UNDERGRADUATE
CURRICULUM COMMITTEE POLICIES
Revised August 2001
SELECT MISSION OF THE UNIVERSITY OF WISCONSIN-LA CROSSE
In
addition to the System and Core Missions, the University of Wisconsin-La Crosse
has the following select mission:
The primary purpose of
the University of Wisconsin-la Crosse is to provide education leading to
baccalaureate and selected graduate degrees supplemented by appropriate research
and public service activities as further detailed in the following set of goals:
a.
The University shall emphasize excellence in education programs and
teaching.
b.
The University shall provide a broad base of liberal education as a
foundation for the intellectual, cultural, and professional development of the
students.
c.
The University shall offer undergraduate programs and degrees in the
arts, letters and sciences; health and human services; education; health,
physical education, and recreation; and business administration.
d.
The University shall offer graduate programs and degrees related to areas
of emphasis and strength within the institution.
e.
The University expects scholarly activity, including research,
scholarship and creative endeavor, that supports its programs at the
baccalaureate degree level, its selected graduate programs, and its special
mission.
f.
The University shall support studies related to the environment, culture,
heritage, institutions, and economy of La Crosse and the surrounding Mississippi
Valley region.
g.
The University shall serve as an academic and cultural center, providing
service and professional expertise, and meeting the broader educational needs of
the region.
Adopted by the Board of Regents at the June 10, 1988 Board Meeting.
Duties and responsibilities
of the committee shall include:
1.
Determining curricula for students in the various academic programs.
2.
Receiving proposals for all undergraduate
curricular changes from the various academic departments.
3.
Initiating, developing, and recommending changes in the design of
curriculum for experimental and research purposes.
4.
Informing department chairpersons, in writing, of proposals being
considered that relate to experimental curricula or their program, thus
providing adequate opportunity for departments to be heard prior to committee
and senate action on such proposals.
5.
Evaluating curriculum proposals by a hierarchical set of criteria, taking
into consideration the needs of students and of society, the mission of the
university, the necessity for quality programs, and the ability of the
department and college to meet the resource needs of the proposal.
6.
Coordinating the various curricula through formal consultation with the
academic departments.
7.
Publishing the agenda for regularly scheduled meetings in the university
newsletter.
8.
Authorizing substitutions or waivers for individual students.
Membership of the committee
shall consist of twelve faculty members none of whom shall have any designated
administrative responsibility, and four students. The faculty membership shall
contain four representatives from the College of Liberal Studies; three
representatives from the College of Science and Allied Health; three
representatives from the College of Health, Physical Education, Recreation, and
Teacher Education, at least one of which shall be a representative from the
School of Education; and two representatives from the College of Business
Administration. The Committee on Faculty Committees shall rotate representation
with respect to departments and schools, and so far as possible shall provide
alternates for each appointed member. The provost/vice chancellor, registrar,
director of the library and academic deans shall serve as administrative
consultants to the committee. The committee shall elect its chair.
Approved by the Faculty Senate 04-01-99. Revised 05/03/01
Proposals for curricular
change must come from academic departments (and/or academic program units such
as Ethnic and Racial Studies and
Honors Program). All official
curricular change proposals must be submitted on the forms LX-138 and LX-139
with appropriate Department Chair and Dean’s signatures.
The original forms along with twenty-seven (27)
copies should be submitted to the Secretary of the Undergraduate Curriculum
Committee located in the Records and Registration Office (117 Graff Main Hall).
To be included on the UCC
agenda for any regularly scheduled UCC meeting, the curricular forms should be
in the Records and Registration Office no later than noon the Wednesday prior to
the meeting. UCC meets on the
second, fourth and fifth (if necessary)
Tuesday of each month while school is in session.
The proposals will be numbered sequentially by the committee secretary
and distributed along with the agenda to committee members.
Please Note: The form
LX-137, which summarizes numerous changes,
is intended to help the committee process certain curricular changes more
efficiently and to reduce the amount of paper consumed.
It is used as a working copy by the committee.
An LX-137 requires an original LX 138 for each change cited, but 24
copies of the LX 137 only.
