» Undergraduate Curriculum Handbook

The approval of new undergraduate degree is a comprehensive process requiring extensive documentation, appropriate consultation with university departments and offices, recommendations regarding approval within academic units, including curriculum committee, program/department faculty and dean; and careful scrutiny and recommendations by the Undergraduate Academic Council, Long Range Planning Council, concurrence by the Senate Executive Board, recommendation regarding approval by the Faculty Senate and approval by the Provost and the Board of Trustees. All consultations, recommendations for approvals and approvals are to be documented using the New Degree Program Form. 

Proposed new undergraduate and graduate degrees may require submission of a substantive change proposal to Western Association of Schools and Colleges (WASC), who serve as the regional accrediting body for Chapman. Academic units considering a proposal for a new undergraduate or graduate degree program must consult with the Director of Accreditation & Accreditation about WASC’s substantive change policies and procedures before submitting a new program proposal. WASC requires much of the same information that is required for Chapman’s new degree program proposal process (which is modeled on WASC’s New Degree Program Proposal), but additional information may be required. Information required by both Chapman and WASC is noted in the requirements below.

WASC’s template for Substantive Change: New Degree Program Proposal (Assoc, Bach, Masters) is found on the WASC website. If the link provided are not working, contact the Office of Accreditation & Assessment for updated information. New degree programs may be required to submit information to WASC following this template. Much of the information is also contained in the new program proposal required information outline below, and specific information for the template is indicated by WASC in the information description.

Note: if the program being proposed is a New Integrated Undergraduate/Graduate Degree Program, please consult that section of the program approval process, as Integrated programs are not required to follow the full new degree approval process.

Academic requirements for degree programs are provided in the undergraduate academic catalog, which should be consulted in designing any new academic degree program. The schedule for submitting a new degree proposal is summarized below:

• The Provost should be consulted regarding the initiation of any new degree program proposal. It is recommended that this first step be done with the Dean of the school or college in which a new degree program is being proposed and should take place before work begins on a new degree program proposal. The Provost can give guidance on the timing of the new degree program proposal, its fit with the current strategic plan, and is able to discuss potential resources needed and available.
• Consultation should then begin with all required offices and individuals no later than, and preferably substantially before, February 1 in order to be able to complete the process and allow the new degree program to be listed in the catalog a year and a half from the date the process begins. Consultation needs to be complete so that academic unit recommendations and signoffs can be completed by the April 1 deadline that begins the review process by faculty senate councils and faculty senate.
• Review and recommendations on approval by program faculty, curriculum committee and dean must be completed by April 1.
• Undergraduate Academic Council reviews and provides a recommendation by May 30 to the Long Range Planning Council.
• Long Range Planning Council reviews and provides a recommendation by end of first week in September to Senate Executive Board.
• Senate Executive Board presents proposal to Faculty Senate by first meeting in September
• A recommendation from Faculty Senate is sent to Provost before the December Board of Trustees meeting.
• Provost presents degree proposal to Board of Trustees Finance and Academic Committees and to the Board as a whole, with target for final decision by March 30.
• The new approved degree is published in the subsequent June 1 catalog, approximately 18 months following the beginning of the new degree proposal process.

General Guidelines for the New Degree Program Proposal process

A proposed new undergraduate graduate degree programs will be evaluated on the basis of four criteria:

• The demonstrated need or demand for the proposed new degree or major
• Its compatibility with the university’s mission and the academic strategic plan
• The academic quality of the proposed degree program and plans for assessment
• The cost of the degree or major and use of institutional resources

Proposals for new undergraduate degree programs generally originate from the academic unit that will offer the new degree program. Proposals also may originate from other academic units or administrators, but all such programs require the support of program faculty, when such faculty are in place and will be providing the program. Academic units and other originators should engage in extensive preparation and consultation with relevant university offices and officers beginning at least two months (February 1) before the April 1. This will allow time for the academic unit recommendation process to be completed by the April 1 for submission of new program proposals to the Undergraduate Academic Council can be met. 

Timely consultation and requested supporting documentation will ensure that the curriculum proposal is reviewed expeditiously. Note that consultation is the opportunity to gain input from relevant offices and personnel and make appropriate adjustments to the proposal before the academic unit considers the final proposal for recommendation.

All new degree program proposal information is to be placed in the file sharing folder developed by the Office of Undergraduate Education for the specific new degree program proposal. Contact undergrad@chapman.edu and the file will be established for the proposal.  Links to the documents in the file folder can then be shared with all who need access for review.

Consultation should occur with the following, as appropriate, during the proposal process:

• Vice Provost for Undergraduate Education & Student Success to ensure that academic policies are being followed in degree design
• Office of Strategic Marketing and Communication for information on marketing potential of new degree program (addressed in Executive Summary, Appendix A, I)
• Assistant Provost for Operations and Finance regarding budget (addressed in Appendices C-I)
• Director of Accreditation and Assessment regarding accreditation and assessment (determination of whether or not substantive change filing with WASC is required and addressed in Appendices A and B)
• Vice President for Enrollment Management regarding projected enrollments and financial aid/scholarships (addressed in Appendices A and H)
• Office of Admission regarding recruitment and enrollments (addressed in Appendices A, H, and I)
• Library Liaison or Subject Specialist regarding information resources (addressed in Appendix D)
• Vice President for IS&T regarding computing and technology needs (addressed in Appendix E)
• Office of the EVP/COO (if new proposal is a new international or joint program with another school) Note that any such program requires a substantive change application to WASC and should follow the WASC Substantive Change: New Degree Program process.
• Office of Legal Affairs (if new proposal is a new international or joint program with another school) Note that any such program requires a substantive change application to WASC and should the WASC Substantive Change: New Degree Program process.

Each office listed above must provide documentation that the consultation occurred, and such documentation should be filed in the appropriate Appendix folder in the file sharing folder developed by the Office of Undergraduate Education for the New Degree Program Proposal. 

The recommendations on approval by the academic unit should be obtained following the proposal completing the consultation process, as this process may result in changes to the original proposal. Recommendation on approval by the academic unit is required by the following:

• Representative of program/department faculty
• Academic unit curriculum committee
• Dean

Each party listed above has the opportunity submit a position memorandum to their recommendation on approval. These memoranda are to be filed in the New Program file sharing site set up for this purpose, to which all reviewing parties will have access. Recommendations and memoranda are required by April 1.

Subsequent recommendation on approval is required from the Undergraduate Academic Council and the Long Range Planning Council. The Undergraduate Academic Council and the Long Range Planning Council will identify relevant academic, strategic and budgetary issues and will prepare summative reports detailing:

• the fit of the proposal with the Academic Strategic Plan
• analysis of the resources requested
• the Council’s recommendations

These reports are filed in the New Program file sharing system folder, along with appropriate approvals on the New Proposal form found in the file sharing system folder. 

Any council may request feedback from the program/department and/or academic unit involved in the proposal process prior to submitting its own recommendations. Following its review, each council submits its report to the New Program file sharing system for the new degree program proposal, and completes the recommendation process documented on the New Proposal, which will then forward that information to the Senate Executive Board and inform the following of the recommendation:

• Program/department faculty
• Curriculum Committee
• Dean
• Vice Provost for Undergraduate Education
• Provost

The Senate Executive Board will then submit, with their own recommendation (optional), all information to the:

• Faculty Senate
• Faculty Senate members will be provided access to the Dropbox or other file sharing system proposal file for their review.

Upon vote of the Faculty Senate, the Faculty Senate President will forward the recommendation for approval or disapproval to the Provost and notify all prior parties of the decision.

Once the recommendation for approval or non-approval by the faculty senate is received by the Provost and if the Provost recommends the new degree program for approval, he/she will arrange for review of the proposal by the following:

• Academic Committee of the Board of Trustees
• Finance Committee of the Board of Trustees
• Full Board of Trustees

While certain steps in the curriculum proposal process for new academic programs may be undertaken simultaneously, curriculum proposals for new academic programs will not be presented to the relevant Board of Trustees committees or the full Board of Trustees until all required previous steps have been taken, consultations verified and recommendations for approval or disapproval are made.

The Board of Trustees provides final approval on all new degree programs.

New degree program proposal content guidelines can be found here. 

Details on each required appendix can be found below:

• Appendix A: Detailed Description of the Proposed Degree and Need for Program
• Appendix B: Curriculum
• Appendix C. Faculty
• Appendix D. Library Resources
• Appendix E. Information and Computing Resources
• Appendix F. Instructional and Research Facilities and Equipment
• Appendix G. Staff and Administrative Support
• Appendix H. Student Support/Resources
• Appendix I. Projected Five-Year Budget

Academic units submitting new program proposals that are recommended by approval by the Senate the Provost are advised to prepare a presentation (e.g., using PowerPoint) for the Board of Trustees that summarizes the following points:

• The name and type of proposed degree.
• The academic unit and/or program/department offering the degree
• A rationale for offering the program or degree, including the projected demand/enrollments and the planning process that went into the development of the new degree.
• A description of how the degree fits into the missions and strategic plans of the university, and/or the academic unit and/or the program/department
• A brief description of the degree, including its curriculum, faculty and required resources.
• A summary of how the degree compares with existing relevant degrees at Chapman University or at competing universities.
• Plans/timelines for implementation and for meeting any accreditation requirements.
• A summary of the five-year budget, including projected enrollments, revenues and expenditures. The budget must be reviewed by the Long Range Planning Council, the Executive Vice President/Chief Operating Officer and the Provost.

On occasion, program head may inform the Board of Trustees of degree proposals that they have in development, prior to receiving Undergraduate Academic Council, Long Range Planning Council, Senate Executive Board or Senate approval. Presenters must be clear, however, about the status of each degree proposal when making their presentations. That is, only proposals that have received recommendations for approval from the Faculty Senate and the Provost should be presented to the Board of Trustees for a vote.

A minor can originate with faculty members or administrators and recommendations on approval are provided by the appropriate program faculty, academic unit curriculum committee, and Dean. The minor is reviewed by the Undergraduate Academic Council. The UAC informs the Senate Executive Board (SEB) of their recommendation, and the SEB may choose to submit the minor to the full faculty senate for review and recommendation. Final approval of a new minor rests with the Provost.

Academic requirements for a minor are contained in the Undergraduate Academic Catalog in the Undergraduate Degree Requirements section, which should be consulted in designing a new minor.

The form to create a new minor program can be found here.

Process for submission of new minors

Timely consultation and consequent supporting documentation will ensure that the curriculum proposal is reviewed expeditiously. It is recommended that the Provost be consulted regarding the initiation of any new minor program proposal. The Dean of the school or college in which a new undergraduate minor program is being proposed should meet with the Provost before the proposal is begun. The Provost can give guidance on the timing of the new undergraduate minor program proposal, its fit with the current strategic plan, and is able to discuss potential resources needed and available.

Consultation should occur with the following, prior to submission of the proposal, as appropriate:

• Vice Provost for Undergraduate Education and Student Success to ensure that academic policies are being followed in degree design
• Director of Accreditation & Assessment regarding accreditation and assessment requirements
• Vice President for Enrollment Management

New undergraduate minors are filed using the Undergraduate New Minor Proposal form to document consultations and recommendations for approval.

Information on new minors that is required as described below is to be submitted to a file sharing system in a file setup by the Office of the Vice Provost for Undergraduate Education and Student Success. Request that the file sharing folder for the information regarding the minor to be set up by emailing undergradEd@chapman.edu. When preparing information for the minor, please submit all information below into the shared files set up for that minor application. Links to the information will be made available to all reviewers.

The proposal for a new undergraduate minor must include information contained in this file.

Recommendations for approval are required by the following:

• Representative of program/department faculty
• Academic unit curriculum committee
• Dean

Any party listed above may submit a memorandum in support or nonsupport of the minor.

The final decision on approval of an undergraduate minor is given by the Provost.

Interdisciplinary minors follow the same procedures given above. In addition, an interdisciplinary proposal must receive recommendations for approval from:

• Program/department faculty of programs/departments sponsoring the minor,
• Curriculum committee(s) of academic units sponsoring the minor
• Dean(s) of academic units sponsoring the minor

Add additional forms for signatures as needed.

The submission deadline for new minors is November 15, in order to provide the Undergraduate Academic Council sufficient time to review the submission.

