[Federal Register Volume 59, Number 11 (Tuesday, January 18, 1994)]
[Unknown Section]
[Page 0]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 94-1119]
[[Page Unknown]]
[Federal Register: January 18, 1994]
_______________________________________________________________________
Part VIII
Department of Education
_______________________________________________________________________
34 CFR Parts 600 and 601
Institutional Eligibility Under the Higher Education Act of 1965;
Eligibility of Foreign Medical Schools Under the Guaranteed Student
Loan Program; Proposed Rule
DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION
34 CFR Parts 600 and 601
RIN 1840-AB88
Institutional Eligibility Under the Higher Education Act of 1965,
As Amended; Eligibility of Foreign Medical Schools Under the Guaranteed
Student Loan Program
AGENCY: Department of Education.
ACTION: Notice of proposed rulemaking.
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SUMMARY: The Secretary proposes to amend the regulations for
Institutional Eligibility under the Higher Education Act of 1965, as
amended (HEA), and the regulations for Eligibility of Foreign Medical
Schools under the Guaranteed Student Loan Program (GSLP) to reflect
changes made to the HEA by the Higher Education Amendments of 1992. The
Secretary proposes to remove the latter regulations from title 34 of
the Code of Regulations, revise them, and add them to the former
regulations, as a new subpart E. The proposed regulations would revise
the procedures and criteria under which a foreign institution
establishes eligibility to apply to participate in the Federal Family
Education Loan (FFEL) programs if the institution is comparable to an
eligible institution of higher education located in the United States.
DATES: Comments must be received on or before March 4, 1994.
ADDRESSES: All comments concerning these proposed regulations should be
addressed to Ms. Joyce R. Coates, U.S. Department of Education, 400
Maryland Avenue, SW., room 4318, Regional Office Building 3,
Washington, DC 20202-5346.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Ms. Joyce R. Coates, Telephone: (202)
708-7888. Individuals who use a telecommunications device for the deaf
(TDD) may call the Federal Information Relay Service (FIRS) at 1-800-
877-8339 between 8 a.m. and 8 p.m., Eastern time, Monday through
Friday.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The Institutional Eligibility regulations
contain requirements that apply to all postsecondary educational
institutions that seek initial or continued eligibility to apply to
participate in the programs authorized by the HEA.
Negotiated Rulemaking
Section 492 of the HEA contains procedural requirements that the
Secretary is to follow in developing proposed regulations required for
changes made by the Higher Education Amendments of 1992 (Pub. L. 102-
325) to parts B, G, and H of title IV of the HEA.
Section 492(a) required the Secretary to convene regional meetings
to gain public input on the content of proposed regulations.
Participants at those meetings were to include individuals and
representatives of the groups involved in the student financial
assistance programs authorized under title IV of the HEA, such as
students, legal assistance organizations that represent students,
institutions of higher education, guaranty agencies, lenders, secondary
markets, loan servicers, guaranty agency servicers, and collection
agencies. During the meetings, the Secretary was to provide for a
comprehensive discussion and exchange of information concerning the
implementation of the amendments made by Public Law 102-325 to parts B,
G, and H, and was to take information received at the meetings into
account in the development of proposed regulations.
Subsequent to the regional meetings, the Secretary was to draft and
submit regulations implementing the amendments made to parts B, G, and
H to a negotiated rulemaking process. Participants in the negotiations
process were to be chosen by the Secretary from individuals nominated
by groups participating in the regional meetings and were to reflect
the diversity and sizes of organizations providing financial aid
services to both local areas and national markets.
In accordance with these requirements, the Secretary convened four
regional meetings to discuss issues raised by the 1992 Amendments to
the Higher Education Act, including the eligibility of foreign
institutions to apply to participate in the FFEL programs. The primary
issues considered in those meetings were: the general criteria needed
for the Secretary to determine the eligibility of institutions outside
the United States, how the Secretary should determine whether a foreign
institution is comparable to an eligible institution of higher
education in the United States, and the appropriate method for
calculating examination ``pass rates'' of students or graduates of
foreign graduate medical schools. (These pass rates are among a number
of statutory requirements for determining the eligibility of foreign
graduate medical schools.)