All proposals will undergo
at least two readings before the Undergraduate Curriculum Committee, unless
there is unanimous consent to act on a proposal at the first reading.
All curricular changes approved by the committee are subject to Faculty
Senate review and action as well as review by the Chancellor’s Office.
All new majors and sub-majors approved by the Committee must be approved
by the Faculty Senate and the Chancellor’s Office.
GENERAL EDUCATION COURSE REVIEW PROCEDURES
Review of new general
education course proposals and changes to existing general education courses
will be processed on an LX-140 and reviewed by the General Education Committee
after these courses have been approved by the Undergraduate Curriculum Committee
No department may require
more than 40 semester credits in one major unless it becomes necessary to do so
in order to meet external requirements for certification or accreditation as
prescribed by an external agency or accrediting group and is approved by the
Undergraduate Curriculum Committee.
Departments that have
already been approved to offer majors in excess of 40 credits will be encouraged
(but not required) to comply with the extent of Majors Policy.
COURSE PREREQUISITES, NUMBERS, AND CREDITS
Students will not receive
credit for courses for which they do not have appropriate class standing.
Courses with numbers in the
100 and 200 series are primarily for freshmen and sophomores; those in the 300
and 400 series, which should normally carry a prerequisite, are primarily for
juniors and seniors. Courses
numbered 500 through 699 are open to upper division undergraduates (juniors and
seniors) and graduate students. COURSES
NUMBERED 700 AND ABOVE ARE OPEN TO GRADUATE STUDENTS ONLY.
Only juniors (who have
earned 60 credits or more), seniors, and graduate students will be permitted to
enter “slash” (undergraduate/graduate) courses which are designated by a
combination of the undergraduate and graduate course numbers ¾
300/500, 400/500, 400/600.
Undergraduate students must
earn at least 40 credits in the 300 and 400 numbered courses.
Study leading to one
semester credit represents an investment of time by the average student of not
fewer than 42 hours. Included in
this time is 770 instructional minutes (class time) plus an out-of-class
investment of time of 28 hours for such activities as tutorials, recitations,
study time and preparation for participation in class, or a demonstration.
In a course with a supervised laboratory or studio, some or all of the
required 42 hours can be fulfilled by the participation of the student in these
activities.”
The standard for supervised
laboratory or supervised studio hours per week is that two such hours are equal
to one lecture hour in generating semester credits. Departments requesting a
standard different from this must assume the burden of demonstrating the need
for varying from the standard in order to obtain committee approval.
1.
The Department (or comparable unit) shall identify its umbrella courses
after consulting with the University Registrar and the appropriate dean.
2.
The Department must approve each new topic to be offered under a
previously established umbrella course number, prior to its initial scheduling.
3.
The Department offering an umbrella course topic must consult with other
departments whose subject interests may be affected, prior to the submission of
LX-138 and LX-139 forms to the dean. Interdepartmental
action/consultation is to be fully noted on the curriculum documents.
4.
The Department must prepare a Form LX-138 and LX-139, indicating
departmental approval, and must forward the original copy to the appropriate
school/college dean. Graduate
courses and “slash/course” topics will then be forwarded to the Dean of
Graduate Studies.
5.
Each dean will approve/disapprove each topic course proposal keeping in
mind that: “Study leading to one semester credit normally represents an
investment of time by the average student of not fewer than 42 hours. Included
in this time is 770 instructional minutes (class time) plus an out-of-class
investment of time of 28 hours for such activities as tutorials, recitations,
study time and preparation for participation in class, or a demonstration.
In a course with a supervised laboratory or studio, some or all of the
required 42 hours can be fulfilled by the participation of the student in these
activities.”
6.
The Dean will then sign and
forward to the Registrar (through the Provost’s Office) the LX-138 and LX-139 forms, only
for
the approved new topics. The
Registrar will work with departments to see that appropriate
scheduling is accomplished and
that such documents become part of the official
curriculum files.
7.
Umbrella course topics with similar course content may be offered a
maximum of three times within an unlimited number of years or an unlimited
number of times within three calendar years.
8.