The Undergraduate Academic Council presents new minors recommended for approval to the Senate Executive Board, which then determines if there is a need for the proposed minor to be sent to Faculty Senate for review and recommendation on approval. This is rarely required, but is an option for faculty senate.

An integrated program combines both undergraduate and graduate education by allowing the undergraduate student to be conditionally admitted into the graduate program while still completing all undergraduate degree requirements. The application process, prerequisites, GPA and graduate program requirements are as specified for each graduate program, however, a GPA minimum of 3.0 is required for acceptance into an integrated program, even in cases in which a Master’s program considers lower GPA requirements for non-Integrated students. Student’s will receive conditional admission to the graduate program, pending completion of their bachelor’s degree as stipulated in the graduate catalog.

While still enrolled as undergraduates, students may take and share up to 15 credits, although some programs may permit less than 15 credits (please consult the degree section of the catalog for the number of credits that can be shared by specific degree program combination). Please note the following regarding policies for undergraduate students enrolling in graduate courses:

• Undergraduate students are required to have a minimum 3.000 GPA to enroll in graduate level courses. 
• Undergraduate students must have either already earned 90 credits or be enrolled in and anticipate having earned 90 credits before the first day of the graduate course(s) in which they wish to enroll. 
• Graduate courses shared with undergraduate degree requirements will only appear on the undergraduate transcript. 

Students complete the remaining credit hours of graduate coursework beginning the term after receiving the undergraduate degree.

At minimum, 15 credits must be earned at the graduate, post-baccalaureate level. The minimum number of combined undergraduate and graduate credits required for any integrated bachelors/masters program is 135 total credits. 

Integrated programs should stipulate the specific 500-level graduate courses that lend themselves to including advanced undergraduate students, and which will be the least affected by having undergraduate students enrolled in them. In some programs this may be just one course, in others there may be a list of several courses from which a student can choose. The list of the approved 500-level courses that students may (or must) take after 90 credits of undergraduate coursework must be communicated to the Office of the Registrar.

Integrated programs should identify any particular undergraduate courses offered in Chapman University programs that satisfy prerequisites for entrance into the graduate courses, so that interested undergraduate students can be advised of this and can plan to take these courses in preparation for taking the graduate courses identified as appropriate for advanced undergraduates who have crossed the 90-credit threshold.

Approval Process for Integrated Programs

Integrated Undergraduate/Graduate Programs require approval by both the UAC and GAC and must be submitted to both for approval. This requires filing Proposal for a New Integrated Program using the New Integrated Undergraduate/Graduate Program Form. Note that the Graduate Catalog contains a detailed description of the Integrated Program and the Undergraduate Catalog will contain a shortened summary of the integrated program, with a link to the graduate catalog description. The deadline for submission is November 15.

If an Integrated Program is being proposed as part of a New Degree Program that is under the New Degree Program Proposal process, it may be submitted along with the new degree program. The approval process for the Integrated Program, requiring both Graduate and Undergraduate Academic Councils review and approval, may begin in fall, and “provisional approval” if given, will be provided pending the final result of the New Degree Program approval process by the Board of Trustees.

Recommendations on approval of integrated programs are required from the following:

• Graduate and undergraduate program/department faculty representative (both program/department faculty if programs/departments differ)
• Academic unit curriculum committee chair (both academic unit curriculum committees if academic units differ)
• Dean (both academic unit deans if academic units differ)

Information in the proposals required are the following:

1. Catalog description for the Integrated Program to be included in the Undergraduate and Graduate catalogs. The Undergraduate catalog copy should be brief, and refer to the Graduate catalog copy, which provides a fuller description of the program, the list of approved graduate courses that can be taken, and the application process.
2. List the specific approved graduate courses that students must take in the program to be submitted to the Office of the University Registrar. 
3. The maximum limit of graduate credits listed in an Integrated Program that may be taken by an undergraduate student and counted towards both graduate and undergraduate degree completion. The limit is 15 credits, but it may be less. 
4. List of any undergraduate courses offered in Chapman University programs that satisfy prerequisites for entrance into the graduate courses.

Both Graduate and Undergraduate Academic Councils review and give final approval to new integrated undergraduate/graduate programs.

Programs/departments offering such programs must coordinate with the Office of the University Registrar, since that office has to give the program a code to track the student’s progress and allow for the double counting of credits. 

Programs/departments should also provide information on these programs to the Office of Enrollment Management and Admissions Office in order for these programs to be included in admissions materials and planning.

A certificate program that enrolls students for academic credit can originate with faculty members or administrators and must be reviewed and a recommendation on approval provided by the appropriate academic unit curriculum committee, the program/unit faculty and dean of the unit. The proposal for the certificate is then submitted to the Undergraduate Academic Council, accompanied by position memos from the program/department faculty, the academic unit curriculum committee (required), and the Dean (optional). 

The form to create a new certificate program for academic credit can be found here.

Timely consultation and consequent supporting documentation will ensure that the curriculum proposal is reviewed expeditiously. Consultation should occur with the following, as appropriate:

• Vice Provost for Undergraduate Education to ensure that academic policies are being followed in certificate design
• Vice Provost of Operations and Finance
• Director of Accreditation and Assessment regarding accreditation and assessment issues specific to certificates

 Review for recommendation on the proposal is required by the following:

• Representative of program/department faculty
• Academic unit curriculum committee
• Dean
• Undergraduate Academic Council

 The final decision on approval is given by the Provost.

New certificates for academic credit are filed using the using the New Certificate for Academic Credit Proposal form with all required information listed below attached to the form. 

The proposal for a certificate in which students enroll in courses for credit must include the following information:

• Full name of certificate
• Name of the academic unit or program/department offering the certificate
• Description of the program
• Proposed catalog listing
• Admission criteria
• Learning outcomes for certificate program
• Course content and number of credits required
• List of new courses
• Expected enrollment and impact on courses offered
• Start date of program
• Number of new faculty needed
• Name of faculty to be contacted by students with questions or for advising
• Additional facilities or equipment needed
• Additional library resources needed
• Any other resources needed not listed above

 The deadline for filing an application for a new Certificate for Academic Credit is November 15.

A new emphasis, area of study, specialization or credential may be added to an existing degree program. (Note that specializations and credentials only apply to graduate programs.) An emphasis, area of study, specialization, or credential can originate with faculty members or administrators and must be reviewed and a recommendation on approval provided by the appropriate academic unit curriculum committee, the department/program faculty, and dean. The deadline for filing for a new emphasis, area of study, specialization or credential to be added to an existing degree program is November 15.

Addition of a new emphasis or area of study in an undergraduate program is done through the program revision process and is considered to be a “complex” revision. The process is managed through Curriculog.

Policy regarding undergraduate emphasis or area of study: If an undergraduate program has a major with more than one emphasis or area of study, there should be a common core of courses totaling no less than 12 credits. Chapman does not distinguish between terms “emphasis” and “area of study” at the undergraduate level in structure of degree, however, an “emphasis” is listed on a student’s undergraduate transcript, while an area of study is not. 

All program revisions are managed through Curriculog. Program revisions are two distinct types:

Complex revisions are change(s) in any of the following:

• greater than 25% of coursework in the program at the last WASC review;
• structure of the degree (new areas of study or emphases, revision of core structure); 
• new modality of program (e.g., distance education, defined as 50% or more of a program’s total units occur via distance education; competency-based programs, defined as 50% or more of the degree program awarded based on the assessment of student competencies);
• over 25% of a program’s learning objectives, clinical experiences, and/or general education requirements for the program; any other significant changes that may have implications for accreditation. 

Simple revisions are all other changes, including changes to the program description, name, CIP code, catalog information, or less than 25% of the program coursework in the program.

If there are questions as to whether a revision is simple or complex, please consult with the Vice Provost for Undergraduate Education & Student Success at undergrad@chapman.edu.

Proposals for revisions that are deemed complex should be submitted before November 1. Complex revisions that WASC determines require full substantive change review may require additional documentation and a campus visit. In such cases, those proposals may take a year to complete, and will require Faculty Senate and Board of Trustees (BOT) approval.

All reviews are approved by:

• Program/department faculty,
• School or College curriculum committee,
• Relevant Dean,
• Director of Accreditation and Assessment,
• Vice Provost for Undergraduate Education & Student Success (the Vice Provost will determine whether the proposal must go to the Vice President for Enrollment Management or other relevant offices), and
• In the case of complex revisions only, the UAC

During the proposal approval process the recommendations on approval may include memoranda stating the reasoning and the vote tally from a committee. 

Complex Program Revision Proposals must include:

• Full outline of changes, detailing exact changes to credit hours and Program Learning Outcomes (PLOs), including process of achievement of PLOs
• Rationale for the proposed changes,
• Discussion of the impact on schedules, space and funding, and faculty allocations (specify number and types of lines), because of this revision,
• New four-year plan for student graduation, and
• Discussion of changes (if any) to:
  • Program Learning Outcomes (PLOs), including process of achievement these represented in the curricular map and assessment processes, and
  • WASC Core Competencies and their assessment (if an undergraduate program);
• Additional attachments required:
  • Program Learning Outcomes,
  • PLO maps demonstrating the process of achievement of PLOs,
  • Learning Outcomes Assessment plan, and
  • Summary of Library Resources

Since most approvers are not experts in the fields whose programs they are considering, care must be taken to communicate to those outside the field the nature and importance of any proposed changes.

Simple Program Revision Proposals must be submitted by December 1. These proposals should include all of the above that are affected by the changes, and at minimum must include:

• Description of changes,
• Rationale for changes,
• Updated 4-year plan for majors.

A self-designed major is possible for a student who wishes to explore complex questions that draw from more than one traditional discipline or cross disciplinary boundaries in terms of content, theory, methodology and practice. In a self-designed major, it is expected that the student will analyze and synthesize information from multiple perspectives to construct new forms of knowledge. 

A self-designed major should reflect a program of study that cannot be replicated through any of the University's existing majors or by any major/minor combination that is offered. The program of study must be coherent and characterized by intellectual diversity, research, scholarship, and creativity. Like other majors, a self-designed major must provide curricular depth and include the following:

• a set of foundational courses dependent upon the discipline
• advanced courses that give coherence and depth to the major; and
• a significant capstone project, which synthesizes and integrates learning in the major

There should be, as appropriate to the field of study, a research methods course, theoretical studies classes, skills development classes and practical application classes.

The self-designed major must rely primarily on courses offered at Chapman. A self-designed major is not meant to provide for academic studies that current faculty and curricular offerings cannot support. No more than two courses may be used from another institution, whether domestic or international (including study abroad).

The majors currently offered by the College’s academic units and programs/departments and interdisciplinary programs are carefully designed and rigorously reviewed by the faculty for intellectual depth and coherence. Students who wish to propose a self-designed major should expect that their proposals will be held to the same standards. The self-designed major petition process therefore requires a significant amount of time and reflection, development of appropriate learning outcomes, and demonstration that the courses chosen for the major address the development of the student in achieving the stated learning outcomes. A student wishing to pursue a self-designed major must work closely with their advising faculty in the relevant academic units and program/departments to construct their major proposal to meet these requirements.

In order to demonstrate intentionality and appropriate planning in the design process of the self-designed major, the application for approval must be filed by the appropriate deadlines, may not be filed until a student has completed a full semester at Chapman, and should be completed before no more than 50% of the courses in the self-designed major have been completed and/or before the student has earned 75 completed credits.

Students must be in good academic standing with a cumulative GPA of 3.0 or higher.

Approval is required by the following:

• a faculty advisor
• a sponsoring academic unit/department and
• the Undergraduate Academic Council

Detailed guidelines, forms and a timetable for submission for a self-designed major are provided on the Self-Designed Major application form found on the Registrar's Office Student Services Forms webpage. These guidelines are subject to change by the Undergraduate Academic Council.

A self-designed minor is possible for a student who wishes to explore complex questions that draw from more than one traditional discipline or cross disciplinary boundaries in terms of content, theory, methodology and practice. In a self-designed minor, it is expected that the student will analyze and synthesize information from multiple perspectives to construct new forms of knowledge and/or creative expression. 

A self-designed minor should reflect a program of study that cannot be replicated through any of the University's existing minors or by any major/minor combination that is offered. A self-designed minor is not meant to provide for academic studies that current faculty and curricular offerings cannot support. If a minor is not offered in the particular area of study of the self-designed minor at Chapman, a statement must be provided by the chair, unit director or associate dean of the academic unit as appropriate stating that the self-designed minor program can be supported by the academic unit.