Meetings were held in New York, New York; San Francisco,
California; Atlanta, Georgia; and Kansas City, Missouri, during the
month of September 1992. Participants in the meetings were invited to
nominate individuals to serve as negotiators in the negotiated
rulemaking sessions.
Taking into account views expressed at the regional meetings, the
Department prepared draft proposed regulations on the 1992 Amendments.
The draft regulations were negotiated during the negotiated rulemaking
sessions. The negotiators reached general agreement on the content of
the draft regulations relating to the eligibility of foreign
institutions to apply to participate in the FFEL programs.
A summary of the significant changes made by these proposed
regulations to current regulations follows.
Summary of Proposed Changes
Proposed Sec. 600.51 (current Sec. 601.1) Purpose and scope. The
Secretary proposes to revise the purpose and scope of proposed subpart
E to remove the provisions that exempt from these regulations medical
schools in Canada or other foreign countries, if those schools are
accredited by a nationally recognized accrediting agency that accredits
medical schools in the United States. This change is necessary because
of the statutory change to section 481 of the HEA that requires every
foreign institution to be subject to all of the applicable criteria for
determining the eligibility of foreign institutions. Accreditation by a
nationally recognized accrediting agency is still among the criteria in
proposed Sec. 600.55(a)(4)(ii) for a public or private nonprofit
foreign medical school to be eligible to apply to participate in the
FFEL programs (see the discussion under that section).
Proposed Sec. 600.52 (current Sec. 601.2) Definitions. This section
would define a foreign institution as one that is not located in a
State, and would revise the definition of a foreign graduate medical
school to require medical schools in Canada to be subject to proposed
subpart E of 34 CFR part 600. These changes reflect statutory changes.
This section also would define a secondary school as one that
provides secondary education under the laws of the country in which the
school is located. This definition is needed for purposes of
establishing compliance with criteria in Sec. 600.54 governing a
foreign institution's admission policies and level of educational
program offered.
Proposed Sec. 600.53 (current Sec. 601.3) Requesting an eligibility
determination. The Secretary proposes to require a foreign institution
to provide, release, or authorize the release to the Secretary of the
information that would be required in this subpart. The failure to
provide that information would render the institution ineligible to
participate in the FFEL programs. These provisions restate the
statutory requirement in section 481(a)(2)(C) of the HEA. With regard
to the provision of performance data that would be required in
Sec. 600.55 on examinations administered by the Educational Commission
for Foreign Medical Graduates (ECFMG), the ECFMG initially informed the
Secretary that it would study the issue. Subsequently, the ECFMG
indicated that it is unwilling to furnish this data directly to the
Secretary. Consequently, the Secretary proposes to require applicant
institutions to furnish the data to enable the Secretary to comply with
the statutory mandate to consider the pass rates on those exams.
The Secretary also proposes to require a foreign institution
seeking initial or continued eligibility to apply for a determination
of that eligibility on a form prescribed by the Secretary, rather than
permitting a student to apply on behalf of the institution, as is
currently the case. This change is necessary because of the statutory
change requiring an institution to furnish applicable information.
However, a student would still be able to inform the Secretary of his
or her desire to seek an FFEL program loan for attendance at a foreign
institution. The Secretary would then contact the institution and
supply the institution with application forms.
Proposed Sec. 600.54 Criteria for determining whether a foreign
institution is eligible to apply to participate in the FFEL programs.
This section would contain the criteria that the Secretary would use to
determine whether a foreign institution is eligible to apply to
participate in the FFEL programs. To be eligible, a foreign institution
would have to admit as regular students only persons who have a
credential for completion of secondary school or the recognized
equivalent of that credential. The institution would have to be legally
authorized to provide a postsecondary educational program. The
institution would have to provide an eligible educational program that
leads to a legally authorized degree equivalent to an associate,
bachelor's, graduate, or professional degree awarded in the United
States, would have to be at least a two-academic-year program
acceptable for full credit toward the equivalent of a bachelor's degree
awarded in the United States, or would have to be equivalent to at
least a one-academic-year training program in the United States that
leads to a certificate, degree, or other recognized educational
credential and prepares students for gainful employment in a recognized
occupation.