The effective date of these guidelines is
Approved by the Faculty
Senate 09-09-93; revised 1-23-96, Senate notified 3-15-96.
Students desiring to make
substitutions in course or graduation requirements must obtain the appropriate
petition form from the office of the college in which the student is enrolled,
complete the petition form, obtain the appropriate signatures, and return the
petition to the dean of that college. The
petition should clearly reflect the recommendation of the Department(s)
involved, if any. The dean will
review the petition and either approve or disapprove the request.
If the department and the dean recommend approval of the petition
concerning general education substitutions, the petition must be forwarded to
the undergraduate Curriculum Committee and recorded in the minutes.
No action is required by the Undergraduate Curriculum Committee. If the department recommends against and/or the dean denies
the petition and the student wishes to appeal the decision, the petition can be
brought before the Undergraduate Curriculum Committee through the office of the
dean. Once the petition is before
the Undergraduate Curriculum Committee, the student may choose self
representation or college representation. If
self representation is chosen, the student may make a presentation to the
Undergraduate Curriculum Committee and/or be available to answer questions.
After hearing the student’s presentation and asking all
student-directed questions, the committee may go into closed session for
discussion and voting. Decisions
made by the UCC are final; there is no further appeal process.
All petitions concerning
writing emphasis requirements must be brought before the Undergraduate
Curriculum Committee for action.
Student petitions will be
last on the agenda.
(Approved by UCC on May 10, 1994; Received by Faculty Senate October 27, 1994)
INTERNATIONAL STUDIES
(Guidelines)
1.
All proposals from UW-L faculty and staff for credit-generating courses
which include travel beyond the region of the University’s customary activity
are subject to review and recommendation by the Travel and International
Committee.
2.
Once departmental and college approval has been given for a course
involving travel, LX-138 and LX-139 forms for this course must be submitted to
the Travel and International Education Committee.
This committee screens such proposals for content and consistency in
format and design. Once reviewed
and recommended by this committee, these proposals are then forwarded to the
appropriate curriculum committee, or Dean in the case of umbrella course topics,
for review and final approval. (This
final approval should be obtained before such courses can be advertised).
3.
Credit for courses involving travel shall be generated subject to the
existing regulations for resident study.
Approved Faculty Senate
December 15, 1988.
A.
The initial establishment of an Institute or other organization
conducting an academic program outside of existing departmental programs should
be by action of the Faculty Senate. Proposals
for Institutes, or their functional equivalents, should include completion of
Academic Program Format C with particular attention to:
1.
Anticipated needs for administrative and instructional staff.
2.
Anticipated needs for Summer Session staff.
3.
The potential effect on existing departments and programs from which
institute staff are drawn.
4.
The extent to which the proposed Institute will seek extramural funds.
5.
The standards by which the success or failure of the Institute and its
academic programs are to be judged.
Proposals
for Institutes are to be submitted to the Provost/Vice Chancellor.
With the approval of the Provost/Vice Chancellor, the proposals will be
forwarded to the Undergraduate Curriculum Committee and upon approval by that
committee, forwarded to the Senate for final consideration.
Initial approval will be for a period of two years.
During the second year of its existence, a new Institute must complete
the Audit and Review procedure described in Paragraph B of this section.
B.
Continuing Institutes, those which have completed the initial Audit and
Review after two years of existence, must complete the Audit and Review process
(Academic Program Format #4) every three years.
Institutes are to submit Audit and Review reports to the Mission and
Planning Committee and the Undergraduate Curriculum Committee under the schedule
announced by the Vice Chancellor for Academic Departments.
The Audit and Review report of an Institute should devote particular
attention to the evaluation standards defined at the time the Institute was
initially approved. Continuation of
the Institute following Audit and Review requires action of the Senate.
C.
Institutes in existence at the time this report is accepted--Institute
for Minority Studies, Institute for Women’s Studies, and Honors Program--are
to complete the Audit and Review process beginning during the 1979-80 academic
year. Subsequently, these
Institutes will be reviewed on a three-year cycle as specified in Paragraph B.
D.