The program of study must be coherent and characterized by intellectual diversity, research, scholarship, and creativity. Like other minors, a self-designed minor must provide curricular depth and a clear pedagogical through-line. It should include the following:

• a set of foundational courses dependent upon the subject of the minor
• advanced courses that give coherence and depth to the minor; and
• an upper division course, individual study or internship that provides the opportunity to synthesize and integrate the learning in the minor

The self-designed minor must rely primarily on courses offered at Chapman. No more than two courses may be used from another institution, whether domestic or international (including study abroad).

The self-designed minor must meet the same requirements that apply to existing minors:

• The minor must be in a discipline outside of the student's major. For interdisciplinary minors, the discipline of the minor will be considered as the subject area or areas in which the most courses are required.
• For students with an interdisciplinary major, the designated discipline is the subject in which the greatest number of upper-division credits are required in the major.
• A minimum of 21 credits, 12 of which may not be duplicated by the major or any other minor. Such duplication includes a review of possible elective choices that may be taken in that major or minor.
• A minimum of 12 upper-division credits. A lower-division course accepted as a substitution or equivalent to an upper-division course does not count toward this requirement.
• A minimum of six upper-division credits completed in residence.
• A 2.000 cumulative GPA and 2.000 GPA for all upper-division coursework.

The self-designed minor is not intended to allow students to simply "redesign" existing minors to suit their personal preferences in courses or schedules. Accordingly, a self-designed minor must not contain more than 40 percent of the requirements of an existing minor, and it may not include more than 2 courses or up to 8 credits, whichever is less, not offered by Chapman University.

The minors currently offered by the University's academic departments and interdisciplinary programs are carefully designed and rigorously reviewed by the faculty for intellectual depth and coherence. Students who wish to propose a self-designed minor should expect that their proposals will be held to the same standards. The self-designed minor petition process therefore requires a significant amount of time and reflection, development of appropriate learning outcomes, and demonstration that the courses chosen for the minor address the development of the student in achieving the stated learning outcomes. A student wishing to pursue a self-designed minor must work closely with a full-time faculty member in the relevant department(s), who will serve as the advisor to the minor and will assist the student to construct their minor proposal to meet all requirements.

Approval is required by the following:

• a faculty advisor
• a sponsoring department, or departments in the case of interdisciplinary minors, and
• the Faculty General Education Committee

In order to demonstrate intentionality and appropriate planning in the design process of the self-designed minor, the application for approval:

• must be filed by the appropriate deadlines
• may not be filed until a student has completed a full semester at Chapman
• should be filed before the student has completed no more than 50% of the courses in the self-designed minor and
• must be filed before the student has earned 75 completed credits

Students must be in good academic standing with a cumulative GPA of 3.0 or higher at the time of filing to be eligible to apply for a self-designed minor.

Self-designed minor applications are due no later than the end of week 8 of each full semester to receive approval to begin the following semester. Applications received after that date will not be approved until the following semester. Students are advised that it may take up to 3-4 weeks for review and approval, and no approvals are given over the summer.

Detailed guidelines, forms and a timetable for submission for a self-designed minor are provided on the Self-Designed Minor application form found on the Office of the University Registrar's Student Services Forms webpage. Self-designed minors are submitted to the Office of the University Registrar and are reviewed for approval by the General Education Committee.

These guidelines are subject to change by the General Education Committee and/or the Undergraduate Academic Council.

Closing a Program

The closure of a program does not happen often. It is recommended that a program/department or academic unit work closely with the appropriate Vice Provost's office to ensure that all steps are followed and documented. 

WASC Policy for Program Closure Teach-out Plans

Closure of an Existing Degree Program

• the program review process
• a change in University or academic unit goals and operations
• an issue tied to accreditation
• a significant change in enrollment or enrollment prospects
• a significant change in the program/department faculty needed to provide the program, or
• another situation that may arise.

In some cases, the decision to recommend program closure is a unanimous decision on the part of the provost, dean and program/department unit faculty. In other situations, the decision may be of concern to some, if not all, parties affected by the closure, and/or members of the university at large, and there may not be a unanimous decision on the closure from all parties concerned.

In addition, it is important to recognize that a pending decision to close a program creates potential problems for current applicants. A decision to halt applications or suspend admissions should be taken in consultation with the:

• Provost
• Office of Admissions
• Director of Accreditation and Assessment
• Program/department faculty
• Dean

Such consultation should happen immediately upon consideration of program closure so that appropriate action can be taken as quickly as possible to provide the least disruption to the current program applicants and students.

At all times throughout the closure process, the information regarding the Proposal to Close Program and all comments made should be available to those parties engaged in the decision-making process. The process should be clear, efficient, and allow for faculty consultation.

The process below addresses two situations:

• Alternative 1 is the pathway if there is full agreement on a recommendation to close a program by the parties in the academic unit involved and the provost, and
• Alternative 2 provides a pathway if there are concerns or disagreements about the recommendation to close the program by parties in the academic unit and/or others in the University.

Click here for a brief description of the program closure process.

Click here for a detailed description of the program closure process.

Click here for details on the "Program Closure Alternative Process 1", which is available if all academic unit parties and the Provost are in support of program closure. 

Click here for details on the "Program Closure Alternative Process 2", which is available if there is not unanimous agreement among academic unit parties, and/or with the Provost for closure.

Final Decision: The Provost has final authority to decide to approve or not approve the program closure.

Upon determination by the Provost to close or not to close a program, notification of the decision is sent by the Office of the Provost to:

• President, Faculty Senate
• Dean, academic unit curriculum committee and program/department faculty
• Vice Provost for Undergraduate Education or Graduate Education
• Director of Accreditation & Assessment, who will notify WASC on closure
• Office of Enrollment Management Services and Admissions Office
• Enrollment Services/Registrar (on closure only)
• Strategic Marketing & Communication (on closure only)
• EVP/COO (on closure only)
• Legal Affairs (on closure only)
• Board of Trustees (on closure only)

Process following approval of closure:

The following communication is required once the major program closure is approved:

1. An official notice of program closure to all active and inactive students. The notice should include the following:
2. Communicate to all active and inactive students, in writing, about details of the program closure.
3. A timeline for the closure, and that we have not accepted any students for fall and are no longer accepting applications for future terms.
4. A timeline and a specific course plan to help students complete their program in a timely way – what courses will be offered in which terms so that the students can appropriately plan for the completion of their degrees.
5. Notice to offer advising sessions to any student who has questions or concerns about their ability to finish within the provided timeframe with the assurance that the program is going to do our best to help every student finish.
6. In the event that a student cannot finish within that time frame, the program will do its best to help them finish at another program/institution.
7. The tuition and fees and pricing structure for the remaining terms.
8. An official notice of program closure to all faculty and staff in the program.
9. An update the program website with program closure information.

It is the faculty’s responsibility to maintain the integrity of academic offerings in the catalog. The academic integrity of the catalog is undermined when emphases, areas of study and courses listed in the catalog are not offered on a regular basis. If a minor, graduate emphasis or area of study, graduate specialization, graduate credential, or certificate for academic credit has had no students for three years or more, the program/department faculty must make a case for its continuation or the Undergraduate Academic Council may recommend its elimination in the program review process.

The Faculty Senate recommends to all academic units and programs/departments that they drop from the catalog any emphases, areas of study, or other programs in which required courses have not been offered and taught with the minimum enrollment requirement within the last four years as established by the Provost. A course or courses selected from a larger list are not considered required.

The closure of a Certificate for Academic Credit program must be reported to WASC. Please notify the Director of Accreditation & Assessment of a certificate program closure to ensure that all required steps are taken and reports are made.

The form to close a minor, area of study, or certificate for academic credit can be found here.

A proposal to terminate a Minor; Area of Study, or Certificate for Academic Credit may originate with an academic unit, dean, the Provost, or the UAC.

A rationale for the proposed closure is reviewed and a recommendation on approval is made by the:

• Written response sent to the academic unit curriculum committee.
• Academic unit curriculum committee. Written response sent to the program/department faculty.
• Program/department faculty.

Each party listed above may provide a position memorandum on their decision.

• The academic unit must notify the Director of Accreditation & Assessment of any closure of a Minor; Area of Study, or Certificate for Academic Credit.

Note that the closure of an undergraduate emphasis or areas of study should use the complex revision process.  

Proposals, with optional written responses from the various recommending parties, is sent to the Vice Provost for Undergraduate Education, who forwards it to the Chair of UAC.

UAC reviews and approves or denies proposal.

A proposal to terminate an existing minor, area of study, or certificate for academic credit must be vetted by the program/department faculty and academic curriculum committee, in consultation with the dean and other appropriate administrators and submitted to the program/department faculty for approval. An academic unit or program/department that proposes to close an existing minor, or certificate for academic credit must get the approval of the program/department faculty, academic unit curriculum committee and the dean and must notify the Vice President for Enrollment Management and the Director of Accreditation & Assessment of the proposed change.

The proposal for closing a minor; area of study, specialization or credential; or academic certificate must be submitted to the appropriate Vice Provost for Undergraduate Education, accompanied by the Closing a Minor, Area of Study or Certificate for Academic Credit Program Form. The forms document the recommendations on approval made by the program/department faculty, the academic unit curriculum committee and the dean. Each of these parties may attach a position memo to the proposal form. The signatories for a proposal originating from the academic unit must include the date of the faculty meeting at which the proposal was approved. The Vice Provost will forward all elements of the proposal to the Undergraduate Academic Council as appropriate.

A proposal to close a minor, area of study, or certificate should present a written proposal with the reasons for closing it, the impact on the academic unit and program/department. The proposal must include a description of the impact on other academic units and program/departments and address:

• Any other programs with requirements that are cross-listed with the program whose termination is being proposed.
• Any other programs with required courses that will be deleted by the closure of the program.

The proposal must also include a plan for teaching out the program. The teach-out policy must address:

• Information and process that will be put in place to notify students of the changes in the minor, area of study, or certificate.
• The process by which students will complete their program under the catalogs in which it was offered.
• The ability to ensure that the program can be completed—who is responsible for ensuring the offering of courses needed to complete program?
• If a new program is being offered in its place, whether or not students can bridge from old to new program without penalty, and how is this achieved

The proposal information above should be provided with the appropriate form and signatures required.

New Course Proposal forms may be submitted at any time during the academic year. After all approvals are received, new courses are entered into the course master by the Office of the Registrar and then they become active. Once active, a course may be offered. New course listings and descriptions will appear in the following year’s catalog.

The approval of New Course Proposal forms is the responsibility of the faculty of each respective academic unit. A faculty member develops a course and inputs the required information into a New Course Proposal form online in Curriculog. (The form input may be done by an administrative assistant.)

New course workflow approvals in Curriculog are as follows:

• The Originator
• Academic unit’s designated approver
• Associate Registrar for Catalog and Degree Audit
• Vice Provost for Undergraduate or Graduate Education
• Vice Provost for Operations and Finance
• Associate Registrar for Catalog and Degree Audit

Faculty or administrators wishing to cross-list courses must submit a Request for Cross-listed Course Form. The form requests a detailed rationale on the purpose of cross-listing. Attach the form and documents to the Course Proposal forms requesting to be cross-listed. Courses requesting to be cross-listed must be submitted at the same time in Curriculog. Cross-listed course requests should be indicated on each New or Change course proposal form submitted. Relevant program approvers must indicate their approval of the course and their agreement that the course is multi-disciplinary and interdisciplinary in nature or provide a rationale if another type of cross-listing is requested.

The form to create a cross-listed course can be found here.

Interdisciplinary cross-listed courses must have the same course description, learning outcomes, and other appropriate information, and faculty need to make required changes on course proposal forms and submit in Curriculog to align the criteria of cross-listed courses.

Cross-listed courses are subject to approval by the Undergraduate Academic Council, which may choose to delegate approval authority to the appropriate Vice Provost.

The Undergraduate Academic Council generally discourages cross-listing courses, but academic units may seek approval for cross-listing under certain circumstances. Specifically, the Undergraduate Academic Council supports cross-listing interdisciplinary or multi-disciplinary courses across academic units/departments, providing that the criteria listed below are met.