Because the criteria of this section would be parallel to those
required of institutions of higher education, the Secretary proposes to
adopt the criteria for purposes of determining that a foreign
institution is comparable to an institution of higher education in the
United States.
Proposed Sec. 600.55 (current Sec. 601.4) Additional criteria for
determining whether a foreign graduate medical school is eligible to
apply to participate in the FFEL programs. The Secretary proposes to
add to the criteria in current Sec. 601.4 a requirement for a foreign
graduate medical school to employ as faculty members only those with
academic credentials equivalent to credentials required of faculty
members teaching the same or similar courses in the United States. The
Secretary considers this requirement necessary for determining the
comparability of foreign graduate medical schools to medical schools in
the United States.
The Secretary proposes to replace the current requirement in
Sec. 601.4(e) concerning the pass rate of students and graduates of
foreign graduate medical schools on ECFMG examinations with new
requirements. The new requirements are mandated by the changes to
section 481(a)(2) of the HEA. Under those statutory changes, for the
year preceding the year in which any of a foreign graduate medical
school's students seeks a loan under the FFEL programs, generally at
least 60 percent of the school's enrolled students and 60 percent of
its graduates must have been neither citizens nor nationals of the
United States nor eligible noncitizens for purposes of the title IV,
HEA programs. Further, for the year preceding the year in which any of
the school's students seeks a loan under the FFEL programs, generally
at least 60 percent of the school's students or graduates taking ECFMG
examinations must have received a passing score on those examinations.
The Secretary, in implementing these requirements, proposes several
clarifications to ensure the statistical accuracy and uniformity of a
foreign graduate medical school's calculations. For purposes of the
calculation concerning the citizenship of the school's students and
graduates, the school would count only those enrolled students who are
full-time regular students. The Secretary believes that it is necessary
to restrict this calculation to full-time regular students to prevent
institutions from enrolling a significant number of part-time students
who are not seeking a degree or certificate in order to obtain the
required percentage. The school would count as graduates only those
from its most recent graduating class during the academic year
preceding the year for which the calculation is performed.
For purposes of the calculation concerning the pass rate of the
school's students and graduates, the school would count all enrolled
students, regardless of their enrollment status or their regular
student status. The Secretary believes that it is appropriate to count
all enrolled students or graduates in the pass rate calculations in
order to obtain a larger sample, thereby ensuring statistical accuracy
and validity. A second reason to include all enrolled students in the
pass rate calculation is that the statute requires the Secretary to
consider the pass rate on the examinations administered by the ECFMG as
a measure of comparability to medical schools located in the United
States. Performance on the examinations administered by the ECFMG
reflects both the quality of the education at the foreign medical
school and the knowledge of the individual student who takes the
examination. Thus, it is appropriate to include the scores of all
students in this calculation to fully reflect the comparability of the
institution and its students and graduates to medical schools located
in the United States. The Secretary also notes that the statute did not
expressly exclude any students from calculation of the pass rate. The
school would count as graduates those persons who graduated from the
school during the three years preceding the year for which the
calculation is performed.
The ECFMG examinations are administered separately in two steps:
Step 1 includes basic medical sciences and Step 2 includes the clinical
sciences. A person may take each step in different years. In addition,
the ECFMG administers an English test for purposes of satisfying the
requirement for demonstrating English language competency to obtain
ECFMG certification. Therefore, the Secretary would require the
school's calculation for any year to include any student or graduate
who took any step of the ECFMG examinations, including the English
test.
Section 481(a)(2) of the HEA exempts from both of the above
calculations a foreign graduate medical school whose clinical program
has been approved by a State as of January 1, 1992. The Secretary would
include this exemption, but would further require the school's clinical
program to maintain current State approval. The Secretary believes that
this additional requirement is necessary to establish that a school
that does not meet the applicable minimum percentages at least has a
clinical program comparable to one provided by an eligible institution
of higher education in the United States.
This section also would require a foreign graduate medical school
to be accredited by an accrediting body legally authorized to evaluate
the quality of graduate medical school educational programs and
facilities in the school's country. The accreditation standards used by
that accrediting body would have to be evaluated by an advisory panel
of medical experts appointed by the Secretary and that panel would have
to determine if those standards are comparable to those used for
accrediting medical schools in the United States. A public or nonprofit
school that is not accredited would have to be accredited by a
nationally recognized accrediting agency designated by the Secretary.
