2020-2021 Graduate/Doctorate Catalog w/ Sept Addendum 
    
    Mar 28, 2024  
2020-2021 Graduate/Doctorate Catalog w/ Sept Addendum [ARCHIVED CATALOG]

Student Services



Overview

The Office of Student Services provides educational, personal, and professional support to promote student development and success. The Office of Student Services, in collaboration with other staff and faculty, enhances the mission of the University by providing an inclusive campus community, promoting leadership opportunities and providing resources and programming to facility academic success.

New Student Orientation

Orientation sessions precede each semester in order for the student to become familiar with the University, technology services, campus policies and procedures. A new student entering the University will receive information from various functional areas during the enrollment process on the availability and delivery method of orientation content.

Student Housing

Harrisburg University does not own housing facilities. The Office of Student Services can assist the student to find housing with the University’s local Harrisburg partners.

Student Parking

Park UP Harrisburg (parkHarrisburg.com) operates the parking facilities in Harrisburg. Prices vary by facility. Check the website for specifics.

Tutoring and Learning Services 

A student may request the assistance of a tutor for writing or ESL support. The Office of Student Services offers free one-on-one tutoring for all HU students. A student can choose to meet with a peer tutor in-person or on-line. In addition, HU also offers free access to tutoring services 24 hours a day, 7 days a week through Smarthinking.  Access Smarthinking through any of your course pages on Canvas. Due to the rigors of an advanced degree, tutors are only able to provide writing support, not subject-specific assistance.

Student Concerns and Complaints

The Office of Student Services offers guidance to the student when uncertainty exists about the appropriate process to address a topic, concern, or problem. A request for assistance may be submitted to obtain clarification of a policy or procedure. The request is then reviewed and a recommended course of action is provided in a timely manner.

Health Services

Medical services are not provided on any campus location. Local medical facilities are listed on the Student Services SharePoint site at https://myharrisburgu.sharepoint.com/sites/StudentServices/SitePages/Resources.aspx

Mental Health Services

For students in the Harrisburg area that can commute to campus and reside in Pennsylvania, short-term mental health services are available. Students should contact counseling@harrisburgu.edu

For students that do not reside in Pennsylvania or in a commutable distance to the physical campus, students may contact counseling@harrisburgu.edu for referral services in the student’s location. More information can be found at the Student Services Sharepoint site: https://myharrisburgu.sharepoint.com/sites/SSCounseling/Sitepages/counseling.aspx.
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HU also provides 24/7 support for graduate students through a Student Assistance Program offered by BHS. BHS provides in-the-moment support for students in crisis or referrals for various services such as mental health care, medical care, legal advice, and food assistance. The BHS website also has a list of valuable resources. For more information, go to the Student Services Sharepont site: https://myharrisburgu.sharepoint.com/sites/SSCounseling/Sitepages/counseling.aspx.

Accessibility Support Services

Harrisburg University of Science and Technology welcomes diversity among its students and, in accordance to the Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990, seeks to provide reasonable and effective support services. The Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990 and Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973 prohibit discrimination on the basis of disability and require the University to make reasonable accommodations for those otherwise qualified individuals with a disability who request accommodations. The applicant must provide recent documentation (within 3 years) of any disability that may affect learning to ensure that appropriate accommodations are considered. Please reach out to ADA@harrisburgu.edu for questions regarding proper documentation as well as support services provided.

Textbook Services

Textbooks are made available at the time of registration for student purchase through the services of MBS Direct, which has an online store at http://bookstore.mbsdirect.net/harrisburgu.htm for new and used textbook purchase or rentals. A complete textbook listing is available on MBS Direct. Textbooks and other supplies (if specified for a course) must be obtained by the student prior to the first day of class.

Additional online textbook purchase and rental options are available through companies such as Amazon. Book retailers carry a small selection of texts but also have the ability to process online textbooks orders.

University Library

The mission of the Harrisburg University Library is to support the mission of the University by enabling excellence in teaching and learning by providing robust access to information resources, integrating information literacy skills throughout the curriculum, and providing physical and virtual spaces for free intellectual curiosity, learning, collaboration, and knowledge sharing and creation. Library services include:

  • collaboration between librarians and faculty to integrate information literacy skill development and use of information resources into the curriculum;
  • access to a wide range of information sources selected to enhance course-based and independent learning, such as
    • online databases of articles from newspapers, magazines, and scholarly journals; 
    • streaming multimedia such as documentaries and video learning courses; 
    • electronic books; and 
    • a self-service library located in the Learning Commons offering physical-format books, games, and periodicals;
  • research guidance for students by phone, e-mail, chat, or in-person consultation;
  • partnerships with other libraries to provide access to their information sources, free of charge to our students and faculty; and
  • group study rooms which may be reserved in advance through a librarian.

For more information including reporting of lost or damaged items and replacement charges see the Student Handbook.

For more information, visit the library’s website at https://library.harrisburgu.edu. Electronic content is available on the website 24 hours a day from on- or off-campus. Off-campus use requires authentication with valid University credentials.

Technology Services

Information Technology Services is responsible for connecting the student, faculty, and staff to technology resources in support of the University’s mission. Technology services include:

  • a robust and reliable infrastructure to enable excellence in learning;
  • a required laptop program and an entirely wireless campus to facilitate mobile computing and access to content;
  • high-end classroom technologies to enhance interactivity and the capture and distribution of classroom content;
  • access to enterprise software applications such as our course management system;
  • MyHU; Office365 email and productivity suite; and many other course-related software programs; 
  • the Harrisburg University Campus Card services which enables building access, pay-for-print, and book check-out from the library while serving primarily as the official university identification; and, 
  • training, orientation, and support for all university technology services.

For more information, contact the OISHelp Support Portal or 717.901.5177 with questions.

Academic Advising

Academic advising can be a critical component of a student’s education. Every graduate student is assigned to an academic advisor who is a faculty member. The advisor helps the student explore academic goals and assists in course selection for the academic program. The Office of Student Services supports the faculty role in advising. In addition, it assists the student to access resources and develop strategies when non-academic factors affect a student’s ability to succeed.

Career Services

The student obtains career counseling from the academic advisor, the Office of Experiential Programs, and the Office of Workforce Development. The following services can be obtained by enrolled students and alumni: one-on-one career counseling, assessment inventories, program, and career exploration, professional development resources, mock interviews, and resume review. For more information, contact CareerServices@HarrisburgU.edu.