Answers

Question: Who can take FEMA’s Independent Study Courses?

Answer: The primary audience for the Independent Study Program is "national" emergency response and recovery personnel of the United States, as well as emergency management personnel of FEMA, and US residents. You must have a US deliverable postal address to receive printed materials, take the final exams, and/or receive certificates of completion.

Notice to Non-US residents You can access, download and use the course materials on this website. As stated above, we provide printed materials, final exams and certificates TO US RESIDENTS ONLY.

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Question: How to take IS course online?

Answer:

• Proceed to our course list: http://training.fema.gov/EMIWeb/IS/crslist.asp and select your course from the list.
• Review course materials by choosing any one of the options from Hosted Site, EMI learning site or Virtual Campus, Downloadable Materials, if available.
  • For Hosted Site: Click on the REGISTER button. Please make note of the information you used to log in [Email Address and Password] or have it emailed to the account entered on the registration.
  • For Virtual Campus, provide your logon name and password. For first time user, please go over Your first use of Virtual Campus before you proceed.
  • For EMI learning site, there is no logon needed. You may proceed to course materials directly. iMac and Dial-up users are encouraged to use this option.
  • For Downloadable course, you may download self-study materials and print out copies to review.
• After completing the course, be sure to submit your final exam, so you may get full credit for the course. (The link to the final exam questions and answer submission page is found at the end of each course overview page.) You will be enrolled in this course when you submit your final exam answers online.
• If your email was input correctly on the exam, you should receive a confirmation the next business day for the course. Please be sure to add our email address to your contacts/allowed senders list to ensure that our email is not interpreted as SPAM.

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Question: What are the differences between EMI learning site with hosted site and Virtual Campus?

Answer:

They host the same type of course material. We have created a Learning Site make accessing the Independent Study Courses easier. You may now access courses without a username or password. However, it is necessary to enter your demographic information on the exam submission page.

To access this site:

• Proceed to our course list: http://training.fema.gov/EMIWeb/IS/crslist.asp
• Select your course from the list
• Select Option 1 [EMI Learning Site] if available

You may also access our New Learning Site by following this link:   http://emilms.fema.gov/

Your Independent Study record will be updated with each successful exam completion, but this will not be visible from your current on-line progress report.  Confirmation email and certificate processes remain the same.

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Question:Why is SSN required on final exam submission form?

Thank you for your correspondence with the Independent Study Program (ISP) of the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA), which was incorporated into the Department of Homeland Security (DHS).

Our database was built several years ago using the Social Security Number (SSN) as a student identification number.  We are working to modify the database; however the number is necessary to track each student's training progress.  Our Internet exam submission pages are socket layer secured, and all of your information is maintained in a secure government database system.  I hope this explanation helps you understand our motives for requesting the SSN.

If a student has reservations about the use of his or her SSN, but still wishes to participate in our program, we can assign his or her account a tracking number after he or she provides proof of U.S. citizenship (photo copy of a passport, voter's registration card, birth certificate). The downside is the student must then remember and use this unique nine-digit number for all future Independent Study Program transactions, and most higher-learning institutions will not recognize the student's course work for college credit, because the student's SSN is not associated with the course work.

If you want this office to assign your account an alternate student ID number, fax your name, phone number, shipping address, and email address, along with a photocopy of your voter registration card, U.S. passport or birth certificate to: (301) 447-1201, or mail your request to:

EMI - Independent Study Program

16825 South Seton Avenue

Emmitsburg, MD 21727-8998

You must wait to receive your student ID number before you submit your exam. You will then be able to use this nine-digit number in lieu of your SSN. Please be aware that this action can take several weeks.

Please provide an email address, so we can provide your student ID number as quickly as possible.

Thank you for your interest in the Independent Study Program, and good luck with your future studies.

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Question: How can I get college credit for the Independent Study courses I've done?

Answer: Lower division, 100 or 200 level, academic credit is granted by Frederick Community College (FCC). For details, or to download an application, check out 'College Credit' to the left.

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Question: How many military retirement points do I get for your courses?

Answer: We are not a granting authority for Military Reserve Retirement Points. The awarding of points is solely at the discretion of your military branch, but check out the link at the left for more details. Many of our courses have earned military reservists valuable points.

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Question: Can I use my GI bill or military tuition assistance to pay for college credit from FCC?

Answer: As a rule, no. Since you have already completed the course, most GI benefits will not pay the accreditation fee. Please see your education services office for assistance.

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Question: Can I get on a list that will allow me to be automatically enrolled in new IS courses as they come out. If not, how will I know when new courses are released?

