Office of Student Records

The Office of Student Records provides the official academic transcripts for M.D. Program at the Whiddon College of Medicine. Transcripts can only be released with written authorization from the student. Requests for transcripts are processed within two to three business days from the date the request is received. A government issued photo ID is required to pick up a transcript in person. 

To request a transcript, please choose one of the following options.

Transcript Request Form [PDF]

Complete the transcript request form and submit it either via fax or regular mail. If you wish to mail in your request, please include the $15.00 fee (check, money order, or credit card payment, cash is not accepted) for each copy. 

There is no charge for currently enrolled students. Simply complete the transcript request form and return it to the Office of Student Records. 

Parchment - Official Electronic Transcript

The Whiddon College of Medicine has authorized Parchment to provide transcript ordering services. Transcripts may be mailed or sent electronically via Parchment.

The electronic and paper official transcript fee is $15.00 per request. Request will processed within two to three business days. Additional fees will apply to mailed paper transcripts: USPS Domestic $2.75 (five to seven business days), USPS International $5.75 (six to eight weeks). Options are available to expedite your order.  

Visit the Frederick P. Whiddon College of Medicine Parchment storefront to process your request. If you are a first-time visitor, you will be directed to create a personal profile, user ID, and password, which you will use to place future orders. In order to ensure confidentiality and to comply with federal regulations, you will be prompted to complete the Consent to Release form. If a document need to be sent with your official transcript.

Unofficial transcripts

Unofficial transcripts are available to currently enrolled students. Please contact the Office of Student Records for instructions. comstudentrecords@southalabama.edu

Third party Request

Third parties may request a transcript  through Parchment. A signed permission release on official letterhead is required.  

Undergraduate and Graduate Programs Transcript Request

Visit the University of South Alabama Registrars Office page to request a transcript from all other undergraduate and graduate programs. 

Graduate Medical Education Residency Training

Visit USA Health Graduate Medical Education page for instructions on Residency Certificate request. 

The Office of Student Records partnered with Parchment to provide verification services for the Frederick P. Whiddon College of Medicine M.D. Program.

The electronic and paper verification fee is $5.00 per request and will be processed within two to three business days. Additional fees will apply to mail paper verifications: USPS Domestic $2.75 (five to seven business days), USPS International $5.75 (six to eight weeks). Options are available to expedite your order.  

There is no charge for currently enrolled students. Contact the Office of Student Records for details.

Third parties may request a enrollment/degree verification through Parchment. A signed permission release on official letterhead is required. The Office of Student Records does not provide verifications by telephone or email.

Visit the Frederick P. Whiddon College of Medicine Parchment storefront to process your request. If you are a first-time visitor, you will be directed to create a personal profile, user ID, and password, which you will use to place future orders. In order to ensure confidentiality and to comply with federal regulations, you will be prompted to complete the Consent to Release form. If a document need to be sent with your official transcript.

Undergraduate and Graduate Programs Enrollment/Degree Verification

Visit the University of South Alabama Registrars Office page to request a transcript from all other undergraduate and graduate programs. 

Graduate Medical Education Residency Training

Visit USA Health Graduate Medical Education page for instructions on residency and fellowship verification. 

Address Change Form [PDF]

Complete and return the Address Change Form and return it to the Office of Student Records by mail or fax.

Name Change Form [PDF]

Complete the name change form with your signature and return it to the Office of Student Records. Please include a copy of one of the following court generated documents with your request:

Birth Certificate
Marriage Certificate
Court Order/Divorce Decree
Social Security Card
Passport or Visa (Required by international students. Must be original)

Immunization records are maintained by USA Student Health. Medical Students requesting a copy of their immunization records for away rotation will need to make an appoint with USA Student Health, For questions concerning immunization records, contact  USA Student Health at 251-460-7151. 

What is FERPA?
FERPA, the Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act of 1974, is a federal law that pertains to the release of and access to educational records. The law, also known as the Buckley Amendment, applies to all schools that receive funds under an applicable program of the US Department of Education.

