6E-1.003. Definition of Terms

Terms used in these rules are defined in Section 1005.02, F.S. In addition, as used in the rules of the Commission, unless the context clearly indicates otherwise:

(1) “Accredited Foreign Medical Schools” means institutions chartered outside the United States, in a nation whose accreditation standards have been determined by the United States Department of Education to be comparable to the accreditation standards applied to United States medical schools, when the foreign medical school has been inspected and evaluated by the nation’s recognized agent and approved or accredited by its home nation using those comparable standards.

(2) “Additional Locations” means any locations other than auxiliary classroom space that supports a licensed institution.

(3) “Address of Record” means the current mailing address and location of the institution in Florida.

(4) Adequate Clinical Clerkship Library Facilities – Comprehensive resource and information facility sufficient in size, current breadth of holdings and information technology to support its medical education.

(5) Adequate Laboratory Facilities – Industry standard facilities that allow students to engage in scientific research, testing and diagnostic evaluation.

(6) “Advertising” includes any form of public notice, however disseminated or utilized, offering training or education to the public or recruiting students to enroll in a school or college program. The term includes publications and promotional items which may be seen or encountered by prospective students, including catalogs and other institutional publications which contain institutional policies or disclosures; mailing pieces, such as bulletins, brochures, or flyers; classified advertisements; news releases; posters; electronic notices provided through Internet, radio or television; or any other form of public notice resulting from the institution’s recruiting and promotional efforts.

(7) “Applied General Education” means courses directly related and applicable to a specific occupation, fulfilling the general education requirements for an occupational associate degree as described in subparagraph 6E-2.004(4)(n)1., F.A.C., in natural and physical sciences, social and behavioral sciences, language, composition, and humanities and the arts.

(8) “Asynchronous” means that students may access a prepared educational program electronically or by other means, at a time of their own choosing rather than at a specified time.

(9) “Auxiliary Classroom Space” means a location within 10 miles of a licensed school or college, and under its administrative and academic control and included in its licensure; where classes are held as needed to supplement the physical capacity of the licensed institution; and where the licensed institution is not required to maintain ongoing administrative or faculty offices, but has the responsibility of providing all administrative, academic, and student services.

(10) “Board-Certified,” “Board-Eligible,” and “Board Licensed” refer to the appropriate recognition by the State Board of Medicine or other recognized agency which regulates the practice of medicine in the jurisdiction where the foreign medical school operates and where clerkships are offered.

(11) “Change in Control” means any change in the organization of an institution which affects the authority to establish or modify institutional policies, standards, and procedures. A change in control occurs when a person acquires or loses control of an institution or of the parent corporation that owns the institution, whether by means of the sale of the institution, sale of the assets, transfer of the controlling interest of stock, conversion of the institution from nonprofit to for-profit or vice versa, or similar transaction. A change in control does not occur upon the retirement or death of the owner of an institution, if ownership and control passes to a member of the owner’s family or to a person with a pre-existing ownership interest in the institution.

(12) “Chartered” means incorporated according to the requirements of the Florida Department of State, Division of Corporations or similar authority in another jurisdiction.

(13) “Citation” means an instrument which meets the requirements set forth in Section 1005.385, F.S., and which is served upon a licensee, an applicant, or any other subject within the jurisdiction of this Commission, for the purpose of assessing a penalty in an amount established by this rule.

(14) “Clinical Clerkship” means supervised instruction in medical disciplines with an opportunity to observe and to participate in the theory and practice of expert care of patients with a broad spectrum of traumatic conditions, psychiatric disorders, disease, or other human ailments, in order for the students to achieve comprehensive knowledge in medical diagnosis and treatment as part of a course of instruction leading to an M.D. or D.O. degree or the equivalent.

(15) “Clock Hour” means a period of 60 minutes with a minimum of 50 minutes of instruction in the presence of an instructor.

(16) “Collegiate” describes a college or university which is licensed by the Commission to offer degrees as defined in Section 1005.02(7), F.S., or the degree programs offered by such an institution.

