credit, etc.) is as follows:
1. Submit an online non-degree seeking application.
   
2. Please complete the application form in its entirety, including the residency affidavit. For area of study, enter “Biology” at this time. In any other fields of this form requesting a Department, enter "Biology Department".
3. Once you are cleared for admission, you will be able to register approximately 2 weeks before the semester begins. Please contact me then for course registration or for additional information.

If you are applying to a Certificte program only, and do *not* need college credit...
Finally, if you are a non-degree seeking student, and you do not intend to apply course credits towards a college degree program:
1. Contact Margaret Penton, our advisor in the Division of Continuing and Distance Education at (850)-474-2056 or mpenton@uwf.edu for application information.

Seating is limited in some courses, so it is best to sign up early. We also schedule off-campus registration visits at local hospitals and health departments.

Just as an FYI, here are some clarifications about common issues when using our current on-line registration process:

• Lifting the special permission hold - Just contact me for this, and I'll take care of it. This hold has been put in place for some courses so that instructors can monitor enrollment and follow-up with any students who have questions about course requirements.
• Lifting the immunization hold - Contact me to manually lift this hold as the immunization requirements do not apply if you are taking Certificate courses off-campus at Sacred Heart Hospital. If you are planning on applying these courses to one of the graduate programs in the future, please start working on any immunization issues, as you may have courses that will be scheduled on the main campus as part of those programs.
• Correcting an incorrect billing as a Non-FL resident - Your status as a FL resident is confirmed by the other information provided on the form, such as FL vehicle registration information, FL voter registration card/number, and/or FL driver's license information. It is our understanding that at least TWO of these must be supplied for confirmation (forms with just one piece of information seem to get initially rejected). We admit this makes the form a bit cumbersome at first, but it is the only way residency can be confirmed on-line (by folks in Tallahassee), so please have these documents handy and don't skip those questions. If you do skip those questions at first, it may be difficult to navigate back to submit an update. In this case, please re-apply and then fax the completed residency form to the UWF Admissions Office at 474-3360 [FAX]. Sorry for the inconvenience of this part - we are working with the Admissions and Registrar's Office to streamline this process.



Good luck, and hope to hear from you soon. If you do swing by my office, ask for a freebie...some nifty new key chains are in production right now :)

How long does it take to complete one of the Certficate programs?

The Certificate programs are typically designed to be completed within 1-2 academic years. This assumes a course load of 1-2 courses per semester, in the Fall and Spring terms. You may be able to complete programs faster by enrolling in multiple courses per semester or enrolling in courses during the Summer session. Students working full-time are encouraged to take 1 course per semester unless they are comfortable with a heavier course load.

When are courses scheduled?

Face-to-face courses in Certificate programs are typically scheduled as 16 weeks of 3-hour lectures offered on one weekday evening per week. Completely on-line courses contain online modules and testing that can be completed from home.

• Non-degree seeking students: Students in this category have a choice of whether or not they would like to take the courses for college credit:

  • For college credit: Rates are the same as degree-seeking students (see above).
  • Not for college credit: Rates are established by the Division of Continuing and Distance Education. For 2007-2008, the rate for a 16-week, 3 credit hour course at the 5000-6000 level is $550.00. This same rate applies for both Florida and non-Florida residents.

Are scholarships, internships, or financial aid available?

This is an area we are working on, so please visit this section again to see if any new links are posted. Here is a brief list of links which may be of interest to you:

