Acceptable Use Policy

Accreditation and Authorizations

The College is authorized by the Pennsylvania Department of Education to award Associate, Bachelor's and Master's degrees.

Peirce College is accredited institution and a member of the Middle States Commission on Higher Education (MSCHE) www.msche.org. The College’s accreditation status is Accreditation Reaffirmed. The Commission’s most recent action on the institution’s accreditation status on March 10, 2022 was to reaffirm accreditation.

For details of the College's accreditations, approvals, and alignments, visit our Accreditation and Authorizations page.

To review any documents regarding accreditation, approval or licensing, please contact the Vice-President, Academic Affairs & Provost.

Alcohol and Drugs

Peirce complies with all federal, state and local laws which prohibit the use, possession and sale of illegal drugs. The College neither condones nor shields from prosecution students, faculty, staff or visitors found in violation. Peirce College prohibits its students and employees from using, possessing, manufacturing, selling, distributing or dispensing illegal drugs while on the premises of the College and while off campus participating in any College-sponsored activity or event. Peirce College complies with all federal, state and local laws which regulate the sale, possession and use of alcohol while on the premises of the College and while off campus participating in any College-sponsored activity or event.

Please visit the Alcohol and Drugs Policy page for complete information.

Alumni Graduate Education Information

Interested in what schools our graduates attend for graduate school? View our Graduate and Professional Education statistics for more.

Articulation Agreements with Higher Education Institutions

Learn what schools Peirce has articulation agreements with, including high schools, community colleges and graduate schools.

Attendance and Participation Policy

For information on the Peirce College Attendance and Participation Policy, click here.

Bookstore

The Peirce College Online Store offers students a high-capacity electronic commerce system over the Internet employing the latest Internet security technology. You can purchase textbooks and related course materials, track previous orders, sell your old textbooks and much more.

Career Services

Learn how Peirce can help prepare you for your future career with our Center for Career and Professional Development.

CARES Act Funding and Reporting

On March 27, 2020, the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security (CARES) Act was signed into law. This stimulus bill included financial provisions for higher education institutions and their students to offset costs incurred by the COVID-19 pandemic and subsequent closures.

To access and distribute these funds, on May 22, 2020, Peirce signed and returned a Certification and Agreement to the U.S. Department of Education that states that the College will use 50 percent or more of this funding under Section 18004(a)(1) to provide emergency financial aid grants to students. Click here to view additional information regarding Peirce’s plan for student fund distribution.

Reporting for the Institutional Aid portion of the allocated emergency funds can be found here

Cohort Default Rate (CDR)

Please view the federally published Peirce College student loan Cohort Default Rate (CDR) including the percentage of its students who borrow by clicking here. This information is also published at College Navigator Peirce College will update this information annually  and in the event our CDR exceeds the National Average.

Complaint Process

For information on the Peirce College complaint process, as well as links to state and accreditation complaints, please click here.

Copyright Infringement

Copyright infringement is the act of exercising, without permission or legal authority, one or more of the exclusive rights granted to the copyright owner under section 106 of the Copyright Act (Title 17 of the United States Code). These rights include the right to reproduce or distribute a copyrighted work. In the file-sharing context, downloading or uploading substantial parts of a copyrighted work without authority constitutes an infringement.

Please visit the Copyright Infringement page for complete information.

Costs of Attending

The Tuition & Financial Aid section of this site presents a thorough, detailed overview of the costs associated with attending Peirce College, including:

• Tuition and fees, books and supplies and applicable transportation
• Refunds and repayment policies

Credit Hour Equivalency Policy

For information on the Peirce College Credit Hour Equivalency Policy, click here.

Degree Programs and Catalogs

Access the current Peirce College catalogs containing summaries of campus facilities, programs and services; description of the college, departments, major programs of study, degree requirements, course descriptions and faculty listings.

