Student Complaints and Grievances
Dominican University is committed to thoroughly and promptly addressing student concerns, complaints, and grievances.
Complaints Related to the Protection from Discrimination & Harassment Policy (Title IX/One Process)
For complaints involving bias incidents: including gender based or sexual violence, gender identity discrimination, sexual assault, sexual misconduct, hate crimes, bias motivated offensive conduct, or discrimination against individuals on the basis of physical or mental disability, submit a One Process Bias Report.
Additional questions or concerns can be submitted via the Help Central website.
Academic Appeals Process
As stated in the University Bulletin under Academic Regulations, any disagreement with regard to academic procedure, including individual cases of alleged violation of academic integrity and final grades, should be first taken up with the instructor. If this does not settle the matter satisfactorily, the matter should be taken up with the department chair, if appropriate. If the issue cannot be resolved at the department level, it should then be presented to the dean of the school in which the course was offered. If the issue is still not resolved, the student has the right to present the issue in writing to the committee of that dean’s college or school responsible for overseeing educational.
Complaints Involving Student Conduct
Any member of the faculty, administration, staff, or student body may initiate a discipline proceeding against a student who is exhibiting behavior that is disruptive by filing a charge with the Assessment and Care Team (ACT).
Financial Disputes
Questions or concerns regarding tuition and fees or financial aid can be resolved by contacting Stars Connect. If they are unable to resolve your inquiry, they will connect you with the appropriate campus partner office.
Online/Out-of-State Distance Education Complaint Resolution
Students enrolled in distance learning classes who live outside Illinois are protected by the State Authorization and Reciprocity Act (SARA) consumer protection provisions. These provisions require the investigation and resolution of allegations of dishonest or fraudulent activity, including the provision of false or misleading information. The SARA Student Complaints process and directions are available at https://www.nc-sara.org/student-complaints.
Additional information about externally-validated license or certification requirements by state can be found here: https://www.dom.edu/offices/academic-affairs/state-authorization.
External Resources
If the formal complaint process does not resolve the problem, and the student does not live in California, the student may file a complaint with the Illinois Board of Higher Education. Online students who live in California may file a complaint with the California Department of Consumer Affairs.
Students who have exhausted Dominican University and state options for handing complaints may contact the university’s accreditor, The Higher Learning Commission.
Protection Against Retaliation–Anonymous Reporting Option
To anonymously report fraud, unlawful, unethical and other types of improper behavior there are options to submit a concern online or toll free by phone 24/7. Reporters will be prompted to choose the type of misconduct they are reporting and give as much detail as possible.