• Medical Informatics Students - The Medical Informatics Program at UWF is working with local companies to establish internship and co-operative education opportunities, and to facilitate recruiting for other permanent positions. These opportunities are currently under development at:
  • Cogon Systems, Inc.
  • Med3OOO (Southeast Region Operation Center only)
  Students enrolled in the Medical Informatics Certificate Program and interested in competing for these opportunities should review the Websites of these companies for current postings and contact Dr. Melanie A. Sutton at (850) 474-2650 or msutton@uwf.edu for additional information.
• Master of Public Health Students -
  • Students in the MPH program are given automatic consideration for an out-of-state tuition waiver. This waiver doesn't cover the entire out-of-state portion, but it does take care of a great deal of it. Please complete the form here. Please be sure to apply for the waiver at least 2 weeks prior to the fee payment deadline for each semester you're enrolled in the MPH program. The Cashier's Office prefers that these applications are submitted at least 2 weeks prior to the fee payment deadline to ensure processing. Applications received less than 2 weeks before the application deadline may or may not be processed by the fee payment due date. Please keep in mind that if your application for the waiver is not received at least 2 weeks prior to the fee payment deadline in the future, you may be required to pay the full amount of the tuition up front and then get reimbursed for the waiver portion at a later date. Please pay particular attention to the fact that it is YOUR responsibility to fill out this application at the beginning of each semester that you are enrolled for classes while in the program.
  • The Advisory Committee to the School of Allied Health and life Sciences is working with the Escambia, Okaloosa, and Santa Rosa County Health Departments to establish internship opportunities for students in the MPH program. Additional information will be posted here when available.
• Health Care Ethics Students - Graduate students who are in the Health Care Ethics Certificate Program or the Master's program in Communications Leadership (Health Care Ethics Track) may compete for an internship available in palliative care/health care ethics, with on-site training at Sacred Heart Hospital. In addition, distinguished graduates or participants in the Health Care Ethics Certificate Program are eligible for consideration for the Reubin O'D. Askew Award in Health Care Ethics, named in honor of the former Governor of Florida and Ambassador. Previous winners are Sarah Hetue from Marquette University and Beth Stoddert from Pepperdine University. Contact Dr. Gretchen Norling at the Association for Health Care Ethics site for additional information on these opportunities.
• Health Science/Allied Health Scholarship - Any student who is currently enrolled or who has taken Anatomy & Physiology or Microbiology in the last 2 years is eligible to apply for a scholarship.  For an online application form and other details, visit Allied Health Student Scholarship.  Applications are usually due November 1st of each year.
• Hospital employees - Your first stop should be the Education Department at your organization. Many local hospitals offer partial or full tuition assistance.
• Native American and Alaska Native - Please review the Morris K. Udall Foundation site for opportunities for college students who have demonstrated outstanding potential and a commitment to careers related to tribal public policy or health care.
• Navy personnel - Please review the Navy Tuition Assistance site. Additional information can be obtained from HM2 Dhaliwali in the Command Education Department located on the 6th floor of Navy Hospital.
• State of Florida employees - Please visit UWF's State Employee Tuition Fee Waiver Information page. This page includes a standard form to be completed and submitted with original signatures. You should also stop by your Educational Training/Human Resources Department to determine if any additional forms are required. We are still ironing out the details of this process. In the interim, if you have questions, please contact Dr. Melanie A. Sutton at msutton@uwf.edu or (850) 474-2650.
• Veterans - For additional information please visit the main GI Bill Web site.
• Technical Training Loans - A good place to consider options in this area is through UWF's Division of Continuing and Distance Education Financial Aid site. This site has links, descriptions, and 1-800 numbers for a number of programs open to all students and some specific for military veterans.
Good luck with your efforts and let us know how we can help! As our fund-raising campaign kicks off, you'll find additional links throughout our site regarding some of our goals. If you are a member of a business that would like to make a contribution to UWF to support students within the School, please contact Dr. George Stewart, Director of the School of Allied Health and life Sciences at (850) 473-7226 or gstewart@uwf.edu.

How can I receive CME or CEU credits for taking one of your Certificate courses?

Each professional society will handle earning CME or CEU credit for the courses in Certificate programs slightly differently. Here are the general steps to earn CME or CEU credits for a course taken at an accredited university (like UWF!):
1. Contact your professional society and request the form for utilizing a university course for CME/CEU credit. (For physicians interested in earning CME credits, contact the American Medical Association. For nurses seeking CEU credits, contact the Florida Nursing Association.)
   • Confirm the cost of submitting/processing this form (typical costs are around $25-$40).
   • Confirm whether the course must be taken for college credit for you to earn CMEs/CEUs, or if you can take the course through our Continuing and Distance Education Department. (These are the same options indicated above when registering for the course.)
2. Most forms will ask you to attach the following upon completion of the course:
   • University transcript (or Continuing Education Department letter of completion) - these will only be available after you complete the course and your grade has been assigned. At UWF, contact information for obtaining these is as follows:
     • University transcript - You can request this online or by FAX by clicking here.
     • Continuning Education Department letter of completion - Contact Margaret Penton, our advisor in the Division of Continuing and Distance Education at UWF, at (850)-474-2056 or mpenton@uwf.edu. For this option, instead of a transcript, you will receive a letter with UWF's seal indicating completion of the course.
   • Course syllabus - This is provided to you when you take a course.
   • Faculty Biosketch - This is provided to you when you take a course.

Good luck, and if there is any additional information I can add to this section, please forward to Dr. Melanie A. Sutton at (850) 474-2650 or msutton@uwf.edu.