Disability Services

Peirce College will make reasonable accommodations for persons with documented disabilities. Students should notify the Facilitator, Perkins Grant/Student Disability Services Coordinator (located in the Walker Center) and their instructors of any accommodation needs as soon as possible. The Disability Coordinator can be reached at wcae@peirce.edu or 215.670.9094.

Emergency Response and Evacuation Procedures

Peirce College values the safety of its students, faculty, administration and staff. In the event of an emergency, Peirce College will respond immediately and appropriately by using timely warning, lockdown, shelter in place and/or evacuation procedures as described below. Under the direction of campus security and/or other designated College personnel, such as the Chief Auxiliary Services Officer, emergency response procedures will be enacted. In the event that emergency procedures are enacted, the College will provide timely and ongoing updates to the College community as appropriate.

Please visit the Emergency Response and Evacuation Procedures page for complete information.

Equal Opportunity

Peirce College is an Equal Opportunity Institution. The College is committed to ensuring equal opportunity in all employment decisions, policies and practices and in connection with all educational programs and activities (including but not limited to recruitment, admissions, access to programs and course offerings, counseling, financial aid and scholarships, employment, use of facilities and College-sponsored extracurricular activities).

Please visit the Equal Opportunity page for complete information.

The Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act (FERPA)

The Peirce College Family Educational Rights and Privacy policy explains your rights with respect to your education records at Peirce College. Peirce College complies fully with the Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act of 1974, as amended (FERPA) and makes public notification of the law. This "official notice" is incorporated into the Peirce College Catalog and is available in the Center for Enrollment Services, the Library, the Walker Center for Academic Excellence and the security desks.

See also: The U.S. Department of Education, Family Policy Compliance Office and General Guidance for Students here.

Graduation Rates and Retention

The overall “Student Right to Know”, or IPEDS graduation rate, tracks the progress of students who began their studies as full-time, first-time degree- or certificate-seeking students. At Peirce College, only 2 percent of entering students were counted as "full-time, first-time" in 2022.  College Navigator – Peirce College - Retention and Graduation Rates

Alternative measures of student success describing the outcomes of degree/certificate-seeking undergraduate students who are not only first-time, full-time students, but also part-time attending and non-first-time (transfer-in) students can be viewed at College Navigator – Peirce College – Outcomes.

Hazing

Peirce College has no tolerance for hazing. Hazing is any activity expected of someone joining or participating in a group, whether on campus or off campus, that humiliates, degrades, abuses, or endangers them mentally or physically regardless of a person’s willingness to participate. Hazing is a violation of Pennsylvania law. Zero (0) violations of Peirce College’s Anti-Hazing Policy have been reported over the last five (5) years.

View the complete Peirce College Anti-Hazing Policy and Report for more information.

Leave of Absence Policy

For information on the Peirce College Leave of Absence Policy, click here.

Nondiscrimination

Peirce College is an Equal Opportunity Institution. The College is committed to ensuring equal opportunity in all educational programs and activities (including but not limited to recruitment, admissions, access to programs and course offerings, counseling, financial aid and scholarships, employment, use of facilities and College-sponsored extracurricular activities).

Read the College's full Annual Public Notice of Nondiscrimination here.

Professional Licensure

Requirements for professional licensure in fields such as accounting and social work vary from state to state. Students and graduates exploring licensed career paths should familiarize themselves with the requirements of the states where they reside and/or wish to practice. For information on career paths and licensure pertinent to Peirce College programs, please click here.

Return of Title IV Funds Policy

For information on the Peirce College Return of Title IV Funds Policy, click here.

Satisfactory Academic Progress (SAP) Policy

For information on the Peirce College Satisfactory Academic Progress (SAP) Policy, click here.