The Provost/Vice Chancellor may delay the scheduled review of any
Institute for one year for the purpose of distributing Institute reviews more
evenly in the three-year cycle. This
provision applied only to the regular three-year reviews and not the initial
review after two years.
The only categories of
courses that qualify for Pass/Fail grading are:
1.
Internships
2.
Independent Study
3.
Workshops
4.
Courses Offered for Special Clientele
5.
Field Study
6.
Remedial
7.
ESL
Proposals to add courses in
the above categories on a Pass/Fail basis must be approved by the Undergraduate
Curriculum Committee or Graduate Curriculum Committee and the Faculty Senate.
Students enrolled in Pass/Fail courses must be graded on a Pass/Fail
basis. Specific courses are
approved for pass/fail grading. Students
do not have the option of requesting a graded course be changed to P/F.
Additional Requirements:
1.
Credits taken on a P/F basis WILL NOT be averaged into a grade point
average if “P” is filed by the instructor.
The credits will count as credits earned.
An “F” WILL be averaged in and WILL be counted as credits attempted
2.
STUDENTS ON ACADEMIC PROBATION ARE INELIGIBLE FOR P/F CREDIT COURSES.
3.
Twenty-one (21) credits is the maximum number of P/F graded course work.
Students
should realize that P/F graded courses MIGHT NOT BE ACCEPTED IN TRANSFER to
other institutions of higher learning. Professional
schools are especially reluctant to accept P/F graded course work. Some
employers, principals, and/or superintendents may be unable to acknowledge
credits or reward employees, ESPECIALLY GRADUATE STUDENTS WORKING ON ADVANCED
DEGREES, when course work has been taken under the P/F grading system.
Department Pass/Fail Option:
If a “departmental option for Pass/Fail grading” has been approved by the Undergraduate Curriculum Committee, the grading system to be utilized should be designated when each term’s schedule is submitted to the Registrar.
CREDIT BY EXAMINATION AND RETROACTIVE CREDIT
Five credit options are
available to students at the University of Wisconsin-La Crosse.
They are listed below:
1.
Advanced Placement Program (APP)
Students
who have participated in the Advanced Placement Program (APP) in high school and
have received scores of 3, 4 or 5 will receive academic credit.
Transcripts of APP work must be submitted to the Admissions Office for
evaluation to determine if academic credit will be awarded.
2.
College Level Examination Program (CLEP)
The
College Level Examination Program (CLEP) is a national program administered
through the College Board. The
University of Wisconsin-La Crosse will follow The American Council on Education
(ACE) guidelines and recommendations for minimum scores for awarding credit in
all subject examinations.
3.
Departmental Credit by Exam
Each
department will have on file an examination for each course the department
determines to be introductory, including courses applicable to the skills
component of the General Education program.
Revised by Faculty Senate 11-19-98;
approved by Chancellor 12-02-98.
4.
Retroactive Credit
Two
departments, Foreign Languages and Mathematics, offer retroactive credit for
previous course work.
5.
International Baccalaureate
The University will accept all International Baccalaureate ‘HIGHER LEVEL” examinations with a score of 4 or greater.
I.
Courses for which credit by examination or retroactive credit may be
awarded.
Credit
by exam or retroactive credit may be awarded for any course approved by the
departments concerned and the Undergraduate Curriculum Committee.
II.
Determination of courses for which credit by examination or retroactive
credit may be awarded.
A.
Instructional departments will determine which particular course or
courses offered in their respective departments may have credit earned in a
manner other than that customary for the course.
(See item 3 above)
B.
Departments will submit their proposals for awarding credit by
examination or retroactive credit to the Undergraduate Curriculum Committee for
its approval. Twenty-four (24)
copies of the proposal should be submitted.
C.
Proposals submitted by departments shall include:
1.
Designation of the specific course(s) for which granting of credit by
examination is proposed.
2.
Information concerning the particular examination to be used for each
course.
3.
Eligibility standards for taking an examination for credit.
4.
Scoring of the examination.
5.
Estimation of the number of students who may successfully pass the
examination.
III.
Academic Status of Credits Earned by Examination
A.