Cross-listed courses must include the appropriate rigor, expectations, content and methodologies for their respective levels of credit and discipline(s). The Curriculum Committee of a particular college or school may be charged with determining the appropriateness of cross-listing courses by subject area(s), but the Undergraduate Academic Council retains the authority to approve or deny their recommendation.

Courses should not be cross-listed for the sole purpose of increasing potential enrollments.

Click here for UAC & GAC policies regarding cross-listed courses

If approved for cross-listing, a course must use the same course number in each of the academic units in which they are listed. For example, "REL 350 (same as HIST”350)" under Religion and “HIST 350 (same as REL 350)” under History. Students who have enrolled in a course under one academic unit/department code may not change the offering academic unit/department name credit after the course has been completed.

Cross-listed courses are considered equivalent. Students should not be repeating the same cross-listed course simply because it is listed in another discipline. Note that cross-listed topics courses are distinguished by their topic designation.

If two courses are cross-listed, the enrollments are allocated to the home department/academic unit. For example, PCST 257:  Model United Nations is cross-listed with POSC 257. The enrollments count in the Peace Studies program because it is the home department/academic unit, regardless of who is teaching the course and regardless of whether the students are enrolled under PCST or POSC. The revenues are allocated to the department/academic unit of the faculty member teaching the course. The home department is designated in the initial request for cross-listing.

A note on cross-listing and interdisciplinary programs (e.g., majors, minors, emphases, specializations, credentials, certificates, etc.):  A program that includes courses from more than one department/academic unit should list all of the approved courses (by subject code of the academic unit offering the course) under the program’s catalog description and with the Office of the University Registrar’s degree audit program. Programs should only cross-list individual courses that are themselves inherently inter- or multidisciplinary, not the entire array of courses within the program. For example, if a given program includes coursework from biology, psychology, chemistry and sociology, then each course should retain its appropriate departmental/academic unit course designation and not be cross-listed with other departments/academic units. 

The General Education Committee must review all courses requesting a general education (GE) course designation. Courses requesting GE, including individual topics and experimental courses, must be submitted in Curriculog on an Undergraduate GE Course Proposal Form.

GE course request process:

1. Submit the course for academic approval (New or change proposal) and wait for it to be completed in Curriculog. Learning outcomes for GE categories requested must be included in the New or Changed course proposal form.
2. Once completed in Curriculog, create, and submit an Undergraduate GE Proposal Form (Make sure to import the course from the catalog into the GE form.)
3. Select up to three GE categories for approval.
4. Attach the course syllabus, which includes all GE required criteria and information.
5. Approve the form. The Curriculog workflow will direct the GE Proposal form to the General Education Committee for review.

Undergraduate GE Course Proposal form workflow approvals in Curriculog:

• The Originator
• Academic unit’s designated approver
• GE Committee
• Associate Registrar for Catalog and Degree Audit

The General Education Program website provides General Education program guidelines and General Education category learning outcomes.

1. Submit a rationale (100-200 words) that explains how diversity is a key component of the course. The rationale should: describe the diversity topic(s); provide a brief explanation of the specific diversity topics covered in the course schedule; offer examples and descriptions of readings and assignments from the syllabus that address the diversity dimensions; and if applicable, explain any pedagogical considerations that relate to diversity.
2. Have specific elements in the course syllabus that highlight the main aspects of diversity covered in the course. These include: two or more specific diversity learning outcomes drawn from or aligned with, the DEI Learning Outcomes listed below; elements throughout the syllabus that explain how specific class activities (e.g., readings, assignments, etc.) address the diversity requirement; one or more assignments that require students to demonstrate one or more DEI-related student learning outcomes.
3. Provide a paragraph under the course description that explains how the course meets the university diversity requirement and highlights the diversity status of the course.

Description approved by the Chapman University Faculty Senate, Spring, 2022:

These courses address issues arising from intolerance and/or exclusion due to one or more of the following: race, gender identity, national or ethnic origin, religion, sex, sexual orientation, socio-economic background, age, and/or disability and align with Chapman University’s mission to help students to lead inquiring, ethical and productive lives as global citizens.

All courses satisfying the requirement must provide discussion and analysis concerning:

• the existence of intolerance and exclusion due to one or more of the following: race, gender identity, national or ethnic origin, religion, sex, sexual orientation, socio-economic background, age, and/or disability, within or outside the United States, and the ways these have been challenged.
• the relationship of intolerance and exclusion due to race, gender identity, national or ethnic origin, religion, sex, sexual orientation, socio-economic background, age, and/or disability, within or outside the United States, to the existence of equality or inequality and the ways these have been challenged.

1. Interpret identity as multifaceted and constituting multiple categories of difference, such as race, gender identity, national or ethnic origin, religion, sex, sexual orientation, socio-economic background, age, and/or disability as operating by individual and group.
2. Describe how cultures (including their own) are shaped by the intersections of a variety of factors such race, gender identity, national or ethnic origin, religion, sex, sexual orientation, socio-economic background, age, and/or disability and/or other socially constructed categories of difference.
3. Recognize the complex elements of intolerance and exclusion on a local, national and/or global scale by identifying historic, judicial, economic, political, and/or social factors, such as ethnocentrism, colonialism, slavery, democracy, and imperialism that may result based on difference(s).
4. Analyze and communicate the consequences of elements of intolerance and exclusion based on categories of difference on a local, national and/or global scale.
5. Communicate how sociocultural status and access to (or distribution of) resources are informed and impacted by one or more cultural practices within historical, social, cultural, and economic systems.

• A title and course description that explicitly address diversity issue(s).
• A one-paragraph rationale explaining how diversity is a key component.
• The rationale explains how diversity is a key theme of the course by referring to course objectives, texts, syllabus, and relevant assignments.
• The syllabus clearly specifies how course texts, class sessions, and assignments cover diversity learning outcomes.
• The course must be submitted for consideration through Curriculog course management system: https://chapman.curriculog.com/ 

All changes to existing course criteria (including changes in course description, title, grade option, prerequisites, fees, faculty load, number of credits, course component, etc.) are to be submitted though a Change in Existing Course Proposal form online in Curriculog. Course changes must be submitted by March 15 to be included in the following year’s catalog.

When revising a course, it is crucial to pay attention to the Impact Statement, which is run as part of the Curriculog input process. If a course being revised is used in any other program, it is the responsibility of the program changing the course to notify the other program.

Change course form workflow approvals in Curriculog:

• The Originator
• Academic unit’s designated approver
• Associate Registrar for Catalog and Degree Audit

Note: Programs/departments must make all corrections to course criteria through a Change of Existing Course Proposal form in Curriculog before the Office of the Registrar can make the changes in the course master’s course criteria. Course changes must be submitted by March 15 to be included in the following year’s catalog.

Academic units may submit a Change of Existing Course Proposal Form or an Inactivate Course Proposal Form in Curriculog.

When inactivating a course, it is crucial to pay attention to the Impact Statement, which is run as part of the Curriculog process. If a course being inactivated is used in any other program, it is the responsibility of the program inactivating the course to notify the other program.

After approved, a change of an existing course will be updated in the University catalog, but its criteria will remain on students’ academic records as it was, when it was taken. Previous course forms will remain as a record in Curriculog. Change of Existing Course Proposals must be submitted by March 15 to be updated in the following year’s catalog and academic year.

After approved, an inactive course will be removed from the University catalog but will remain on students’ academic records and will remain as a record in Curriculog and the Office of the Registrar. Inactivate Course Proposals must be submitted by March 15 to be removed from the following year’s catalog.

Change and Inactive course proposal form workflow approvals in Curriculog are as follows:

• The Originator
• Academic unit’s designated approver
• Associate Registrar for Catalog and Degree Audit

Academic units should monitor their curriculum to avoid a proliferation of courses without regard to their utility. Courses no longer an essential part of the curriculum should be considered for removal. A course should be inactivated for the following reasons:

• The course number has been changed.
• The course will no longer be offered.
• The entire content of the course has changed.
• The course has not been taught for 4 years or more.

Note: Courses that have not been taught for 4 years or more should be made inactive and removed from the subsequent catalog. It is the policy of the Vice Provost for Undergraduate Education & Student Success to notify units of courses not taught in the past 4 years, and request that these courses be made inactive, or that a rationale for keeping the course active in the catalog be provided. Even if a rationale for keeping the course in the catalog is made and accepted, a course will not retain its general education designation, if applicable, if it has not been offered in 4 years. It will need to be re-submitted for General Education approval if offered again.

Academic units should consult with any units whose degree requirements are affected by the proposed course deletions. Deletion of courses that are used in GE Themed Inquiry program(s) (formerly Inter/Multidisciplinary clusters) should notify the Themed Inquiry coordinator(s). Courses with GE designations that are deleted are automatically sent to the Vice Provost for Undergraduate Education & Student Success to update GE information.

Most changes to information in the catalog are done through the filing of new, revised or inactivated course proposals and program revision proposals in Curriculog, which then allows input of the data from those forms directly into the catalog editing system. New programs and program closures are handled through filings as described in this handbook. Proposal deadlines are given in the calendar at the beginning of this Handbook. Changes in the narrative in the cover pages for academic units or departments are due no later than January 31.

The new graduate and undergraduate catalogs apply to students matriculating that catalog year and thereafter. Undergraduate transfer students enter under the catalog from the prior year.

All catalog materials should be reviewed by academic units and programs/departments in the interest of removing inconsistencies and errors and furthering accuracy, clarity and uniformity the year prior to the publication of new catalogs.

Academic units are encouraged to take a hard look at programs, majors, emphases, minors and courses that are not realistic in terms of faculty resources or student demand. Thorough self-appraisal is asked of all course-offering units. Program changes and course changes should be submitted through the Curriculog as needed to initiate these catalog changes.

General Calendar for Catalog Information

• August 1: Academic Units begin program and course changes through the program proposal process or course proposal submissions in Curriculog.
• March 15: Deadline for course changes for catalogs are submitted in Curriculog. (January 31 deadline for college/school/department descriptive narrative changes to be provided to the Associate Registrar for Catalog and Degree Audit for incorporation into the new catalog.

The selection of the appropriate CIP code for a new program, or the changing of a CIP code for an existing program must be done in consultation with the Director of Accreditation & Assessment and the Office of the University Registrar. The number must be included in all new program proposals. Changing a CIP code for an existing program also requires consultation with the Director of Accreditation & Assessment and the Office of the University Registrar. A request for changing a CIP Code is considered a program revision and should follow the complex revision process.

Information on CIP codes is provided below:

The Classification of Instructional Programs (CIP) provides a taxonomic scheme that supports the accurate tracking and reporting of fields of study and program completions activity. CIP was originally developed by the U.S. Department of Education's National Center for Education Statistics (NCES) in 1980 and revised several times thereafter.

The CIP titles and program descriptions are intended to be generic categories into which program completions data can be placed, not exact duplicates of a specific major or field of study titles used by individual institutions. CIP codes are standard statistical coding tools that reflect current practice and are not a prescriptive list of officially recognized or permitted programs. The CIP is not intended to be a regulatory device. CIP codes, for the most part, are not intended to correspond exclusively to any specific degree or program level. In most cases, any given instructional program may be offered at various levels, and CIP codes are intended to capture all such data.

The vast majority of CIP titles correspond to academic and occupational instructional programs offered for credit at the postsecondary level. These programs result in recognized completion points and awards, including degrees, certificates, and other formal awards. The CIP also includes other types of instructional programs, such as residency programs in various dental, medical, podiatric, and veterinary specialties that may lead to advanced professional certification; personal improvement and leisure programs; and instructional programs that lead to diplomas and certificates at the secondary level only.

The CIP is the accepted federal government statistical standard on instructional program classifications and is used in a variety of education information surveys and databases. Since it was first published in 1980, the CIP has been used by NCES in the Integrated Postsecondary Education Data System (IPEDS) and its predecessor, the Higher Education General Information Survey (HEGIS) to code degree completions. It is also used by other Department of Education offices, such as the Office for Civil Rights, the Office of Vocational and Adult Education, and the Office of Special Education, and serves as the standard on instructional programs for other federal agencies, including the National Science Foundation (NSF), the Department of Commerce (Bureau of the Census), the Department of Labor (Bureau of Labor Statistics), and others. The CIP is used by state agencies, national associations, academic institutions, and employment counseling services for collecting, reporting, and analyzing instructional program data.