Security and Safety Services

This page provides the information necessary to comply with the Campus Security Act of 1990 including the Jeanne Cleary Disclosure of Campus Security Policy and Campus Crime Statistics Act and includes:

• The Annual Security Services Report, which is submitted to the U.S. Department of Education and the Pennsylvania State Police.
• Types and locations, on and off campus, of crimes for the past three years
• Policy regarding procedures for reporting crimes
• Policy concerning security of and access to campus facilities
• Policy concerning sexual violence (awareness, prevention and response)
• Policy concerning campus law enforcement
• Types of security and crime prevention programs offered:
  • Emergency Telephone Number
  • Identification Cards
  • Safety Tips
• Policy concerning the monitoring of criminal activity at off-campus locations Policy concerning the use, sale and distribution of alcohol and illegal drugs
• Description of drug and alcohol abuse and sexual assault programs

Sex Offender Registration

Students and employees of Peirce College seeking law enforcement agency information concerning registered sex offenders can visit the Megan's Law website, an online listing established by the Pennsylvania State Police to provide timely information to the public on Sexually Violent Predators residing in the Commonwealth.

Students and employees may also refer to sex offender registries for Delaware and New Jersey.

Solomon Amendment

The Solomon Amendment is a federal law that allows military recruiters to access some address, biographical and academic program information on students age 17 and older. The Department of Education has determined the Solomon Amendment supersedes most elements of FERPA. Solomon is based on the definition of “Student Recruitment Information.”

Definition - "Student Recruitment Information" or "Solomon Information"

1. Student name
2. Address
3. Telephone
4. Email address
5. Date and place of birth
6. Photograph
7. Major field of study
8. Dates of attendance
9. Level of education
10. Degrees, honors, and awards received
11. The most recent previous educational agency or institution attended

Procedure for releasing information to military recruiter:

1. Under the Solomon amendment, information will be released for military recruitment purposes only. The military recruiters may request student recruitment information once each term or semester for each of the 12 eligible units within the five branches of the service:
a. Army: Army, Army Reserve, Army National Guard
& b. Navy: Navy, Navy Reserve
c. Marine Corps: Marine Corps, Marine Corps Reserve
& d. Air Force: Air Force, Air Force Reserve, Air Force National Guard
& e. Coast Guard: Coast Guard, Coast Guard Reserve
2. The request should be submitted in writing on letterhead or via an official email address, clearly identifying the unit of service requesting the student recruitment information.
3. The request should specify whether the information needed is for the current or previous semester.

Student Achievement and Assessment

In order for students to make informed decisions about attending college, Peirce College shares information on student and graduate achievement.

Student Body Diversity

Peirce’s student body is a diverse group of students from all ages and backgrounds. For detailed information on diversity relating to Federal Pell Grants, please click here.

Student Lending Code of Conduct

Peirce College is committed to providing students and their families with the best information and processing alternatives available regarding student borrowing. In support of this and in an effort to rule out any perceived or actual conflict of interest between Peirce College officers, employees or agents and education loan lenders, Peirce College has adopted the following policy.

Student Refunds

View the College's Student Refund Policy here.

Title IX Policy

PEIRCE COLLEGE does not discriminate in its employment practices or in its educational programs or activities on the basis of sex. Peirce College also prohibits retaliation against any person opposing discrimination or participating in any discrimination investigation or complaint process internally or externally. Reports of misconduct, questions regarding Title IX, and concerns about noncompliance should be directed to the Title IX Coordinator. For a complete copy of the policy or for more information, please contact the Title IX Coordinator or the Assistant Secretary of Education within the Office for Civil Rights (OCR) https://www2.ed.gov/about/offices/list/ocr/contactus2.html. Please see the College’s Title IX policy for additional information including the College's Grievance Procedure.

Please visit the Title IX policy page for complete information and to view Peirce College Title IX Policy.

Transfer Credit Policy

Peirce welcomes students who wish to transfer credits from other institutions. Learn about the College’s criteria for transfer credits here and view the Transfer Credit Policy here.

Vaccination Policy

For information on the Peirce College Vaccination Policy, click here.

Voter Registration

In order to vote in a local, state or national election in Pennsylvania, you must register to vote. The Department of State administers voter registration for the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania. Information about how to register to vote can be found by clicking on the link Voter Registration Information.