All credits earned by examination will have full academic value (i.e.,
they will count toward the total required for graduation and, if applicable,
fulfill prerequisite requirements for advanced courses, General Education
requirements, core requirements, major or minor requirements, etc.).
B.
Credit will be entered but no grade will be recorded on the student’s
permanent academic record.
C.
Credit earned by examination will not be counted as part of the
student’s grade point average.
D.
Credits earned by examination will not be counted as part of the
student’s course load.
E.
The University of Wisconsin-La Crosse will accept, as transfer credit,
credits earned in this manner at accredited institutions, to the limit stated
below (32 credits).
IV.
Restrictions
A.
The maximum credit which a student may earn by examination is 32 credits.
B.
No student will be permitted to attempt to receive credit by examination
for a particular course more than once.
C.
A student who takes an examination for credit will not be informed of any
grade received (credits only, not grades, are awarded).
D.
A student may earn credits by examination only after having been admitted
to and enrolled at UW-La Crosse. A
student will be regarded as “regularly admitted and enrolled” after
attendance on a full-time or part-time basis and paying the appropriate fees
therefore in a regular semester, summer session, evening or extension class.
E.
No student who has received a final grade in a course or an
“Incomplete” may earn credit by examination for said course.
F.
No student who is auditing a course at UW-La Crosse or has audited a
course at UW-La Crosse may receive credit by examination for said course, nor
may retroactive credit be earned after auditing the courses.
G.
No student who has withdrawn from a course at UW-La Crosse after the
first four weeks of the course may earn credit for the course by examination.
V. Administration
and Fees
A.
Advanced Placement Program (APP)
Students
participate in APP while in high school, so no university examination
administration is necessary. Transcripts
of APP work must be submitted to the Admissions Office for evaluation to
determine if academic credit will be awarded.
B.
College Level Examination Program (CLEP)
Students
should contact the Counseling and Testing Center for information about CLEP, and
to order the exam. It takes 30 days
to obtain an exam after it is ordered. Examinations
will be given early each semester plus summer if warranted.
Counseling and Testing Center staff will send scores to appropriate
academic departments, who, in turn, will submit the names of those students who
pass the examinations to the Records and Registration Office.
Students should allow 8-10 weeks for scoring exams and recording credit.
A
non-refundable fee of $47.00 will be charged each person for each examination.
This fee is payable at the Counseling and Testing Center.
Students
who have taken exams at other sites, may submit the results to the Admissions
Office for evaluation to determine if academic credit will be awarded.
C.
Department Examinations
Any
enrolled student should contact the appropriate department chairperson for
permission to take an examination for credit.
Departments will administer the examinations for courses in their
departments. Examinations
will be given once each semester. If
they wish, departments may also administer the examinations during the summer
session.
Department
chairpersons will submit the names of those who pass the examinations to the
Records and Registration Office. The
names of students not passing the examinations will be kept on file in the
department for future reference, but should not be submitted to the Registrar.
Department chairpersons will inform the students who take the examination
of the results as soon as possible after the examination has been administered.
The communication to the student should indicate "pass" or
"fail", but it should not indicate a letter grade.
A
non-refundable fee of $10 will be charged each person for each examination.
This fee is payable at the Cashiers Office.
Examination for credit will not be administered by departments to
students who do not have an examination fee receipt.
D.
Retroactive Credit
Students
must contact the department to file the request for credit. The department
submits the requests for those students who are to be awarded credit, to the
Records and Registration Office. The
appropriate retroactive credits will be recorded on the student's transcript.
There is no charge for this transaction.
E.
International Baccalaureate (IB)
Transcripts
of IB work must be submitted to the Admissions Office for evaluation to
determine if academic credit will be awarded.
VI.
Student Option
A
student who successfully passes the examination for a particular course may
choose not to have the credits for the course awarded by examination.
VII.
Security
Departments
should be aware of the fact that some students, perhaps most, may not be known
personally to those who administer the examinations. Some measures should be taken to ensure that the person
who successfully passes the exam is the person who is awarded the credit;
therefore, it is suggested that any student who takes the examination be
required to fill out a form asking for information which can be compared with
information given when the student registers (such as date of birth, names of
mother and father, etc.).