Detailed information on CIP codes can be found at the National Center for Educational Statistics website on CIP Codes. Information on the current CIP code for a Chapman academic program can be obtained from the Office of the University Registrar.

• 001–099: Remedial courses and courses not appropriate for college degree credit but designed to meet specific needs of individuals or groups where degree credit is not required. Remedial courses are non–credit courses.
• 100–199: Introductory level courses, most appropriate for first-year- and sophomore-level students. No prerequisites.
• 200–299: Lower division courses, most appropriate for first-year and sophomore level students. Some may have prerequisites. First-year students may be admitted to 200-level courses with prerequisite requirements and/or with their advisor's or instructor’s consent.
• 300–399: Upper division courses for  junior- and senior-level students and to which sophomores may be admitted, provided that they meet the prerequisites and have their advisor's consent. First-year students are admitted with written consent of advisor and instructor.
• 400–499: Upper division courses for  junior- and senior-level students and to which lower division students are not admitted. First-year students and sophomores may not enroll.

Special Courses: 

The course numbers listed below are reserved for the accompanying subjects:

• 129/229/329/429: Experimental courses
• 290/490: Independent internship
• 291/491: Student faculty research/creative activity
• 492: Seminar internship
• 199/299/399/499: Individual study
• SA 100/200/300/400: Study abroad courses
• 497/498: Senior seminar, senior project

All Chapman University courses are offered on the basis of credit hours or credits. One credit hour of coursework requires one face-to-face contact hour (note: one contact hour = 50 minutes) per week between a faculty member and a student and two hours of assigned coursework per week on the part of the student outside of the classroom for a regular term. The typical three-credit course requires three contact hours per week and six hours of assigned coursework per week or 45 contact hours and 90 hours of assigned coursework for a regular term (15 weeks including the final exam period). Note that some classes meet beyond the scheduled class times based on the credits listed and that the number of contact hours and assigned coursework in lab courses, individually directed courses, non-traditional media-based courses and travel courses is tailored to the type of course and/or course objectives.

Lab courses are courses that have a strong skill component and typically require a special room, equipment or fieldwork experience for students to utilize to enhance their learning. One credit of a lab course requires a minimum of three contact hours, which may include a minimum of three hours of face-to-face contact hour per week between a faculty member and a student or a combination of face-to-face contact hours and assigned coursework to total three contact hours of engagement per week of instruction for a regular term.

Individually directed courses provide a more in-depth interaction between student, faculty member and course materials or research project. Since, typically, a student works one-on-one with a faculty member and receives an intensified experience of personalized education, the contact hours and amount of assigned coursework are tailored to the nature of the coursework and may exceed the minimum requirements given below.

• Reading and conference courses require a minimum of five hours of instructor-student contact per credit hour and a minimum of 30 hours of outside work per credit hour per term.
• Individual study and research courses require a minimum of five hours of instructor-student contact per credit hour and 30 hours of outside work per credit hour per term. In these courses the program is designed by the faculty member and the student working collaboratively and approved prior to the start of the term.
• Graduate thesis credits require a minimum of five hours of instructor-student contact per credit hour and 30 hours of outside work per credit hour per term. Students registering for graduate thesis credits pursue graduate research or a project in collaboration with a thesis or project advisor.

Travel courses are courses that occur primarily off-campus such as elsewhere in the United States or abroad. Travel courses are measured in weeks, with each week garnering a maximum of one credit. Each credit requires a minimum of 15 hours of contact or experience and 30 hours of assigned coursework or experience per credit hour. For courses that have two weeks of travel, 15 contact hours are required before and/or after travel.

Nontraditional Courses (Online and Hybrid/Blended Courses)

Online courses are courses that have few or no face-to-face contact hours between a faculty member and a student. Instead, student/faculty contact is mediated by the web. This contact can be either synchronous (e.g., chat or virtual classroom) or asynchronous (e.g., a discussion board). Whether synchronous or asynchronous, a faculty member is expected to offer course-related content to a student that engages a student for a total of 45 hours over the term for a three-credit course. Student engagement may include some discussion with other students; however, it is expected that a faculty member will monitor and participate in discussion and provide an appropriate level of feedback at regular intervals during the term. As with traditional courses, there should be a total of 90 hours of additional assigned coursework over the term for a three-credit course.

Hybrid/blended courses are courses with both face-to-face contact in a classroom setting and web-mediated contact between a faculty member and a student. Web-mediated contact can be either synchronous (e.g., chat or virtual classroom) or asynchronous (e.g., a discussion board). Web-mediated contact may include some discussion with other students in the class; however, it is expected that a faculty member will monitor and participate in discussion and provide an appropriate level of feedback at regular intervals during the term. The total combined contact hours (face-to-face and web-mediated) should sum to 45 hours over the term for a three-credit course. As with traditional courses, there should be a total of 90 hours of additional assigned coursework over the term for a three-credit course.

Each academic unit may determine its own approval system for courses prior to the point of submission in Curriculog. New courses may be approved only by programs/departments or may need to be vetted by academic unit curriculum committees. In some academic units, sign off approval may be given to a chair, head of academic unit, chair of the curriculum committee, associate dean or dean rather than the program/department faculty prior to submission in Curriculog. Each year the Associate Registrar for Catalog and Degree Audit will request an update of course approvers in each program/department so that the appropriate individual is contacted for approval.

The Undergraduate Academic Council review all course syllabi only when submitted in new program proposals, and in academic programs during the program review process. These council does not review new or revised course proposals.

The General Education Committee reviews syllabi for consideration for general education category approval.

The Diversity, Equity and Inclusion Committee reviews syllabi for consideration for DEI category approval.

The curriculum process for courses requires submission of course proposals online in Curriculog using the following:

• New Course Proposal form
• Change in Existing Course Proposal form
• Inactivate Course Proposal form

Course proposals may also indicate the following:

• General Education Course requests
• Travel Course requests
• Cross-listed Course requests
• Diversity, Equity, Inclusion (DEI) course status

 The course proposals process and workflow is as follows:

• Course proposals are input online in Curriculog.
• A correctly input course form will allow Curriculog’s workflow to send each course proposal to the correct approvers.
• The name of the program/department’s designated approver in Curriculog for each subject code/program, and any changes to the person holding that role, need to be communicated to the Associate Registrar for Catalog and Degree Audit.

Guidelines for the Various Criteria Required for Course Proposals in Curriculog

Curriculog is an online curriculum management system into which new, revised, or inactivated course information is input, and requests for approvals are then sent to the appropriate individuals in its workflow. Curriculog provides information to the registrar’s office, the course catalog, the general education program and the Office of Global Education. The information also transfers to the next year’s course catalog.

Questions regarding Curriculog course proposals, or requests for training, should be sent to Associate Registrar, Catalog & Degree Audit. 

Below is a list of information required to be input into the course approval system:

• Impact report (run only if a change or inactivation form): Fill in information from report to the proposal form. Notify other programs if change or inactivation affects their program listings.
• First term to be offered (or changes begin): Fill in term as appropriate.
• Course status: "Active-Visible" - for all courses that will appear in the catalog. "Inactive-Hidden" - only selected if proposing a "one year only" experimental course topic (129, 229, 329, 429) that also plans to request GE or Travel course approval. 
• Faculty member(s): Fill in name(s) as appropriate.
• Academic unit approving: Select from drop down menu. (Choose the academic unit required for this course approval.)
• Acalog hierarchy: Select from drop down menu. (This determines where the course is listed in the University catalog (Acalog system). This is either a school or department/program page.)
• Subject code description: Select from drop down menu. (This is the meaning of the subject code. Example: the subject code description is English; the subject code is ENG.)
• Subject code: Select from drop down menu.
• Course number: Curriculog does not show all course numbers open to an academic unit or department. Please refer to the Course master of active courses sent annually to each College and School. If you wish a copy, please consult Associate Registrar for Catalog & Degree Audit if there are any questions.
• Numbering System/Course Number: Courses must reflect the academic level and requirements indicated in the course number.
  • 100–200: Introductory level courses, most appropriate for first-year and sophomores
  • 300–400: More advanced courses, most appropriate for juniors and seniors
• Course title (not abbreviations): Fill in the title or revise it as determined.
• Course Description: A course description is the same thing as the catalog description. In writing the course description, please follow the guidelines below:
  • A description should offer a statement of the course goals and material to be covered. The style of the description should conform to the following:
    • Use nouns and verbs and complete sentences.
    • Use active verbs.
    • Write in the third person and do not change.
    • Avoid using a series of questions as a way to introduce the course descriptions.While there is no word-count limit, please keep the course description brief and to the point.
    • All course descriptions will be listed in one paragraph in the catalog. Additional paragraphs, or bullets/numbering will be combined into one paragraph.
    • For questions on style, please consult the Chapman University Communications Style Guide.
    • The course description must include language addressing teaching methodology if a course is taught online or as a hybrid/blended course, or if some sections of a course are taught in this manner. See Policy Regarding Online and Hybrid/Blended Course Offerings. If appropriate, and approved by your program faculty, you may include a sentence prior to the fee, such as “Some sections of XXX 122 are held with YYY 122. This is not the same as cross-listing but will be considered a combined course.
    • If a revision to the course is made that changes the name or catalog description, submit a change of existing course proposal form in Curriculog. The course description will be updated in the following year’s catalog. Descriptions must be given not only for new courses and experimental courses, but also for specific topics or seminar courses that are offered under generic syllabi.
• Credits: Provide the minimum, maximum, and incremental number of credits that may be earned for this course.
• Undergraduate courses that are cross-listed with courses for graduate credit must include additional requirements for those receiving graduate credit in the graduate course listing and on the graduate syllabus, and this information must be included in the course criteria submitted in Curriculog. It is the responsibility of the academic unit/department to ensure that this is in place.
• Courses are normally three credits (2 and 1/2 hours per week per 15-week term). Courses with lab requirements normally receive four credits (three additional hours for lab).
• One credit should correspond to approximately 15 contact hours. The number of credits for a course should not exceed the number of weeks over which the course is given.
• Travel courses are limited to a maximum of 1 credit per week of full-time travel/study, with 1 additional credit for additional readings, papers and class meetings required before or after the course. A travel course can have no more than one week (to consist of at least 15 contact hours) of non-travel study before and/or after the travel, except in rare cases. 
• Courses typically offered (or frequency of offerings): In Curriculog please select from the dropdown menu one of the standard offerings. Students use this information in planning their schedules. While some instances such as sabbaticals, or changes in faculty may throw the schedule of course offerings off for a term, the frequency should be listed as to when a course is expected to regularly be offered. The “as needed” designation should be avoided whenever possible
• Prerequisite Courses: Upper division and graduate courses should normally carry course prerequisites. In cases that they do not, other non-course prerequisites must be specified indicating the appropriate academic maturity required for a student to take the course. Also include all other restrictions on academic level required.
• Corequisite Courses: List any course that must be taken at the same time as the course, such as a lab.
• Restrictions: Restrictions Include these fields:
  • Consent of instructor required, (Fill in yes or no)
  • Degree restrictions, (From the drop-down menu, select majors, minors or General Education Themed Inquiry students that are only allowed to enroll)
  • Class standing restrictions, (Select from the drop-down menu as appropriate for course level or the content of the course restrictions.)
  • Additional restrictions, (This includes specific GPAs or required tests, etc.)
• Grading basis: Grading options to select from the drop-down menu include:
  • Letter Grade with Pass/No Pass option. (Students may select)
  • Letter Grade.
  • Numerical grading.
  • Pass/No Pass. (Note: that Pass/No Pass requires a C+ to pass for graduate courses and a C- to pass for undergraduate courses.)
• Repeatability (or repeating a course): Academic units/departments may put a limit on how often a course may be repeated for credit. Most courses are only taken once, but some courses, such as internships, individual studies, research/creative activity courses, or travel courses may be repeated more than once. The academic unit/department may limit how often a course may be repeated and count towards the degree. Some courses may be repeated when content varies. Select the repeatable option that applies:
  • Repeatable for credit if the topic is different.
  • This course may be repeated for credit.
  • With consent, this course may be repeated for credit.
  • Indicate the total credits allowed: (total includes repeat credits).
• Fee Information: Minimum allowable fee is $75. Input fee amount and include a fee justification.
• Course Learning Outcomes: This section should specify the intended learning outcomes of the course. The outcomes are brief statements of student abilities or behaviors that can be observed or demonstrated as a result of the course.
• Program or General Education Learning Outcomes: This section should specify the learning outcomes for the degree program that the course supports and, if not apparent, describe how course outcomes support the program outcomes. If the course is designated to satisfy a GE requirement it should state the correlating GE learning outcome.
• Instruction Mode: Select from the following list:
  • HS = High School
  • HY = Hybrid
  • IT = Internships
  • ON = Online
  • P = in Person
  • RC = Reading and Conference
  • SA = Study Abroad
  • SU = Supervision
  • TL = Travel
• Course Component: Select from the following list:
  • ACT = Activity (physical-based course only)
  • EI = Electronic Instruction
  • FW = Field Work
  • HY = Hybrid
  • IS = Individual Study
  • IT = Internship
  • LAB = Lab
  • LEC = Lecture/Seminar (note that most courses receive this designation even if not held in traditional lecture or seminar formats)
  • PI = Private Instruction (music only)
  • PW = Performance Workshop (used by performing arts only)
  • RC = Reading and Conference
  • RS = Research and Creative Activity (must have permission to use this designation)
  • THE = Thesis
• Audit: Faculty and academic unit/department should indicate if auditing the course is allowed.
• Course replaces or equate to another course: If 'yes', course(s) should be equated, please provide equated course(s).
• Faculty Load credit(s): List credits allocated towards faculty load. Indicate the minimum and maximum credits. If faculty load credit(s) are different from students, a justification must be submitted on the Course Proposal form.
• Cross-listed Information: If you wish to cross-list courses, each academic unit head must sign the Cross-listed Form and then attach it to each course proposal. Indicate all academic units cross-listing and which academic unit will be credited as the home/primary course. (Courses cross-listed with this course are noted as "Same as" in a parenthesis. Example: (Same as XX 400.)
• Request GE Approval: Selecting yes will require submitting an additional GE proposal form after this new course proposal form is academically approved. Submitting a GE proposal form will automatically forward your course to the GE Committee for review. Please note, the GE Committee also requires a course syllabus that includes all GE required content and outcomes to be submitted with the GE proposal form.
• Request Travel Course Approval: Selecting yes will require responding to additional questions regarding itinerary, schedule of lectures and detailed assignments during trip. Additional information may be requested separately. Selecting yes requires attaching the travel course syllabus to the Curriculog new course proposal form. Please note, a travel course syllabus must include content, required text(s), instructional strategies, methods of evaluation, itinerary, schedule of lectures, detailed assignments during trip. 
• Attachments and Check:
  • Attach: any required forms or syllabi by navigating to the proposal toolbox on the right-hand side and select the paper clip, "Files" icon.
  • Check: “I have completed all relevant parts of this form.” and “IF APPLICABLE, I have submitted a signed cross-listed form and/or syllabus for a travel course as requested within this proposal form.”
• Validate and Launch: Select this option to begin the course approval workflow. (The first approver is the originator of the form.)