To which information does FERPA apply?
FERPA applies to personally identifiable information in educational records. This includes items such as the student's name, names of family members, addresses, personal identifiers such as social security numbers, and personal characteristics or other information that make the student's identity easily traceable.

What are educational records?
An educational record is any record in any medium which is maintained by the University of South Alabama or an agent acting on behalf of USA, and which is directly related to a student and contains personally identifiable information.

Some types of information are not considered education records and are not protected by FERPA. These include:

Campus law enforcement unit records;
Employment records, except for those whose employment at USA is tied to their status as a student;
USA student medical records
USA alumni records

Does FERPA apply to everyone? 
FERPA rights apply to qualifying students. You are a qualifying student if you are currently attending USA, or have attended USA in the past. Applicants to the University or prospective students are not guaranteed rights under FERPA.

What are a student's rights under FERPA? 
Under FERPA, a student has a right to:

• Inspect and review their education records.
• Exert some control over the disclosure of information from their education records.
  Seek the amendment of any of their education records that they believe are inaccurate, misleading, or in violation of privacy rights.
• File a complaint with the U.S. Department of Education's Family Policy Compliance Office.

The University of South Alabama's FERPA policy is published every year in The Lowdown, the USA student handbook. The Lowdown is available from the USA Student Government Association Office, located in the Student Center, room 214.

Do students have a right to see their educational records?
Students have the right to inspect and review their education records. Follow the procedures below.

Students must submit a signed request to the College of Medicine Student Records office specifying which records need to be reviewed. The College of Medicine Associate Registrar will arrange for access to the file and will notify you when and where the inspection may take place. Access will be granted as soon as possible, but no later than 10 days after the request was received in the College of Medicine Student Records Office.

Students are entitled to an explanation of any of the information contained in their file. If you are unsure of something, please ask us.

How do I correct inaccurate information?
You have the right to seek to amend any of your USA education records that you believe to be inaccurate, misleading, or that violates your right to privacy or any other of your rights.

Contact the College of Medicine Student Records Office first. You may need to complete a form specifying which information you believe needs to be amended, and why.
If the College of Medicine Associate Registrar cannot informally resolve the problem, you may request a formal hearing.

If the result of the formal hearing is to deny the request to change the information, you will be given the opportunity to attach a statement of explanation of disagreement, which will remain with that record.

What is directory information? 
FERPA identifies certain information, called directory information, that may be disclosed without the student's permission. The university has designated the following information as directory information:

• Student's name
• Local and permanent addresses
• Photograph
• Major fields of study
• Dates of attendance
• Enrollment status
• Degrees, awards, and honors received, including selection criteria
• Classification
• Participation in officially-recognized activities and sports
• Weight and height, if a member of an athletic team

Who has access to student educational records?
FERPA grants USA the right to disclose information from your education records without your approval to the following:

• University officials with a legitimate educational interest.
• Federal or state agencies, or organizations performing audits or official studies.
• Financial Aid Officers.
• Accrediting Agencies.
• Officials of other institutions in which you seek to enroll.
• Appropriate authorities in an emergency situation.
• Parties to legal actions through subpoenas and/or court orders.

What is legitimate educational interest? 
Legitimate educational interest means that a university official has a justifiable need to view an education record in order to complete his or her job responsibilities, as defined by the university.

Whom should I contact with questions or concerns? 
Direct general questions to the College of Medicine Student Records Office.

What are my rights under FERPA?
Under FERPA, you have a right to

• Inspect and review your education records.
• Exert some control over the disclosure of information from your education records.
• Seek the amendment of any of your education records that you believe to be inaccurate, misleading, or in violation of privacy rights.
• File a complaint with the U.S. Department of Education's Family Policy Compliance Office.

When do FERPA rights begin? 
Your FERPA rights begin when you enroll; that is, when you have registered and paid and classes have begun.

Who can access my educational records? 
FERPA grants USA the right to disclose information from your education records without your approval to the following:

• University officials with a legitimate educational interest.
• Federal or state agencies, or organizations performing audits or official studies.
• Financial Aid Officers.
• Accrediting Agencies.
• Officials of other institutions in which you seek to enroll.
• Appropriate authorities in an emergency situation.
• Parties to legal actions through subpoenas and/or court orders.

