STUDENT COMPLAINTS

Procedures for student complaints against the College have been set forth in writing by the Board of Regents and are included in the Policy Manual.  The Vice President of Student Development is responsible for coordinating the processing of student complaints.

College Wide Policy

A student complaint and appeals policy, applicable to all students of Del Mar College, is used to provide reasonable assurance that all practices and actions are relevant, reasonable and applied in a nondiscriminatory manner.  A grievance is defined as “a student’s disagreement with the application of a specific College rule and/or policy” (Del Mar College Manual of Policies and Procedures, source online).  A complaint is defined as a student’s disagreement with specific practices of a particular department or division (non-established College policy).  Procedures for student complaints against the College and complaints against a department have been set forth in writing by the Board of Regents and are included in the Policy Manual.  The proper forms and more specific information may be obtained from the Office of the Vice President of Student Development. (Del Mar College Catalog)

Departmental Policy

The departmental complaintpolicy is designed to support the college wide policy as an auxiliary avenue to handle complaintsefficiently at the level closest to the problem and to maintain a problem-solving environment.  A student’s complaint(nonacademic or academic) that originates through the Nursing Education Department must adhere to the following procedure:

  1. The formal or informal complaint must first be presented to the source of the problem for discussion, consideration and resolution. As an example, in the case of a complaint about an instructor, each point of complaint must first be aired with that instructor before the rest of the process may be followed.
  2. If the complaint is not satisfactorily resolved at the first level of contact, the complaint may be presented in writing to the Course and/or Level Coordinator.
  3. If the complaint is not satisfactorily resolved at that level, the complaint may be presented in writing to the Department Chairperson or their designee. 

Revised Fall, 2007