For questions about course submissions and approvals email CourseInfo@chapman.edu or the Associate Registrar for Catalog and Degree Audit

Travel Courses

The Undergraduate Academic Council strongly encourage faculty and administrators to develop and offer travel courses because of their unique experiential dimension and the important role they can play in exposing students to the world and its various cultures.

First-time travel course criteria, just as all new courses, should be input online in a New Course Proposal Form in Curriculog. Within the Curriculog workflow, the course form is then forwarded to the appropriate academic unit head/designated approver for review. Approved course forms are then submitted to the Associate Registrar for Catalog and Degree Audit. From there, the new travel course form will be directed for approvals to the Director of the Center for Global Education, the Vice Provost for Undergraduate Education or Vice Provost for Graduate Education, the Vice Provost of Operations and Finance and the General Education Committee, if applicable (note: all international travel courses automatically receive GE Global Studies (“GC”) designation and do not need separate General Education Committee submission or review).

Travel Course proposals - Courses requesting Travel course designations will be automatically submitted to the Center for Global Education through Curriculog. Courses requesting a travel course designation review, including individual topics and experimental courses, must be submitted in Curriculog. Travel course requests should be indicated on New Course Proposal forms. A course syllabus with all travel course required information should be attached to the New Course Proposal Form when submitted.

The specific learning outcomes and course plan of the travel course should be laid out in the course syllabus with attention to the experiential aspects of learning. If credit towards GE requirements is requested, the syllabus must show how the learning outcomes for each GE designation requested are fulfilled by the course (other than the “GC” designation, which is automatic). If other GE designations are requested refer to “General Education Courses” above.

Travel course guidelines may be found in the Faculty Travel Course Handbook. All students participating in a travel course must sign the appropriate forms before their departure. Necessary forms can be located at the Center for Global Education Web site under travel courses and internships. It is the responsibility of the faculty member leading the travel course to make sure that all the forms are signed, collected and handed to the Center for Global Education before departure. The Center for Global Education will coordinate registration with the Office of the University Registrar using the faculty authorization form.

The following guidelines are presented by the Undergraduate and Graduate Academic Council for all travel courses to ensure that faculty travel leaders provide appropriate and consistent intellectual requirements for their students and that the activities and travel experience be oriented toward specific learning goals, while taking into consideration students’ need for some diversion in such an intensive learning experience.

• The specific learning objectives and course plan should be clarified through the submission of a syllabus in which the course requirements will be oriented to the travel and experiential plans.
• It is the Undergraduate Academic Council’s charge to ensure that all syllabi demonstrate appropriate academic rigor; this is particularly so with travel courses, where the travel experience must be clearly distinct from simple tourism. Before approving each syllabus, the council asks that the faculty member articulate the pedagogical rationale for what might be called the "tourist" component of each course (tours to famous sites) in relation to the academic component. How will specific assignments serve to integrate these two aspects? We suggest that this statement go under the "instructional strategies" section of the syllabus (see the sample syllabus).
• Each credit requires at least 15 contact hours per week (one week per credit) between faculty and students (note: one contact hour = 50 minutes). Total contact hours should be spread out over the duration of the travel course. While some reading should be encouraged during travel, the intensive nature of such an experience precludes heavy reading requirements at that time. Nevertheless, some assessment of the learning acquired by the experience itself must be required, normally through a paper written upon the students’ return, for which notes (such as a journal) should be kept during the trip and/or some combination of the two.
• Credit for travel courses is limited to a maximum of one credit per week of full-time travel/study, with one additional credit for additional readings, papers and class meetings required before or after the course. A travel course can have no more than one week (to consist of at least 15 contact hours) of non-travel study before and/or after the travel, except in rare cases.
• No student may take two travel courses simultaneously.
• Most of the reading and discussion for which credit is given, designed to illuminate the experience, should be completed prior to the trip, along with pre-trip testing or other appropriate evaluation. These requirements should correspond to the number of credits granted for such preparation. For example, if the trip is for two weeks and three credits are to be granted to the students for the entire experience, the reading required should be equal to that required for a third of a normal three-credit course. Preparatory meetings with students should provide the corresponding appropriate time for discussion and evaluation of such preparatory learning.
• There may also be learning that builds upon the experience after the course is over. Such complementary learning may even be split, some occurring before and some after the experience. In such cases the same criterion for the total number of credits granted would hold. Thus, six credits could be granted for a course in the summer if the total number of contact hours is a minimum of 90 and the contact hours take place over six weeks (one week per credit).
• Faculty members are required to complete the faculty evaluation form.
• A faculty member may not conduct two travel courses concurrently.
• Travel courses in the January interterm are limited to a maximum of four credits.
• Travel course credit can only be applied for work or travel undertaken during the specified dates of the respective term (Academic Committee, Oct. 1, 1996).
• Travel courses must follow all relevant WASC guidelines for travel courses.

All travel courses will be reviewed by the Undergraduate Academic Council for re-approval every three years. 

Departments/academic units proposing programs with online or blended coursework are required to consult with the Provost's office.

If the proportion of program courses delivered through distance education is 50% or more of the program courses, WASC accreditation guidelines require that the program be reviewed as a substantive change request.

DISTANCE EDUCATION COURSE REQUIREMENTS
All courses offered at Chapman University must meet the same high standards in terms of the educational experience they offer to students, regardless of the mode of instruction. Specifically, these standards include:

• Active engagement of a qualified instructor who has significant expertise in the subject of the course.
• Frequent instructor-guided activity to support student learning.
• A means for students to periodically assess their progress towards achievement of course learning goals.

Courses that meet these standards and employ, whether partially or exclusively, technologically mediated formats (referred to as online or blended courses) may be offered at Chapman University via Distance Education (DE) courses.

Faculty teaching DE courses and teaching within DE programs shall comply with Chapman’s Guidelines on Distance Education, Department of Education and WASC accreditation standards for Distance Education. The Department of Education requires “regular and substantive instructor interaction (RSI) in all courses. This is defined as “engaging students in teaching, learning, and assessment that is consistent with the course content.” Regular interaction is predictable and scheduled in the course, and substantive feedback includes faculty-initiated interactions pertaining to the course's academic content. Within Chapman's Center for Excellence in Teaching and Learning's (CETL’s) course design plan, all DE instructors will therefore be required to detail how the regular monitoring of, and substantive feedback to, students will be carried out throughout the term.

Faculty teaching DE courses must consider how their interactions with students advance Chapman’s mission to provide a personalized education of distinction and will be required to address this in the course approval process. Faculty are required to adopt technologies and practices that allow them to interact with each student as an individual, and should avoid the use of off-the-shelf, prerecorded materials as a substitute for direct interaction between the student and instructor.

DISTANCE EDUCATION DEFINITION

The Department of Education under 34 CFR § 600.2 defines Distance Education as:

1. Education that uses one or more of the technologies listed in paragraphs (2)(i) through (iv) of this definition to deliver instruction to students who are separated from the instructor or instructors and to support regular and substantive interaction between the students and the instructor or instructors, either synchronously or asynchronously.
2. The technologies that may be used to offer distance education include –
   1. The internet;
      ii) One-way and two-way transmissions through open broadcast, closed circuit, cable, microwave, broadband lines, fiber optics, satellite, or wireless communications devices;
      (iii) Audio conference; or
      (iv) Other media used in a course in conjunction with any of the technologies listed in paragraphs
   2. (i) through (iii) of this definition.
3. For purposes of this definition, an instructor is an individual responsible for delivering course content and who meets the qualifications for instruction established by an institution’s accrediting agency.
4. For purposes of this definition, substantive interaction is engaging students in teaching, learning, and assessment, consistent with the content under discussion, and also includes at least two of the following –
   1. Providing direct instruction;
   2. Assessing or providing feedback on a student’s coursework;
   3. Providing information or responding to questions about the content of a course or competency;
   4. Facilitating a group discussion regarding the content of a course or competency; or
   5. Other instructional activities approved by the institution’s or program’s accrediting agency.
5. An institution ensures regular interaction between a student and an instructor or instructors by, prior to the student’s completion of a course or competency –
   1. Providing the opportunity for substantive interactions with the student on a predictable and scheduled basis commensurate with the length of time and the amount of content in the course or competency; and
   2. Monitoring the student’s academic engagement and success and ensuring that an instructor is responsible for promptly and proactively engaging in substantive interaction with the student when needed on the basis of such monitoring, or upon request by the student.

As listed in the Department of Education definition above, many technologies can be used to deliver DE courses, including the internet, recorded videos, online audio/video conferencing, online discussion forums, and online Learning Management Systems. Distance Education courses can employ several mechanisms of instruction, including online lectures, online discussion groups, and online discussion forums, each of which can be synchronous, asynchronous or a combination of both. 

• WSCUC considers a distance education course to be one in which 50% or more of the instruction and interaction occurs using one or more of the technologies included in the definition of distance education. 

