The following text is taken from Guidelines for Submitting Course Proposals, Senate Curricula and Courses Committee, May 1995

Please note that for the 2007-2008 academic year, course approvals will still follow the rules set up for 3-digit course numbers.

Courses for Group Categories

Before changes can be made to course offerings, approval action may be required by one or more groups.  To clarify the action required and to indicate the groups involved in such action, the following is presented as a standard guide.

The Senate Committee on Curricula and Courses is responsible for reviewing

• 100 level courses,
• opening 200 level courses to sophomores,
• courses in the General Education requirements.

• recommendations to the faculty of the school or college concerned as to the general character and number of credit-units of the 200-499 courses offered by the departments within each school or college,
• recommendations regarding the curriculum requirements of the school or college, and
• recommendations relating to graduation requirements that add to or better specify, but not go below, University minima.

The Senate Scholastic Standards Committee prepares legislation concerning those scholastic matters affecting the University as a whole and not assigned to the Curricula and Courses Committee, including special academic programs, the marking system, scholarship standards and the like.

Department heads are responsible for all catalog copy of their department in the University Catalog's Directory of Courses.  The Dean of a school or college is responsible for all copy under the heading of the respective school or college concerned within the University catalog and for course information provided for publication in the Schedule of Classes.

Procedural Requirements

Before catalog copy can be changed, approval action may be required by one or more groups.  To clarify the action required and to indicate the groups involved in such action, the following is presented as a standard guide.

Course Changes

Department action only for:

• changes in listed instructor
• changes in time of course offering (first or second semester)
• changes in frequency of course offering (alternate year designations)
• minor editorial changes in course title or description

• adding courses
• dropping courses
• changes in course patterns, including changes in pattern of credits
• change of prerequisites
• change of consent provision
• substantive changes in title and course description
• changes in graduation requirements within existing university minima

Department action and Senate action (100 level courses, opening 200 level courses to Sophomores, and courses in General Education Requirements): Skill Course Designations

• adding
• dropping courses
• adding or dropping the designation "open to sophomores" for 200 level courses
• changes in course patterns including changes in pattern of credits
• change in prerequisites
• change of consent provisions
• substantive changes in title and course description

 Any academic department proposing a change in the grading system for any 100 or 200 level course to that of  S (Satisfactory), U (Unsatisfactory), or from S/U to A-F, must receive approval of the following:

• Dean of school or college
• Senate Scholastic Standards Committee for 200 level courses
• Senate Curricula and Courses Committee for 100 level courses, 200 level courses open to sophomores, and courses in the General Education Requirements
• University Senate

• The heads of the academic units proposing courses should request the Scheduling Office (which maintains the official University Directory of assigned and unassigned course numbers) to assign new course numbers.  Any one of the six changes listed below requires the assignment of a new number.
  • a. New course added
  • b. Significant change in content of established course
  • c. Significant change in credits of established course
  • d. Change of established hyphenated course to separate course
  • e. Change of separate courses to hyphenated course
  • f. Significant change in time pattern of established course (class hours of lecture, lab, or discussion)
• No course number previously assigned, but dropped, will be assigned again until:
  • a. the original number remains unassigned for a period of at least eight years or
  • b. a dropped course becomes reinstated without change
• If the content of a course is changed sufficiently to warrant assigning a new number, a statement should appear after the description of the course, noting the prior course (Example:_______ "Formerly English").  Such an entry will be included in two successive catalogs and then omitted.
• If the content of a course is changed sufficiently to warrant assigning a new number and if the new course is a prerequisite to other established courses for which the dropped course also was prerequisite, the number of the prerequisite dropped course should be referenced in four successive catalogs.
• If a new course that is initiated and there are registration or credit restrictions specified which refer to a course that was dropped, (i.e., "Not open for credit to students who have passed _______") the statement will be omitted after two successive catalogs, or whenever a department head agrees that the statement no longer serves the currently enrolled student population.

• Changes in course requirements that require action only by a school or college curriculum and courses committee and approval by the school or college faculty:
  • increasing the number of credits and courses required within the General Education Requirement
  • narrowing, but not broadening, the choice of University departmental courses options within the groups of the General Education Requirements
  • adding any other specific course requirements
• Presentation to the school or college curriculum and courses committee and approval by the school or college faculty is the only action necessary for changing supplementary minimum scholastic requirements of a school or college.
  Proposals for changes in the minimum number of credits required for a degree are submitted by the school or college faculty and, if approved, submitted to the Senate Scholastic Standards Committee for reporting to the University Senate.