PURPOSE
This policy is designed to protect the Greenville Technical College community of health care consumers from services provided by students who have documented illegal and unethical behaviors. These requirements also enable programs within the School of Health Sciences to comply with the clinical/externship affiliation agreements.
POLICY
Some programs in the School of Health Sciences require an acceptable criminal background check in accordance with the guidelines below. Students are responsible for the cost of pre-admission and any additional required background checks.
PROCEDURE
- A multi-state record check will be conducted for all students for at least seven years prior to admission.
- Upon acceptance into a program, students will receive instruction forms in their college email account. Students are required to complete the online registration in its entirety. Failure to comply with instructions or meet the completion deadlines may affect the student’s ability to begin the program.
- Convictions, pleas of guilty, pleas of nolo contendere (no contest), or possibly any pending criminal charges within the past seven years may prevent the student from meeting CBC requirements. Additionally, regardless of the timeframe, convictions involving violence against a person--including but not limited to murder, manslaughter, use of deadly force, assault and battery (other than simple), sex crimes, abuse, neglect, mistreatment and/or abandonment of children and/or the elderly, abduction, robbery or crimes involving cruelty to animals--may prohibit a student from enrolling in or progressing within a program.
- Students listed on a Sex Offender Registry are not permitted to participate in clinical/externship experiences and will be unable to progress in the program, regardless of whether the offense appears on the CBC or falls outside standard review timeframes.
- If results document a criminal record, they may be submitted to the school’s primary clinical facility for review to determine whether the student will be permitted to participate in clinical experiences. The clinical facility will provide written notification to the school regarding approval or denial. The school will apply this determination to all clinical sites unless additional review is required due to more stringent standards. Students must meet the requirements of all clinical/externship sites affiliated with their program. Programs that do not participate in hospital based clinical rotations will rely on professional regulations and standards for CBC review.
- Background check results of currently enrolled students may be shared with clinical/externship agencies upon request, and some agencies require submission prior to the start of clinical/externship rotations.
- Approval by a clinical/externship site does not guarantee eligibility for certification or licensure. Students are responsible for verifying eligibility with the appropriate licensing or certification board prior to program enrollment and throughout the program.
- Convictions eligible for expungement should be addressed prior to applying to a program and are generally preferable to pardons. Pardons do not remove convictions from a criminal record and are not accepted by all facilities, which may prevent program entry or progression.
- The school will notify any student with an unacceptable CBC of their status and available options.
- Each student must report any new arrests, criminal charges, or convictions within three business days to the Academic Program Director and the Assistant Dean for Compliance & Student Affairs. Failure to report may result in administrative withdrawal from the program.
- Students who change programs or who are not enrolled for at least 12 months may be required to complete a new CBC upon re-entry.
- If a clinical/externship agency refuses to allow a student to participate in clinical/externship experiences, the student will be unable to progress in the program and may be dismissed.