(Currently, the Secretary recognizes the Liaison Committee on Medical
Education for the accreditation of programs leading to the M.D.
degree.) These accreditation requirements are mandated by the changes
to section 481(a)(2) of the HEA.
Proposed Sec. 600.56 (current Secs. 601.6 and 601.7) Duration of
eligibility determination. The Secretary proposes to provide for the
expiration of a foreign institution's eligibility after four years,
unless the Secretary specifies a shorter period of eligibility.
Currently, a foreign institution's eligibility generally expires after
two years. The Secretary proposes this change to allow for treatment of
foreign institutions consistent with that for institutions in the
United States.
The Secretary proposes to provide for the continued eligibility of
a foreign graduate medical school to be contingent upon the school's
annual submission of the information in Sec. 600.55 concerning the
school's enrollment and pass rate on ECFMG examinations. Currently, a
foreign graduate medical school's eligibility is not terminated solely
because of a failure to maintain the specified pass rate. The Secretary
proposes to make this change to conform to changes made by the Higher
Education Amendments of 1992.
The Secretary also proposes to provide for the continued
eligibility of an otherwise eligible student for loans under the FFEL
programs for up to an academic year after the academic year in which a
foreign institution loses eligibility, if the student received an FFEL
program loan for attendance at the institution while the institution
was eligible. This change would merely reflect statutory changes made
by the Higher Education Amendments of 1992.
Current Sec. 601.7 Exception for students who received a GSLP loan
to attend a foreign medical school prior to the publication date of
this subpart. The Secretary proposes to remove this section, which
governed the eligibility of certain students for loans under the FFEL
programs before the publication date of the current regulations
(February 25, 1983). This section is no longer needed.
Regulatory Flexibility Act Certification
The Secretary certifies that these proposed regulations would not
have a significant economic impact on a substantial number of small
entities.
The small entities affected by these regulations are small foreign
institutions. However, the regulations would not have a significant
economic impact on the small institutions affected because the
regulations would not impose excessive regulatory burdens or require
unnecessary Federal supervision. The regulations would impose minimal
burdens necessary to implement statutory requirements.
Paperwork Reduction Act of 1980
Section Sec. 600.53 contains information collection requirements.
As required by the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1980, the Department of
Education will submit a copy of this section to the Office of
Management and Budget (OMB) for its review. (44 U.S.C. 3504(h))
These regulations affect businesses or other for-profit entities
and nonprofit institutions that participate in the FFEL programs. The
Secretary needs to collect this information to enable the Secretary to
enforce the statutory provisions for determining the eligibility of
foreign institutions to apply to participate in the FFEL programs.
Annual public reporting burden for this collection of information
is estimated to average three hours per response for 1,100
institutions, including the time for reviewing instructions, searching
existing data sources, gathering and maintaining the data needed, and
completing and reviewing the collection of information.
Organizations and individuals desiring to submit comments on the
information collection requirements should direct them to the Office of
Information and Regulatory Affairs, OMB, room 3002, New Executive
Office Building, Washington, DC 20503; Attention: Daniel J. Chenok.
Invitation To Comment
Interested persons are invited to submit comments and
recommendations regarding these proposed regulations.
All comments submitted in response to these proposed regulations
will be available for public inspection, during and after the comment
period, in room 4318, Regional Office Building 3, 7th and D Streets,
SW., Washington, DC., between the hours of 8:30 a.m. and 4 p.m., Monday
through Friday of each week except Federal holidays.
Assessment of Educational Impact
The Secretary particularly requests comments on whether the
proposed regulations in this document would require transmission of
information that is being gathered by or is available from any other
agency or authority of the United States.
List of Subjects in 34 CFR Part 600
Administrative practice and procedure, Colleges and universities,
Consumer protection, Education, Grant programs--education, Loan
programs--education, Reporting and recordkeeping requirements, Student
aid.
(Catalog of Federal Domestic Assistance Number does not apply.)
Dated: January 5, 1994.