(17) “Complete Application” means an application which the Commission staff has reviewed and found to contain all required forms, supporting documentation addressing each standard, all required signatures, and evidence that all appropriate fees have been paid.

(18) “Compressed Time Period” means delivery of required contact clock hours or credit hours in a significantly shorter period than those described in the definitions of “Semester” and “Quarter.”

(19) “Contract Training” means providing a program to a particular employer or entity for a specific length of time, in a specific place, to a specific cohort of students, when all appropriate academic and student services are provided to the cohort, an agreement (memorandum of understanding or contract) is signed with the employer or entity, and the program is not advertised to the general public.

(20) “Core Clinical Clerkship” means initial clinical training required of every medical student, generally taken in the third year of medical school, in such fields as internal medicine, pediatrics, surgery, obstetrics and gynecology, psychiatry, and family medicine.

(21) “Correspondence Learning” means instruction through mail or e-mail requiring the institution to mail a syllabus, texts, lessons, and other materials to the student and to provide adequate educational services, responses, comments, and evaluations in a timely manner to the student.

(22) “Costs” means the amount of money directly related to the investigation and prosecution as determined by the Commission.

(23) “Course” means one organized unit of study focusing on one subject or skill for a specified period of time; for example, English 101, College Math, or Introduction to Computers.

(24) “Credit By Examination” means credit awarded upon determining the level of students’ competencies in a specific subject area through standardized tests or institutionally developed examinations.

(25) “Credit for Prior Learning” means credit for learning acquired outside the licensed institution, that has resulted in a level of knowledge and skills appropriate and comparable to the level and content of the program or credential offered. Such learning must be validated and documented by qualified instructors using consistent, educationally defensible procedures and standards.

(26) “Direct Contact Instruction” means the physical presence of one or more students and one or more instructors at the same physical location. Direct contact instruction includes instruction and learning that takes place in a seminar, workshop, lecture, colloquium, laboratory, or tutorial, in a setting consistent with the stated mission, purposes, and objectives of the institution and the specific program or course. A learning agreement or learning contract should be a central feature of direct contact instruction.

(27) “Distance Education” means planned learning that normally occurs in a different place from teaching and as a result requires special techniques in course design, special instructional techniques, special methods of communication by electronic and other technology, and special organizational and administrative arrangements.

(28) “Distance Learning” is a general term used to cover the broad range of teaching and learning events in which the student is separated (at a distance) from the instructor, or other fellow learners.

(29) “Elective Clinical Clerkship” means additional specialized clinical training, chosen by the medical student from an approved list of electives published by the medical school, generally taken in the fourth year of medical school.

(30) “Emerging Field of Study” means a subject area not yet offered by traditional institutions as a discipline for study leading to a particular credential, but that is deemed worthy of exploration and development.

(31) “Enrollment” means registering a student to take programs or courses at an institution, when such registration obligates the student to pay tuition to the institution and obligates the institution to provide instruction to the student.

(32) “Executive Director” means the chief administrative officer of the Commission.

(33) “Fair consumer practices” means the honest, accurate and equitable conduct of business and academic relations between institutions and their students or prospective students.

(34) “First Professional Degree” means the first degree signifying completion of the minimum academic requirements for practice of a profession. The degree may require four, five, or more academic years, depending on the profession and the particular institution. A first professional degree is most commonly a bachelor’s degree, but may be a master’s or doctoral degree.

(35) “Florida Student” means any student enrolled at a Florida campus of a licensed institution and for distance education, a student whose mailing address for purposes of receiving distance education lessons and materials form the school, is a Florida address.

(36) Foreign Medical School Affiliation Agreement – A signed statement between a teaching hospital and a foreign medical school in which the teaching hospital agrees to make its resources available to a foreign medical school in order for the foreign medical school to offer its educational program at the hospital.

(37) Generally Accepted Accounting Principles (GAAP), effective September 30, 2002, is defined in the Board of Accountancy Rule 61H1-20.007, F.A.C.