INTERNSHIP POLICIES
(Cooperative Education)
Departmental and/or
university-wide (non-departmental) co-op internships are designed to carry
variable credit with maximum credits awarded only if student assignments meet
operational standards of 40 hours per week for approximately 14 weeks.
Fewer credits will be awarded on a prorated hours-per-week basis.
While a maximum of 30
semester credits may be taken in internships and recorded on the permanent
academic record, no more than 15 credits will be applicable to a degree.
(Credit applicable to a major or minor will be assigned by the
appropriate department chairperson).
All students involved in
departmental and/or university-wide co-op internships (non departmental) for
credit are required to register.
Academic departments who
plan to make changes in their departmental requirements for the cooperative
education and internship program should consult with Career Services.
These policies do not apply
to internships in teacher education, physical education, recreation, social
work, physical therapy, medical technology, nuclear medicine technology, or
graduate programs. Students wishing
more information should contact the Cooperative Education/Internship Program in
the Career Services Offices.
PRINCIPLES FOR DISTANCE EDUCATION
1.
Existing courses offered via distance education will follow the standard
course review by a university curriculum committee, e.g. significant changes in
course outline, grading pattern, etc. In
other words, no specific review is required for distance education courses.
Departments will be responsible for ensuring course compatibility with
selected technology, and for evaluating distance education offerings.
2.
New courses will follow the standard curriculum approval process.
The LX-138 form will include an indicator for the type of delivery
system.
3.
Proposals for entire programs to be offered through distance education
will follow standard review including the department, college, and the Academic
Program Review Committee.
4.
Recognizing the long lead time required in scheduling courses for
distance education networks, it will may be necessary to tentatively schedule
courses pending curriculum approval.
5.
When the curriculum committee reviews a course proposal in which distance
education technology is a significant component, the director of the Educational
Television Center, serving as a liaison from the Distance Education Oversight
Committee should be invited to provide input concerning the appropriate use of
the technology.
6.
Individuals teaching via distance education should be encouraged to work
with media services staff on necessary instructional design changes, and with
educational television center staff on use of the technology prior to offering a
course.
7.
The curriculum committee will receive a report each semester listing the
courses scheduled.
Approved by Faculty Senate
9/28/95; approved by Chancellor 11/28/95
PROGRAM GRADE POINT AVERAGE REQUIREMENT POLICY
Departments or programs
wishing to institute GPA requirements shall justify those requirements based on:
1.
External accreditation requirements or nationally accepted parameters in
a profession, or
2.
Historical and/or empirical evidence proving that students below the
minimum requirements do not succeed in upper division courses in the major or
program.
Departments or programs with
entrance requirements should not rely solely on overall GPA. Additional tools
should be employed to assess program readiness. These tools could include the
following:
·
GPA requirements in discipline-specific or other required lower division
courses
·
Type, difficulty and chronology of courses already taken
·
Credit load
·
Interviews
·
Essays/writing samples/letters/portfolios
·
Work and/or life experience
·
References and recommendations
·
Performance in particular skills/observations/field experience
Departments or programs with
exit requirements should establish policies and/or committees which periodically
monitor students’ progress toward completion of requirements, especially in
cases where a relatively high GPA is needed for a required internship or where
the exit requirement is higher than the entrance requirement. These policies
and/or committees should relate to three specific student concerns:
1.
advising
2.
appeals/hearings
3.
probation
Program GPA requirements
shall not be implemented exclusively for purposes of enrollment management.
Approved
by Faculty Senate 04-01-99; approved by Chancellor 09-30-99.
GUIDELINES FOR NEW OR REVISED
MIN
New minors should conform to
the following guidelines:
1.
Credits required for the minor should range from 18-24.
2.
At least one-half of the course work should be upper division level
(300-400)
3.
There should be a maximum of six credits double counted between General
Education and the minor requirements
4.
No more than six credits should be “hidden prerequisites” (defined as
courses outside the minor department and normally above 100 level introductory
or General Education courses)
In addition to the above
requirements, the committee proposes the following guideline to address the
concern about double counting between majors and minors.
5.