How can I restrict access to public or directory information about me?
To prevent this information from being released to third parties, you must complete a "Request to Prevent Disclosure of Directory Information" form in the College of Medicine Student Records Office within the first two weeks of a semester. This request will remain in effect unless changed by you.

Whom should I contact with questions or concerns? 
Direct general questions to the College of Medicine Associate Registrar

Who are the Designated Records Officials within the College of Medicine?

The University has designated the Office of Student Records as the records official for the College of Medicine student academic records and transcripts. The Associate Dean, Student Affairs is the record official responsible for medical student records. 

Who on campus may access student records?

School officials with a legitimate educational interest are granted permission by the Associate Dean, Student Affairs to review a medical student’s file. A school official is defined as a person employed by the University in an administrative, supervisory, academic, research, or support staff position (including law enforcement unit personnel and health staff); a person or company with whom the University has contracted (such as an attorney, auditor, or collection agent); a person serving on the Board of Trustees; or a student serving on an official committee, such as a disciplinary or grievance committee, or assisting another school official in performing his or her tasks.

A school official has a legitimate educational interest if the official needs to review an education record in order to fulfill his or her professional responsibility.  Examples of official needs include IRB approved educational research.  In this case, the Associate Registrar will de-identify the information before providing it to the school official.  In the event that the school official requires information for a specific student, such as to write a letter of recommendation, the student must first contact the Associate Registrar to grant permission for the school official to view his/her records. 

How do I know if a student has signed a Request for Non-disclosure?
When using Banner to access information on a student who has been granted non-disclosure, an alert box will display the message, "Warning: Information about this person is confidential." The user must click "OK" to view the record. The word "Confidential" will appear in the top left-hand corner of every subsequent screen on Banner for that student. Faculty or advisors using PAWS will see the message, "Confidential" on class rosters and degree audits for that student.

The only proper response to inquiries from third parties for any information about such a student must be "Federal Law prevents me from answering this question."

How does FERPA apply to faculty and staff?
Faculty and staff are required by law to handle students' education records in a legally specified manner. The following list should help clarify what is expected.

• Do not post grades by name, Jag Number, or any portion of social security number. The University discourages public posting of grades, even if identity codes are used. The University does not permit the emailing of grades. The College of Medicine Associate Registrar will post final grades on PAWS at the end of the term and students use a secure website to retrieve that information.
• Do lock desks, file cabinets and rooms that contain student records before leaving them unattended.
• Do guard student records on your computer.
• Do not put transcripts, degree audits, grades, etc. in the trashcan. Shred any paper containing personally identifiable information.
• Do not leave graded papers with student names or Jag Numbers on a table for students to collect. You must not allow students access to other students' grades or personal information.
• Do keep your personal professional notes regarding students separate from education records. These "sole possession" notes must be kept private, not accessible by any other person except for a designated substitute.
• Do procure a written release from a student if you are accessing an education record to write a recommendation. If you will make reference to grade point average, or a particular grade in a course, etc., you must have a written release.
• Do not discuss student daily attendance, academic progress, or grades with a student's parent or guardian. Refer all such inquiries to the proper records official.
• Do refer all other third party requests for information from education records to the proper records official.

When in doubt, err on the side of caution and do not release the requested information. Contact the College of Medicine Student Records if you require clarification of any portion of FERPA regulations.

Whom should I contact with questions or concerns?
Direct general questions to the College of Medicine Student Records office.

May I access my child's student records?

At the post-secondary level, parents have no inherent right to access or inspect their son's or daughter's educational records. The right of access is limited solely to the student.

May I view my child's grades, exams, or academic progress?
Final grades, grades on exams, and other information about academic progress are examples of the confidential information that makes up part of a student's educational record. This information is protected under FERPA and parents do not have access to it.

What about crisis or emergency situations?
If nondirectory information is needed to resolve a crisis or emergency situation, an educational institution may release that information if the institution determines that the information is necessary to protect the health or safety of the student or other individuals.

Whom should I contact with questions or concerns? 
Direct general questions to the the College of Medicine Student Records office.