(38) “General Education Courses” are those college-level courses designed to place emphasis on principles and theory rather than on practical applications associated with a vocational, occupational, or professional objective. General education courses may include, but are not limited to, English, history, philosophy, literature, religion, art, music, sociology, foreign languages, humanities, mathematics, chemistry, biology, and psychology, when such courses are not within the area of concentration of a vocational, occupational, or professional program. For example, English Composition is considered a general education course, but Business English is not. Courses designated as “applied,” “specialized,” “technical,” or similar designation do not meet this definition.

(39) “Indirect Contact Instruction” means a delivery method which does not require the physical presence of students and instructors at the same location, but provides for interaction between students and instructors by such means as telecommunications, electronic and computer-augmented educational services, correspondence, postal service, and facsimile transmission. Detailed course outlines or comprehensive syllabi are central to indirect contact instruction and learning, along with specified competencies to be mastered, details of interaction and feedback from the instructor, and specified procedures and timetables for evaluation.

(40) “Innovative Method of Instruction” means a new method of instruction not in use by traditional institutions, but one that provides effective and appropriate instruction in a way that ensures delivery, learning, evaluation, and timely communication with students.

(41) “Institution” means any college, university or postsecondary career school under the jurisdiction of the Commission as provided in Chapter 1005, F.S.

(42) “Institutional Accreditation” means accredited status awarded to an institution by an accrediting agency or association that is recognized by the United States Department of Education as an institutional accrediting agency.

(43)“Learning Agreement or Learning Contract” means a document drawn up between the instructor or the institution and the student(s), describing in detail the planned learning experiences that must be completed, the specific competencies to be mastered, and the evaluation methods to be used. An important characteristic of a learning agreement or learning contract is that it may be individualized to fit the needs of the student.

(44) “Main Florida Headquarters” means the location designated by an out-of-state institution as its main administrative and academic center in Florida.

(45) “Media and Computer Assisted Learning” means instruction through electronic information transfer, data processing, facsimile transmission, or through other technology.

(46) “Minor Modification” means a change to programs and curricula intended to keep educational material up to date and relevant to the changing needs of employers, when such modifications affect less than 20% percent of the program or curriculum and do not change the purpose or direction of the program; or providing a previously approved program as contract training.

(47) “Noncollegiate” or “Nondegree” describes a nonpublic career school licensed by the Commission to offer certificate or diploma programs as defined in Section 1005.02(16), F.S., or the certificate or diploma programs below the degree level offered by any institution under the jurisdiction of the Commission.

(48) “Nontraditional Education” means any positive progress toward a credential that is earned through experiential means or distance education and approved by the faculty of the institution granting the credential, or other sources verified by the American Council on Education, or testing from recognized sources such as but not limited to the Defense Activity for Non-traditional Education Support (DANTES), Servicemembers Opportunity Colleges (SOC), or other sources deemed by the Commission to have similar quality controls.

(49) “Occasional Elective Clinical Clerkship” means an elective course which does not exceed 6 weeks in length during the fourth year of medical school. “Occasional” in this context means no more than 3 students from any one unlicensed foreign medical school in any calendar year, with each of the 3 students doing no more than 3 elective clerkships in Florida in any calendar year.

(50) “On-line Courses” means courses taken by electronic means through the Internet or other similar delivery system.

(51) Parent Medical Schools – The licensed foreign medical institution that is offering a clinical clerkship program at the Florida teaching hospital.

(52) “Prelicensure Professional Nursing Program” means a nursing education program that prepares a student for the practice of professional nursing by being qualified to apply for licensure as a Registered Nurse (RN). Examples include: Associate of Science in Nursing (ASN); Bachelor of Science in Nursing (BSN); Licensed Practical Nursing to Associate of Science in Nursing (LPN to ASN); Licensed Practical Nursing to Bachelor of Science in Nursing (LPN to BSN); and Accelerated Bachelor of Science in Nursing (ABSN). The Nursing Assistant, Practical Nursing (PN), and RN to BSN programs are not included within this definition.