STANDARDS FOR DISTANCE EDUCATION COURSES

Distance Education courses must meet the following standards:

1. Credit Hour/Contact Time: DE courses must meet the same standards of academic rigor and quality in both content and delivery that are required of traditional lecture courses. Credit hour/contact time for online and blended courses is required to meet the standard required for all Chapman courses. A typical 3-credit course requires 3 contact hours/directed study per week and 6 hours of assigned coursework/self-directed study per week or 45 contact hours and 90 hours of assigned coursework for a regular term (15 weeks including the final exam period) for a total of 135 hours. Whether synchronous or asynchronous, a faculty member is expected to offer faculty-directed course-related content and activities to a student that engage the student for a total of 45 hours over a 15-week term for a 3-credit course. Student engagement may include some discussion with other students; however, it is expected that a faculty member will monitor and participate in discussions and provide an appropriate level of frequent, timely and personal feedback to students at regular intervals during the term. As with traditional courses, there should be a total of 90 hours of additional assigned student self-directed coursework over a 15-week term for a 3-credit course.
2. Expertise/Training: Instructors offering DE courses must have the required expertise and qualifications to develop and teach courses that utilize teaching strategies and technologies for distance education. Faculty proposing a DE program, proposing/designing a DE course and/or teaching a DE course are required to:
   1. Complete Chapman’s Preparing to Teach Online Course offered through CETL.
   2. Collaborate with CETL to complete the Course Design Plan Form and then utilize the DE course design template in Canvas.
   3. Departments and programs offering DE courses are responsible for ensuring the Instructor’s and the TA’s qualifications. Faculty development opportunities in DE Instruction are available through CETL.
3. Support Services for DE Courses and Programs:
   1. Support services for instructors, in addition to those provided through CETL discussed above, are available through the Office of Educational Technology Services, which provides both Instructional Technology and Classroom Technology.
   2. Technical support to facilitate the resolution of computing issues for both students and instructors is available by email, phone or in person through the IS&T Service Desk. Available hours vary through the year, but parallel scheduled class times during academic terms.
4. Verification of Student Identity: Departments offering DE courses must have processes in place to verify that each registered student is the same student who participates in and completes the course and receives academic credit. Examples of processes that can achieve this goal include:
   1. Required use of a student's Chapman log-in and password to engage in class activities.
   2. Proctored examinations, either technologically proctored or required in-person attendance.
   3. New or other technologies or practices that are effective in verifying student identity.
   4. Other identity verification processes as recommended by CETL.
5. Student Evaluation: Instructors must apply strict procedures to ensure that credibility and integrity are maintained at the highest level. Instructors must have a plan to monitor and assess student progress toward course learning outcomes through graded activities mediated through technology. As part of the course approval process at Chapman, all courses being proposed must have identified course learning outcomes. All course learning outcomes are required to be provided to students on syllabi. When a course has a General Education course learning outcome, those outcomes are assessed on a regular basis by the General Education program. Departments regularly review course learning outcomes as part of their annual assessment and program review processes.
6. Application of Campus Policies and Procedures: All campus policies and required procedures for courses and instruction (registration deadlines, academic integrity, etc.) that apply to conventional courses also apply to DE courses. As with in-person courses, DE courses must provide appropriate accommodations for students with disabilities, as determined with the Office of Disability Services and in keeping with the Chapman Policy Statement on Assisting Students With Disabilities. Students will be notified of their rights and how to access these accommodations both in the syllabus and in the Canvas learning management system course information.
7. Notification to Students of Equipment Needed to Participate: All DE courses must list the technological equipment necessary for full participation in synchronous and/or asynchronous class sessions (such as internet access, webcam, microphone, personal computer) at the time of registration. This technological equipment is considered part of required Course Materials, and information regarding required equipment must be provided in the online registration information as part of required course materials information.
8. Notification to Students of Required Fees: Departments and programs must notify students of any additional fees associated with the verification of student identity for a DE course at the time of registration or other required fees. Such fees are listed in course descriptions, which are available to students in the academic catalogs and in course information provided through the registration system and can be reviewed by the student prior to registration.
9. Standards for Synchronous Interactions: Any synchronous interaction (for example in-person lectures, discussion sections, office hours, or any other setting) must meet the following minimum set of standards:
   1. Students must be able to see and hear the instructor, and view instruction and materials (for example, physical or electronic whiteboard, computer slides, experimental setups, etc.) with sufficient fidelity that no significant information is lost. Courses made available to students in off-campus sites may only be taught in facilities capable of sustaining a synchronous, two-way video and audio connection between Chapman and off-campus sites.
   2. Students must be able to hear questions asked by other students and the instructor’s answers.
   3. Students must follow expectations and protocol for appropriate and respectful communications (i.e., asking questions, emails, dialog, etc.).
   4. Students are to be provided with guidelines for appropriate online etiquette expected for participation in the courses.
   5. Students are to be provided clarity in the expectations of student activities (participation and performance).
   6. Virtual class session days/times, particularly if they do not match the stated schedule for the course, must be advertised at the time of registration rather than waiting to tell students on the first day of class. Not providing this information in advance impacts students’ class schedules and work opportunities.
   7. It is the responsibility of the student to ensure that they have the required technological fluency to succeed in a distance learning environment and to secure and maintain access to required technology resources.
      • Student readiness is evaluated through the Online Readiness Assessment and other materials on the Technology Requirements for Online/Blended Courses website prior to registration.
      • Students must have access to an internet connection, which is necessary to participate in course discussions and assignments, access course resources, and receive feedback from instructors.
      • Instructor permission is required for enrollment in a DE course.
      • Students should check their campus email account and Canvas courses daily to keep abreast of their coursework and program communications.

ASSESSMENT OF DISTANCE EDUCATION COURSES

Instructors of DE courses must clearly identify the course learning outcomes that each student will demonstrate by the end of the course. If the same course is offered in person and through DE, the course learning outcomes must be the same for both sections. Within each course, minimum requirements for proficiency should be established based on course learning outcomes, particularly those tied to program learning outcomes. These proficiencies are to be demonstrated through both formative and summative assessments designed to measure progress toward achieving the course learning outcomes within the course’s respective academic term.

Proposals for DE programs and courses must include an assessment plan to ensure that the program and/or course is meeting course and program learning outcomes at the level defined by the academic unit and is reporting such assessments regularly for review. The academic unit’s assessment program must include specific assessment strategies that are designed to assure that DE courses meet the same standards of academic rigor and content as other courses offered in person and that course learning outcomes are met. These assessments are to be conducted regularly by the academic unit as part of annual assessment and program review.

A NOTE ON DISTANCE EDUCATION PROGRAMS

Distance education programs are defined as degree or certificate programs where 50% or more of the courses are completed in a distance education modality, whether by design or inadvertently. This includes electives and general education requirements. Currently, Chapman is not authorized by WASC to offer any programs in a distance education modality.

Prior to graduation, students must receive credit for one course of at least three credits chosen from a list of Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DEI) courses offered each term. A course taken at other undergraduate institutions may count towards the DEI requirement if it has been articulated for this category by the Office of the University Registrar and/or the appropriate faculty approval committee. Please see the Transfer Credit and Articulation webpage for more information. Students should check with the Office of the University Registrar if they have any questions regarding whether a course at another institution will transfer to Chapman and how it will count in meeting degree requirements. Credits used to satisfy the DEI requirement may be used to satisfy other university graduation requirements.

Application for DEI course approval is requested through Curriculog. Approval is by the Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion Committee.

Guidelines for application for DEI course approval are found on the Faculty Senate Canvas site.

Experimental courses may be offered by a department or academic unit. They are designed to offer additional opportunities to explore experimental areas and subjects of special interest. They may be repeated for credit if course content is different. The course title will be Experimental Course, but subtitles vary. Experimental courses are approved for one year. Experimental courses may request GE category approval and that designation, if approved, also will last one year. These courses must be approved as regular courses if they are to be offered beyond a year.

Changes to Organizational Architecture

Pursuant to the faculty’s advisory role as specified in the Faculty Constitution (section II.B), all proposed changes to the organizational architecture of the university should be brought to the Faculty Senate for evaluation. Such changes include, but are not limited to, the creation, closing, merging or reorganization of colleges, schools, academic units, departments, programs, institutes or centers. The Senate Executive Board may refer such proposals to the Undergraduate or Graduate Academic Council and/or Long Range Planning Council for review of any curricular, budgetary, or strategic implications of the proposed change. The Undergraduate or Graduate Academic Council and/or Long Range Planning Council will submit a written evaluation of the proposed change to the Senate Executive Board. The Senate Executive Board will forward council evaluations, along with its own recommendations to the Faculty Senate for review. A majority vote is required to support any advisory statement issued by the Faculty Senate.

Undergraduate Academic Council (UAC)

The primary purpose of the Undergraduate Academic Council is to oversee the undergraduate academic program of the University, including general education requirements, long range undergraduate academic planning, as well as undergraduate library resources and programs. The UAC shall work with the Office of the Provost and other administrative offices in fulfilling this responsibility. The UAC consists of nine faculty members: (1) the Chair of the Undergraduate Student Standards Committee, (2) the Chair of the General Education Committee, (3) five additional faculty members with teaching responsibilities in the undergraduate program, (4) a faculty-rank librarian, plus (5) the Undergraduate Academic Council Chair. Ex Officio members include a member from the following offices: Provost, Registrar, Academic Advising, and a student representative appointed by the Student Government Association. Only faculty members may vote on Council business. (Faculty Bylaws IV.B.4, as amended 3/18/22)

Faculty Committees and Related University-wide Governance Groups

Specific to this Curriculum Handbook and in addition to the information found in the Faculty Bylaws, there are additional committees in charge of curricular issues. Note that the link above will take you to the CANVAS LMS, and the Faculty Governance Den, which requires a login. The most current version of the Faculty By-Laws, dated 3/18/2022 at the time of publication of this Handbook can be found there. 

The following committees also work on issues related to curriculum:

General Education Committee

• Provide leadership to the faculty in the interpretation of the university’s general education philosophy and vision and contribute to its further development.
• Review proposed general education syllabi for approval and report to the Undergraduate Academic Council.
• Review student petitions related to general education requirements and self-designed minors forwarded from the Office of the University Registrar.
• Review and assess the general education program.
• Advise the Undergraduate Academic Council and Office of the Provost on general education program review conducted every five years.
• Advise the Undergraduate Academic Council and Office of the Provost on the general education component of academic unit/department/school program reviews.
• Conduct periodic review of foundational courses.
• Coordinate and consult with relevant faculty committees, other committees of the Undergraduate Academic Council and the office of the Vice Provost for Undergraduate Education & Student Success. Make recommendations to the Undergraduate Academic Council.

Assessment Committee

• Oversee implementation of learning outcomes assessment plans by academic units/departments and programs as they relate to majors and general education.
• Recommend to the Undergraduate and Graduate Academic Councils, an annual schedule of assessment activities and plans and reports.
• Review guidelines, policies and templates/forms for assessment plans and reports.
• Review academic program annual assessment plans and reports and provide recommendations/criticisms.
• Provide support and consultation with faculty, programs/departments and academic units regarding learning outcomes assessment.
• Promote campus discussion and reflection on learning outcomes assessment.
• Coordinate with the General Education Committee to develop links among assessment, program review and general education.
• Participate in the program review process by reviewing the relevant program review self-studies and external reviewer reports and presenting an advisory report to the provost.

First-year Foundations Curriculum Committee

Because First-year Foundations (FFC) is an academic program that does not fall within a specific academic unit or program/department, it has its own curriculum committee, which is not included in the structure of the Faculty Bylaws. The First-year Foundations Curriculum Committee is composed of up to seven First-year Foundations faculty members. The Vice Provost for Undergraduate Education and Student Success and the Associate Vice Provost for Undergraduate Education & Student Success serve as an ex-officio members. Membership slots are filled by self-nominations, with individuals named to the committee by vote if the number of nominations exceeds slots available. The committee’s responsibilities are to:

• Advise new FFC faculty on course design and syllabus revision.
• Review new FFC syllabi and makes recommendations for General Education Committee approval.
• Lead curricular efforts to develop FFC as part of the First-Year Program.
• Represent FFC curricular goals in discussions of general education development.
• Consider pedagogical workshops for FFC faculty development and oversees planning of such workshops.
• Explore possibilities for grant support for curricular and pedagogical innovations.
• Work with the Diversity Committee on its curricular diversity plan.

The Undergraduate Academic Council relies heavily on the standing Curriculum Committees of schools and colleges for vetting, peer review and advice on curricular proposals. These Curriculum Committees review and approve new and revised course syllabi, review and recommend proposals for new programs, revisions of existing programs and program closures. The faculty of the unit makes the decision, which is then sent to the Undergraduate Academic Council for approval. All curricular proposals, including those for new programs, new majors, new minors, emphases or certificates, require vetting and recommendation by the appropriate Curriculum Committee to the faculty of the unit. The Undergraduate Academic Council will only consider curricular proposals that have been approved by the faculty of the unit.