Richard W. Riley,
Secretary of Education.
The Secretary proposes to amend title 34 of the Code of Federal
Regulations by amending part 600 and by removing part 601 as follows:
PART 600--INSTITUTIONAL ELIGIBILITY UNDER THE HIGHER EDUCATION ACT
OF 1965, AS AMENDED
1. The authority citation for part 600 continues to read as
follows:
Authority: 20 U.S.C. 1082, 1085, 1088, 1094, and 1141, unless
otherwise noted.
2. A new subpart E is added to part 600 to read as follows:
* * * * *
Subpart E--Eligibility of Foreign Institutions To Apply To
Participate in the Federal Family Education Loan (FFEL) Programs
Sec.
600.51 Purpose and scope.
600.52 Definitions.
600.53 Requesting an eligibility determination.
600.54 Criteria for determining whether a foreign institution is
eligible to apply to participate in the FFEL programs.
600.55 Additional criteria for determining whether a foreign
graduate medical school is eligible to apply to participate in the
FFEL programs.
600.56 Duration of eligibility determination.
* * * * *
Subpart E--Eligibility of Foreign Institutions To Apply To
Participate in the Federal Family Education Loan (FFEL) Programs
Sec. 600.51 Purpose and scope.
(a) A foreign institution is eligible to apply to participate in
the Federal Family Education Loan (FFEL) programs if it is comparable
to an eligible institution of higher education located in the United
States and has been approved by the Secretary in accordance with the
provisions of this subpart.
(b) This subpart E contains the procedures and criteria under which
a foreign institution may be deemed eligible to apply to participate in
the FFEL programs.
(c) This subpart E does not include the procedures and criteria by
which a foreign institution that is deemed eligible to apply to
participate in the FFEL programs actually applies for that
participation. Those procedures and criteria are contained in the FFEL
programs regulations, 34 CFR 682.600.
(Authority: 20 U.S.C. 1082, 1088)
Sec. 600.52 Definitions.
The following definitions apply to this subpart E:
Foreign graduate medical school: A foreign institution that
qualifies to be listed in, and is listed as a medical school in, the
most current edition of the World Directory of Medical Schools
published by the World Health Organization (WHO).
Foreign institution: An institution that is not located in a State.
Passing score: The minimum passing score as defined by the
Educational Commission for Foreign Medical Graduates (ECFMG).
Secondary school: A school that provides secondary education as
determined under the laws of the country in which the school is
located.
(Authority: 20 U.S.C. 1082, 1088)
Sec. 600.53 Requesting an eligibility determination.
(a) To be designated as eligible to apply to participate in the
FFEL Program or to continue to be eligible beyond the scheduled
expiration of the institution's current period of eligibility, a
foreign institution must--
(1) Apply on the form prescribed by the Secretary; and
(2) Provide all the information and documentation requested by the
Secretary to make a determination of that eligibility.
(b) The failure of a foreign institution to provide, release, or
authorize release to the Secretary of information that is required in
this subpart E shall render the institution ineligible to apply to
participate in the FFEL programs.
(Authority: 20 U.S.C. 1082, 1088)
Sec. 600.54 Criteria for determining whether a foreign institution is
eligible to apply to participate in the FFEL programs.
The Secretary considers a foreign institution to be comparable to
an eligible institution of higher education in the United States and
eligible to apply to participate in the FFEL programs if the foreign
institution--
(a) Admits as regular students only persons who--
(1) Have a secondary school completion credential; or
(2) Have the recognized equivalent of a secondary school completion
credential;
(b) Is legally authorized by an appropriate authority to provide an
eligible educational program beyond the secondary school level in the
country in which the institution is located; and
(c) Provides an eligible education program--
(1) For which the institution is legally authorized to award a
degree that is equivalent to an associate, baccalaureate, graduate, or
professional degree awarded in the United States;
(2) That is at least a two-academic-year program acceptable for
full credit toward the equivalent of a baccalaureate degree awarded in
the United States; or
(3) That is equivalent to at least a one-academic-year training
program in the United States that leads to a certificate, degree, or
other recognized educational credential and prepares students for
gainful employment in a recognized occupation.