(53) “Program” means a prescribed group of courses, taken in the proper sequence to attain mastery of a body of knowledge or set of skills, and leading to a certificate, diploma, or degree.

(54) “Quarter” means at least ten weeks of instruction and learning, or its equivalent as described below.

(55) “Quarter Credit Hour” means either:

(a) A unit consisting of a minimum of ten hours of instruction appropriate to the level of credential sought, during a quarter, plus a reasonable period of time outside of instruction which the institution requires a student to devote to preparation for learning experiences, such as preparation for instruction, study of course material, or completion of educational projects; or

(b) Planned learning experiences equivalent to the learning and preparation described in paragraph 6E-1.003(53)(a), F.A.C., above, as determined by duly qualified instructors responsible for evaluating learning outcomes for the award of credits.

(56) “Semester” means at least fifteen weeks of instruction and learning, or its equivalent as described below.

(57) “Scope of Accreditation” means the range of activities for which an accrediting agency recognizes the institution. This includes any limits on the award of accreditation or range of accreditation; whether the accreditation is institutional; and whether one or more of its programs are programmatically accredited,

(58) “Semester Credit Hour” means either:

(a) A unit consisting of a minimum of fifteen hours of instruction appropriate to the level of credential sought, during a semester, plus a reasonable period of time outside of instruction which the institution requires a student to devote to preparation for learning experiences, such as preparation for instruction, study of course material, or completion of educational projects; or

(b) Planned learning experiences equivalent to the learning and preparation described in paragraph 6E-1.003(55)(a), F.A.C., above, as determined by duly qualified instructors responsible for evaluating learning outcomes for the award of credits.

(59) “Scholarship – a grant-in aid to a student.” The offer of a grant-in-aid to an enrolled student to offset partial or complete costs of a course, program, certificate or degree.

(60) “Substantive Change” means any change of control, level of credentials offered, location, a change in the purpose of the institution that exceeds minor corrections or alterations, financial soundness, or accreditation. A change of location includes any change of location that exceeds 45 miles. A change of accreditation includes change of accrediting agency, lowering the level of accreditation, exceeding the scope of the grant of accreditation or recognition of the agency, or any final action taken by the accrediting agency which places the accreditation of the institution in jeopardy. A substantive change also includes any change which the Commission determines is serious enough to affect the continued operation or stability of the institution, or the quality of the educational programs offered.

(61) “Synchronous” means that students must participate, electronically or by other means, in a distance educational program simultaneously, regardless of time zones.

(62) “Teaching Hospital” means a hospital having a residency program in a medical discipline accredited by the Accreditation Council for Graduate Medical Education or the American Osteopathic Association, or which is part of such a program through an affiliation approved by the Accreditation Council for Graduate Medical Education or the American Osteopathic Association, or which has a written affiliation with an accredited United States Medical School to provide clinical training to its students; or an ambulatory care setting which is affiliated with a teaching hospital or an accredited United States Medical School for clinical teaching purposes.

(63) “Transcript” means the form maintained by an institution on student academic information which minimally shall include the following:

(a) Student name, street address, telephone number, date of birth;

(b) Enrollment date(s);

(c) Graduation date(s);

(d) Required hours for completion;

(e) Grade scale;

(f) Courses taken;

1. Attempted credit or clock hours;

2. Scheduled start date;

3. Dates of course completion;

4. Grades.

(g) Total hours attended; and,

(h) Credit given for courses transferred in from other institutions.

Rulemaking Authority 1005.22(1)(e) FS. Law Implemented 1005.22, 1005.31, 1005.385 FS. History–New 12-5-74, Amended 7-28-75, Formerly 6E-4.01(8), Amended 11-11-75, 3-7-77, 10-13-83, Formerly 6E-1.03, Amended 2-22-89, 11-29-89, 10-19-93, 4-11-00, 1-7-03, 12-23-03, 7-20-04, 3-28-05, 6-13-05, 2-20-06, 7-23-07, 1-11-12, 2-20-24.