Guidelines for New Undergraduate Programs

Introduction

• Title of the major
• Title of the degree (For graduate programs, click here for guidelines)
• Academic unit that will offer the program
• School/college in which the program will be housed
• Proposed inception date
• A brief summary of the proposal

Rationale

• Discuss the need for the program, using documentation from appropriate national, state, local, professional, and disciplinary resources.
• Explain how the program will meet the need(s) described above at the appropriate level(s).
• Include evidence of current and future needs at the state and/or national level for graduates of the program.
• Discuss indicators of student demand for the program. Include data on the projected enrollment, the probable source of students, and the projected number of graduates of the program for the next five years.
• Describe how the program will further the University's mission and initiatives in the Strategic Plan, as well as the more specific plans of the unit(s) involved.
• Describe similar programs offered in the state, especially in southeast Michigan, and how the proposed program relates to these.
• Describe any overlap with other programs at Wayne State and justify any duplication of programs. If overlap exists with another unit, invite that unit to prepare a commentary on the proposal. Describe any cooperative relationships, if appropriate.
• Describe the uniqueness or distinctiveness of the program.

Objectives and description

The University provides minimum criteria for admission, acceptable academic standing, and graduation. However, some programs have standards which exceed these basic minima, and in some cases, standards are imposed by national accreditation organizations. This section of the proposal should describe the exact criteria the new program will use. If the general University requirements will be used, that should be clearly stated.

• Indicate the total number of credits required for the degree, as well as their distribution among core/required courses, concentrations/tracks, cognates/minors, electives, and any special requirements such as fieldwork, internship, experiential learning, etc.
• Describe the standard of performance expected, and any limitations on grades that the program will impose.
• List the required or core courses, cognates, and electives for the program, indicating the course number and title, the number of credits, prerequisites, and limitations, the frequency of the course offerings, and a brief description of each course.
• On the list of courses, differentiate between existing courses and new courses to be developed. Submit New Course Proposal forms and syllabi (including course learning outcomes) along with the proposal.
• Provide a typical 4-year Plan of Work for students in the program.
• If any required courses will be provided by another department, indicate arrangements made, if any, to accommodate your students.
• Describe the advising system, the system of monitoring the students' progress toward their degrees, and identifying the need for any special retention efforts.
• Describe the implementation, scheduling, and recruitment plans for the program.
• Prepare the program description for the Bulletin; insert it into an appendix to this proposal.

Standards

• State the GPA required for regular admission to the program. Describe any other specific admission requirements, such as letters of recommendation, statement of objectives, personal interview, or special exams.
• Clearly state how the admission standards of the proposed program will compare with similar programs at other universities.
• If the program is in an area in which professional or specialized accreditation is available, indicate the basic achievements necessary to meet such requirements. If there are plans to seek such accreditation, indicate the timetable and the resource commitments needed to achieve accreditation.

Assessment

• Describe the program's mission with respect to student learning.
• Provide at least four program learning outcomes.
• Submit a curriculum map that specifies the development of students' learning outcomes across program activities.
• Describe the methods you expect to use to gather evidence of students' learning outcomes.
• Identify the mechanisms, structures, committees, or individuals (by role) for gathering that evidence, reviewing it, acting on it, and reporting it.

(The WSU Assessment handbook provides information about each of these items. A curriculum map template is also available.)

Administration

• Describe the administrative structure for oversight of the program, such as the department as a whole, a special advisory committee, or by a director. For interdisciplinary programs, describe mechanisms to assure representation of all participating units.
• Describe the structure responsible for recruitment, curriculum development, and program evaluation. Will there be separate committees/individuals responsible for each area or committees/individuals with several responsibilities?

Resources

• Assess the ability of the unit to conduct the program and describe the number and qualifications of the faculty, as well as access to resources outside the unit. If commitments for new faculty have been approved by the Dean, this should be described in the proposal.
• Describe the physical facilities and equipment available to support the new program. If new educational equipment or training aids will be required, identify the source(s) of funding.
• In the case of interdisciplinary programs, each department that will provide instruction should be asked to furnish a letter of support which details the availability of resources it will contribute, as described in the proposal (faculty, course scheduling, student enrollment, etc.) and assures that its courses used in the program will continue to be available.

Costs

• Project the estimated expenditures of the next three years for the proposed program in terms of faculty and staff F.T.E.'s, supplies, and equipment. If faculty and staff who are currently performing duties in one program will also be responsible for the new program, discuss their ability to adequately support the new program.
• Identify sources of revenue to support the program.

Approval process

Download a PDF version of this guide for reference.