(Authority: 20 U.S.C. 1082, 1088)
Sec. 600.55 Additional criteria for determining whether a foreign
graduate medical school is eligible to apply to participate in the FFEL
programs.
(a) The Secretary considers a foreign graduate medical school to be
eligible to apply to participate in the FFEL programs if, in addition
to satisfying the criteria in Sec. 600.54, the school satisfies all of
the following criteria:
(1) The school provides, and in the normal course requires its
students to complete, a program of clinical and classroom medical
instruction of not less that 32 months in length, that is supervised
closely by members of the school's faculty and that is provided
either--
(i) Outside the United States, in facilities adequately equipped
and staffed to afford students comprehensive clinical and classroom
medical instruction; or
(ii) In the United States, through a training program for foreign
medical students that has been approved by all medical licensing boards
and evaluating bodies whose views are considered relevant by the
Secretary.
(2) The school has graduated classes during each of the two twelve-
month periods immediately preceding the date the Secretary receives the
school's request for an eligibility determination.
(3) The school employs for the program described in paragraph
(a)(1) of this section only faculty members whose academic credentials
are the equivalent of credentials required of faculty members teaching
the same or similar courses at medical schools in the United States.
(4)(i) The school has been approved by an accrediting body--
(A) That is legally authorized to evaluate the quality of graduate
medical school educational programs and facilities in the country where
the school is located; and
(B) Whose standards of accreditation of graduate medical schools--
(1) Have been evaluated by the advisory panel of medical experts
established by the Secretary; and
(2) Have been determined to be comparable to standards of
accreditation applied to medical schools in the United States; or
(ii) The school is a public or private nonprofit educational
institution that satisfies the requirements in Sec. 600.4(a)(5)(i).
(5)(i)(A) During the academic year preceding the year for which any
of the school's students seeks an FFEL program loan, at least 60
percent of those enrolled as full-time regular students in the school
and at least 60 percent of the school's most recent graduating class
were persons who did not meet the citizenship and residency criteria
contained in 34 CFR 668.7(a)(4)(i) through (iii); and
(B) At least 60 percent of the school's students and graduates who
took any step of the examinations administered by the Educational
Commission for Foreign Medical Graduates (ECFMG) (including the ECFMG
English test) in the year preceding the year for which any of the
school's students seeks an FFEL program loan received passing scores on
the exams; or
(ii) The school's clinical training program was approved by a State
as of January 1, 1992, and is currently approved by that State.
(b) In performing the calculation required in paragraph
(a)(5)(i)(B) of this section, a foreign graduate medical school shall
count as a graduate each person who graduated from the school during
the three years preceding the year for which the calculation is
performed.
(Authority: 20 U.S.C. 1082, 1088)
Sec. 600.56 Duration of eligibility determination.
(a) The eligibility of a foreign institution under subpart E
expires four years after the date of the Secretary's determination that
the institution is eligible to apply for participation, except that the
Secretary may specify a shorter period of eligibility. In the case of a
foreign graduate medical school, continued eligibility is dependent
upon annual submission of the data and information required under
Sec. 600.55(a)(5)(i), subject to the terms described in Sec. 600.53(b).
(b) A foreign institution that has been determined eligible loses
its eligibility on the date that the institution no longer meets any
one of the criteria in this subpart E.
(c) Notwithstanding the provisions of 34 CFR 668.25(c)(2), if a
foreign institution loses its eligibility under subpart E of this part,
an otherwise eligible student, continuously enrolled at the institution
before the loss of eligibility, may receive an FFEL program loan for
attendance at that institution for the academic year succeeding the
academic year in which that institution lost its eligibility, if the
student actually received an FFEL program loan for attendance at the
institution for a period during which the institution was eligible
under this subpart E.
(Authority: 20 U.S.C. 1082, 1088, 1099c)
PART 601--ELIGIBILITY OF FOREIGN MEDICAL SCHOOLS UNDER THE
GUARANTEED STUDENT LOAN PROGRAM (GSLP) [REMOVED and RESERVED]
3. Part 601 of title 34 of the Code of Federal Regulations is
removed and reserved.
[FR Doc. 94-1119 Filed 1-14-94; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4000-01-P