Answer: No, we do not provide a waiting list for courses that are not already available. We recommend that you visit the “Our Courses,” page frequently. As new courses become available to the general public they will be posted there.

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Question: How can I pursue a degree in emergency management?

Answer: Visit, training.fema.gov/EMIWeb/edu, and choose "College Courses" from the menu on the left side of the page. There you will find information on schools offering programs under EMI's Higher Education Project.

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Question: When can I receive my certificate?

Answer:

EMI has implemented electronic certificates for all online test submissions. Upon successful completion, you will receive an email within one business day that confirms your transcript has been updated and a link to create your electronic certificate. The certificate will be in a Portable Document Format (PDF) file. You will be able to save and /or print the file. Adobe Reader is required to open the certificate. If you do not have this software, it can be obtained as a free download at http://www.adobe.com. In order to ensure that your transcript accurately reflects your course completions, the Independent Study Office may email you to request additional information. Your attention to these types of requests is important to make certain that your exam submission is processed correctly.

For paper exam test submissions, the exams are scored and certificates or failure letters are mailed within 5 business days.

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Question: My electronic certificate is not working, how do I fix it?

Answer:

If only the first line of the URL is highlighted on your email, your email client is truncating or cutting off part of the URL. The entire URL is between 2 - 5 lines long. You must select reply on your email. At to the end of each line in the link, select delete until the next line attaches to the previous line. Continue to do this until all of the lines are underlined.  Copy and paste the entire link into the address bar of your Internet Explorer.

If this does not correct the problem, please ensure that you are running the latest version of Adobe Reader and Internet Explorer.
The latest version of Adobe Reader is:  Adobe Reader 7.0.7 - Adobe Reader for Windows XP.
The latest version of Internet Explorer is:  Internet Explorer 6.0

If you are not running Windows XP, please be sure that you are running the latest version of Adobe Reader for your operating system.  The latest version is available as a free download directly from Adobe at: http://www.adobe.com/products/acrobat/readstep2.html

Adobe can also work with Internet Explorer 5.5, but it is best to update to 6.0. The latest version of Internet Explorer is available as a free download directly from Microsoft at: http://update.microsoft.com/windowsupdate/v6/default.aspx?ln=en-us

If you are still encountering an error, please contact EMI Independent Study office at Independent.Study@dhs.gov.

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Question: How can I get a transcript of my Independent Study course completions, and what information is included on it?

Answer: Upon submitting a signed IS Transcript Request Form,(See the link in the column at left) a detailed transcript including your personal identification information, course numbers and titles, completion dates, and the number of contact hours and/or applicable Continuing Education Units will be mailed to you, and any institution you specify, usually within 30 days.

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Question: How can I access NETC Virtual Campus course materials and take final exam on Independent Study web site if I am using Mac computer?

Answer:

MAC OS users will need to use Safari browser to take final exam on Independent Study web site(IS course online answer sheets use secure https). You may download the browser at: http://www.apple.com/macosx/features/safari/

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Question: Where can I look for help on how to use NETC Virtual Campus?

Answer: If you need help on the use of the NETC Virtual Campus, you can contact the Help Desk by phone at (301) 447-7211 or e-mail the NETC Virtual Campus Webmaster. The help desk is available MONDAY - FRIDAY, 8:00 AM to 5:00 PM (Eastern Time). You may call and leave a voice mail message at all other times. Voice mail messages and e-mails will be responded to as soon as possible.

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Question: Why do I receive "Error Code: 165" when I submit my final exam online?

Answer: You got this message because you have entered an invalid email address.

Please verify your input before you submit the form. Some common user errors are:

• There is a space before, during and after the email address you provided
• Put a "." at the end of the email address
• Put "Independent.Study@dhs.gov" instead of student's own email address
• Other invalid formats or domain in the email address

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Question: What should I do if I have problems downloading materials or submitting my online answer sheet?

Answer: Please follow the steps to clear up temporary internet files (also referred to as cache) on your computer.

For Internet Explorer (IE) user:

1. On the Internet Explorer Tools menu (located on the top of the browser) , click Internet Options. The Internet Options box should open to the General tab.

2. On the General tab, in the Temporary Internet Files section, click the Delete Files button. This will delete all the files that are currently stored in your cache. On the General tab, in the Temporary Internet Files section, click the Settings button. This will open the Settings box, Choose "Every Visit to the Page".

3. Click OK, and then click OK/Apply to apply the change.

4. Refresh your page and try to access the link again.

For Netscape user:

1. On the Netscape Tools menu (located on top of the browser), click on Options. The Option box should open.

2. Choose "Privacy" in the Option box to the left, select "Cache" or click on "+" icon to expand, click on "Clear" button to delete temporary internet files.