Between a major and a minor there must exist at least 42 “unduplicated
credits” (defined as common combinations of fresh or unique credits, not
double counted between the two programs). If there are courses that are required
for both major and minor, the student must use other courses within the
discipline to come up to the minimum number of credits in the major or minor.
(Note: CBA professional core does count as credits in the business majors.)
Inability
to conform to any of these guidelines should be justified by a rationale for
non-compliance in the curriculum proposal.
APPROVAL PROCESS
The information provided to
the Academic Priorities Committee in the “Contents of Proposals for New
Programs” should be submitted to the UCC with the LX 138P. Interdisciplinary
programs need to submit all appropriate approvals from sponsoring departments
and colleges. The UCC recommends that the College Deans, in tandem with the
University Registrar and the Chair of Faculty Senate, assist in directing each
new subprogram proposal through the proper approval process, in the following
sequence: Appropriate departmental and college committees, college dean,
Academic Priorities Committee, Undergraduate Curriculum Committee, Faculty
Senate, Chancellor or designee.
Criteria
for Evaluation of Proposals
UCC
will consider new and revised course proposals with the following criteria in
mind, in decreasing order of importance. Department
representatives submitting proposals should be prepared to answer questions
concerning these issues, and present/discuss evidence of fulfilling these
requirements.
1.
Needs of Students and Society
(a)
The new course, program or revision should satisfy an identifiable need within
the mission of the University.
(b)
The new or revised course should not duplicate curriculum already available in
the department.
(c)
For new course proposals that may have overlap with courses in other
departments, evidence should be presented that those departments have been
contacted and that the overlap is minimal or that the perspective is
significantly different to merit a new course.
Departments may want to consider enrollment restrictions and the
feasibility of course cross listing. Course
revisions that may result in
significant overlap with courses in other departments should be accompanied by
similar evidence.
(d)
The clientele of the program or course should be carefully considered and
include sufficient enrollment to merit the use of necessary resources.
(e)
The role of the course or program should be carefully considered, including
requirement in major or minor programs within and external to the department.
If the course will significantly impact other departments or programs,
submitters are encouraged to include evidence of communication with the other
programs/departments.
2.
Quality
(a)
The new course/program or revision should be well conceived and well organized.
Revisions resulting in substantial changes to course content or new
course proposals should include a sufficient outline of the course material and
pattern to demonstrate these requirements.
(b)
The level of rigor should meet current standards for a university course or
program, and the number of credits awarded should be reflective of the amount of
work required in the course.
(c)
The new or revised course should have appropriate prerequisites.
3.
Ability of the Department and College to meet resource needs
While
UCC recognizes that a signature on the LX form certifies the Dean's willingness
to support a course or program, there are course design issues that can
significantly impact the quality of a course offering and the experience for the
students. Therefore, submitters may
be asked to discuss the following:
(a)
The department must have sufficient faculty/staff expertise for the new course
or program or to make the proposed changes in an existing course or program.
(b)
The department must have sufficient faculty/staff resources for the new course
or program or to make the proposed changes in an existing course or program.
Departments submitting multiple proposals for new courses should consider
whether there are infrequently offered courses that could be deleted.
(c)
The support infrastructure must be adequate (sufficient laboratory facilities,
sufficient library resources, availability of required internships, etc.) to
offer the course/program in the long term.
4.
Record Keeping
(a)
The course number should be consistent with the level of work required in the
course.
(b)
The course or program description should be clear and accurate, and programs
should not have hidden requirements.
(c)
The instruction pattern should be appropriate and accurately described.
Very minor changes may be handled through the Consent Agenda, which is presented to UCC members for expedited approval. However, any UCC member may pull any item from the consent agenda and request a full first reading for the next meeting. Generally only minor changes will be considered as possibilities for a consent agenda item.
1. Reasonable items for consideration on the consent agenda:
Changes in semester offered
Course deletions
Changes in prerequisites within
the proposing department
2. Possible items for consideration on the consent agenda: Proposers may request these items to appear on the consent agenda if they feel the changes are trivial.
Course number
Changes in course description
Changes in course title
Changes
in number of credits