3. Click OK and refresh the page, try to access the link again.

If problem still exists, please send email to trainwebmaster@dhs.gov with a detailed error description.

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Question: Why does my computer lock up or Next button grayed out when I take courses online?

Answer: locking up problem most likely is related to your PC settings. Please make sure ALL of your Pop-up blocker programs are Disabled when you take EMI courses online.

For example, if you are using PC with Internet Explorer, please follow the steps below and see if it helps,

1. Clear up temporary internet files.

Open your IE browser, go to "Tools" and click "Internet Option", under "General" tab, in the middle, there are 3 buttons, the 1st one is to "delete cookies", 2nd "delete files", click each of them to free up disk space. For 3rd one, the "settings", make sure it is chosen "Every Visit to the Page".

Click ok to apply changes. And refresh your browser.

2. Make sure ALL of your POP-Up blocker programs are turned off.

You will need to disable all pop-up blockers when taking FEMA EMI online courses.

Pop-up blockers are difficult to locate because they are packaged with other things:

* Toolbars (Yahoo companion, Google toolbar) > click icon and disable

* Internet Explorer (Windows XP SP2) > Tools, Popup blocker Off

* Internet Service Providers (AOL, Earthlink, MSN) > located pop-up

block properties and disable

* Antivirus or Firewall > right click on the icon in system tray

[bottom right to the left of the clock] right click and deselect pop-up blocker or ad blocking.

* Programs (Ad Swatters or Pop-up Stoppers) > Click Start, Control Panel, Add/Remove programs, and remove the ones you find.

Then refresh your browser and try again.

Please make sure you submit your final exam online for credits after you complete this course review.

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Question: How to download final exam questions if I am using Windows XP?

Answer: Please ensure that you are running the latest version of Adobe Reader -

Adobe Reader 7.0.7 - Adobe Reader for Windows XP . 

If you are not running XP, please be sure that you are running the latest version of Adobe Reader for your operating system.

The latest version is available as a free download directly from Adobe by following the link below.

http://www.adobe.com/products/acrobat/readstep2.html

After you have verified that you are running the most current version of Adobe Reader please follow the directions below.

Start at our Course List:  http://www.training.fema.gov/emiweb/is/crslist.asp

It would be best to add the link to our course list to your favorites by following the link,  then select “Favorites”, followed by  “Add to Favorites”, then select “OK”.

Right mouse click on "Download Final Exam Questions", select "Save Target As".  A window will open, Select the folder that you wish to save the file to; i.e. "My Documents", select "Save" from the bottom right hand side.  Open the folder to which you saved the document; i.e. "My Documents", once you found the file, double click it to view the information in Adobe Reader.

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Question: Where to get IS-22 Getting Ready for Disaster DVD?

Answer: Please click on this link for streaming video files published on FEMA web site. The DVD can only be obtained via the FEMA Pubs warehouse by ordering the facilitators guide. Independent Study office doesn't have it.

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Question: How do I report improper conduct or cheating on IS tests?

Answer: FEMA's Emergency Management Institute (EMI) is committed to making its independent study courses available to our nation's emergency management network. As part of that effort, course materials are made available for organizations to download and use in local training efforts. These materials contain the course exam, but do not contain answer keys.

From time to time, EMI receives reports of organizations providing exam answers so that individuals can go online and pass the exam without completing the required coursework. Organizations are encouraged to institute procedures to ensure that students completing exams for EMI's independent study courses are doing so on their own efforts.

Individuals within an organization who feel that test answers are being improperly provided should follow that organization's procedures for reporting unethical conduct.

In accordance with NETC Instruction 1100.1, if a student is found to have cheated on an exam, the penalty may include--but is not limited to--expulsion; foreclosure from future classes for a specified period; forfeiture of certificate for course/courses enrolled in at NETC or NTC; or all of the above. A letter notifying the student’s sponsor of the individual's misconduct will be sent by the appropriate official at NETC. Upon written request by the individual’s sponsor, information from and/or copies of the statements from the individual and witnesses, police reports, and NETC or NTC security reports may be made available to the individual’s sponsor for the purpose of determining if disciplinary action is appropriate by the sponsoring organization. For more information on Conduct on the NETC and NTC Campus please see access this link.

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Question: Why does not the video closed captioning display properly on my screen?

Answer: Please verify your flash player version and upgrade to the latest version from Adobe website. Please follow the detailed instructions to install this free plug-in on your computer on Adobe web site.

The following courses with closed captioning video will require the latest flash player to be installed:

• IS-701
• IS-702
• IS-800.A
• IS-860
• IS-1900

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