Formation of Curriculum Committees

Each academic unit/department or free-standing program is represented in the unit’s Curriculum Committee. (A “free-standing program” is a degree-conferring unit not housed in an academic unit/department and offering a graduate or undergraduate degree program.) Each Curriculum Committee shall consist of at least three faculty members. Only faculty (including chairs/program directors) may serve as voting members. Deans may not serve on Curriculum Committees. Associate deans may serve as ex-officio members. Members of Curriculum Committees are elected by faculty. The chair of the Curriculum Committee may be chosen by faculty or by those elected to serve on it. The chair should preferably be tenured. In the absence of a governing document from the school or college, each school or college forms curriculum committees that consist of one elected representative from each academic unit/department and free-standing program.

Information on the General Education Program, and all general education categories and requirements can be found on the General Education website.

General Education Course Approval Process

To recommend a course to be included in the General Education Program, submit an Undergraduate GE Proposal form in Curriculog, after the course has been academically approved. This process is the same for already existing courses, new courses, experimental courses, and topics courses. Check the GE categories requested on the Curriculog proposal form, and attach a syllabus. The course proposal will then be directed to the General Education Committee for review.

The course description and syllabus must show a clear linkage between the course learning outcomes and the General Education Learning Outcome for the GE category requested.

The General Education Committee decides whether a course should be designated as a GE course. The General Education Committee reviews the syllabus to assist their determination. For a new course, a draft syllabus may be included.

The General Education Committee has restricted the application of General Education attributes to no more than three per course. 

Existing Chapman courses may not count towards General Education completion unless previously approved by the General Education Committee. Courses may not be retroactively added to the General Education approved course list.

Students may not petition General Education status for a Chapman course. The request for General Education category approval can only be made by the department/academic unit offering the course.

Courses not offered in 4 or more years will have their General Education approval status removed and will need to be re-submitted for General Education approval if they are again offered. This is done to keep the listing of approved General Education courses accurate and include only courses that are regularly offered.

Experimental courses may be submitted for approval but will have limited approvals for one year. These courses need to be submitted through the Curriculog process for approval as courses prior to submitting them through Curriculog for General Education status review.

General Education Course Approval Process

The General Education Committee must review all courses requesting a general education (GE) course designation. Courses requesting GE, including individual topics and experimental courses, must be submitted in Curriculog on an Undergraduate GE Course Proposal Form.

GE course request process:

• Submit the course for academic approval (new or change proposal) and wait for it to be completed in Curriculog.
• Once completed in Curriculog, create, and submit an Undergraduate GE Proposal Form (Make sure to import the course from the catalog into the GE form.)
• Select up to three GE categories for approval.
• Attach the course syllabus which includes all GE required criteria and information.
• Approve the form. The Curriculog workflow will direct the GE Proposal form to the General Education Committee for review.
• Undergraduate GE Course Proposal form workflow approvals in Curriculog:
• The Originator
• Academic unit’s designated approver
• GE Committee

Associate Registrar for Catalog and Degree Audit

GE Course details:

• GE course descriptions must show a clear linkage between the course learning outcomes and the general education program outcome for the GE category requested. The GE learning outcome must be included on the course syllabus and on the New or Change Course Proposal form submitted.
• The General Education Committee decides whether a course should be designated as a GE course.
• The General Education Committee has restricted the application of General Education attributes to no more than three per course.
• There will be no retroactive addition of courses to the General Education list.
• Existing Chapman courses may not count towards General Education completion unless previously approved by the General Education Committee.
• Students may not petition General Education status for a Chapman course. The request for General Education category approval can only be made by the department/academic unit offering the course.
• Courses not offered in 4 or more years will have their General Education approval status removed and will need to be re-submitted for General Education approval if they are again offered. This is done to keep the listing of approved General Education courses accurate and include only courses that are regularly offered.
• Experimental courses may be submitted for approval but will have limited approvals for one year. These courses need to be submitted on a New Course Proposal form in Curriculog. Once the New Course Proposal form is approved and completed, submit a GE Course Proposal form which the General Education Committee will review.

Special Note regarding Citizenship, Community and Service Inquiry (CC) for GE: Individual studies or individual internships taken for academic credit that engage in community service may be approved for GE Citizenship, Community, Service category but must be pre-approved by the Vice Provost for Undergraduate Education and Student Success or designee prior to beginning the internship. See instructions and application for approval on the Registrar’s Forms page, specifically the “Request for Internship or Individual Study for General Education Citizenship, Community, Service Form.”

Policies for internships for academic credit are the responsibility of the Undergraduate Academic Council. Internships give students the opportunity to earn academic credit while gaining practical work experience in the field of their choice. Positions are available in various disciplines and are offered year-round. A specific number of hours for each credit earned plus regular contact with an internship faculty advisor are required. Up to three credits per employer, per term may be earned through internship courses and most are graded on a Pass/No Pass basis.

Undergraduate students may accumulate up to 12 internship credits toward a Chapman degree. To register for internships, students must submit a registration form and learning agreement to the Career Development Center. More information is available with the Career and Professional Development Center. Credit is not awarded retroactively for internships.

Full-time faculty members are paid to serve as advisors for independent internships (290/490). The student must fill out all appropriate forms before starting the independent internship class (students need to contact the Career Development Center). Independent internships are graded on a Pass/No Pass basis with the exception of some undergraduate international internships offered through the Center for Global Education.

Student-Faculty Research/Creative Activity allows students to work directly with a faculty mentor on independent contributions to the mentor's scholarly research/creative project(s) or on the student's independent scholarly research/creative project under faculty guidance. This coursework is available to undergraduate matriculated students. 291 is available to all undergraduate matriculated students. 491 is available to junior/senior-level only. This allows students to earn course credit while making an original contribution to scholarship or creative work in a discipline or across disciplines. 291/491 projects are designed to enhance traditional learning formats; therefore, no degree or minor program can require 291/491 for all its students, nor should a program use this system to cover a gap in its curriculum or staffing.

A minimum of 5 hours of instructor-student contact for each hour of credit is required. The student should spend a total of 40-50 hours in instruction and research for each credit of individual study. Student-Faculty Research/Creative Activity are required to keep a record or journal with a listing of dates, hours-spent, nature of activities, etc.

To enroll Student/Faculty Research, students must complete the Undergraduate Student-Faculty Research and Creative Activity 291/491 form (available from the Office of the University Registrar Forms page) and obtain the signatures of the course instructor and the department chair/program director of the academic program offering the course. After receiving approval, the student must submit the form to the Office of the University Registrar.

Since senior projects may add considerably to faculty teaching/advising loads, department chairs/program directors are advised to undertake a study of the probable impact. The following is a list of general guidelines for senior project classes:

• Senior projects are to function as the culmination of the students’ academic work in a major field.
• Senior projects should demonstrate the students’ ability to do independent work in integrating, analyzing and evaluating basic components within the major field.
• Senior projects should be individualized. Students should develop their own particular themes, theses, performances or presentations.
• Senior projects should include a corporate aspect. At intervals considered appropriate to the specific departments/academic units, seniors should meet with faculty members and fellow students within the major field to discuss the issues, problems, methods and progress of the senior projects. A meeting held at the beginning of the projects, for instance, may highlight questions of project proposals and methods of research or rehearsal. For all projects a concluding session should be held for an oral evaluation of the project. Where appropriate, this final meeting may include, in addition to faculty members and students within the major field, at least one faculty member outside that field.
• Senior projects should incorporate, unless deemed inappropriate by the departments/academic units, a written component of a significant quality. For many projects a substantial research paper will be the main product of the research that is undertaken. For others, the written component may consist of program notes to accompany an art show or recital, a screenplay that constitutes the basis for a film or some similar written work.
• Departments/academic units might consider the idea of the public presentation of senior projects. A senior project day or week could present research papers, scientific demonstration, exhibits of films and other works of art and performances in music and dance. The titles or topics of senior projects may also be published (e.g., in the Chapman Magazine or Happenings) for the information of the Chapman community.
• The specific departments/academic units are to decide whether or not academic credits are to be given for senior projects. When academic credits are given for senior projects, a maximum of three credits is to be assigned. For some senior projects, it may be advisable to preface the project with a separate course or seminar that will allow students to focus more specifically upon issues of content and method. The successful completion of a senior project should be noted on a student’s transcript as a special line item (and designated “with distinction” as appropriate) and also a separate course (when awarded credits).
• Assessment of senior projects must align with WASC’s rubric for evaluating senior projects or capstone courses.

Reading and conference courses are offered only (1) when the course is not being offered in the current term, (2) when necessary for a student to complete degree requirements. The courses are not offered to resolve scheduling conflicts with other classes nor to enable a student to meet financial aid or other eligibility criteria that are based on enrolled credits.

To enroll in reading and conference courses, students must submit a completed reading and conference form (available from the Office of the University Registrar) with the signatures of their academic advisor, department chair/program director of the course and course instructor.

After receiving approval, the student must submit a copy of the form to the Office of the University Registrar. A minimum of five hours of instruction for each credit is required for reading and conference courses.

Before signing the form for a reading & conference course, please make sure that the student satisfies the minimum requirements for the course, including the prerequisites.

In special cases, a reading and conference course designation may be used when a specific course does not meet the minimum enrollment and the program/department head agrees to offer it on a limited basis as a reading and conference course in order for students to stay on track in completing degree requirements.

Credits and specific courses are determined by academic units (departments, schools or colleges). Major requirements are located within department/college/school listings.

Majors are subject to the following credit guidelines:

• A Bachelor of Arts may be no less than 33 credits and no more than 51 credits, unless noted otherwise the catalog. Students earning a Bachelor of Arts degree are required to take 60 credits outside of their major.
• A Bachelor of Fine Arts, Bachelor of Music, or Bachelor of Science may be no less than 60 credits and no more than 80 credits.

Students must follow the General Education and major requirements of the same catalog year.

A minimum of 21 credits of upper-division coursework in the major are required. A lower-division course accepted as a substitution or equivalent to an upper-division course does not count toward the 21-credit of upper division coursework requirement.

A minimum of 15 credits of upper-division coursework in the major must be completed in residence.

A minimum of 2.000 average on a 4.000 scale in the major overall and in upper-division coursework are required.

The following may/should be determined by the academic program: 

• Admissions requirements
• Minimum GPA requirement for major
• Minimum GPA requirement for specific courses
• Requirement to take major courses for a letter grade, or some specific courses such as core courses for a letter grade
• Number of upper division courses required (minimum of 21 upper division credits/15 in residency)
• Completion of a senior project/thesis/capstone
• Any other requirements specific to degree or college

Academic Unit: College or school

Academic Unit Curriculum Committee: An academic unit curriculum committee operates at the school or college level. An academic unit may have a single curriculum committee, a graduate and an undergraduate curriculum committee, or may be organized by types of programs, such as academic and professional. For purposes of approving program proposals, the academic unit determines the appropriate curriculum committee for each degree program.

Bridge Program: A “bridge program” is not a degree-granting program. It is an agreement between the faculty of an undergraduate major program and a graduate degree program that gives preference for admission to students in the undergraduate major program based on criteria determined by the graduate program. A bridge program does not require approval from either the Graduate or Undergraduate Academic Councils, nor are such programs listed in the Undergraduate or Graduate catalogs as degree programs, although they may be described in the college/school and/or department narrative sections.

Area of Study (Undergraduate): An area of study within an undergraduate major is a portion of the major program that includes a subset of courses in a specific subject area or subfield that is used to complete the major. The area of study designation does not appear on the transcript. 

Certificate for Academic Credit (Undergraduate): A sequence of courses identified in a subject area that leads to a specific skill acquisition. Such a certificate program is approved by appropriate program faculty and undergraduate academic council, in order to be listed on a transcript upon completion.

Degree Program: A sequence of courses and requirements that lead to the awarding of an academic degree. Degrees at Chapman consist of Ph.D., Pharm.D., D.PT., J.D., M.M.S., M.F.A, M.B.A., M.S., M.M., M.A., B.F.A, B.S., B. M., B.A.

Emphasis (Undergraduate): An emphasis within an undergraduate major is a portion of the major program that includes a subset of courses in a specific subject area or subfield that is used to complete the major. Students choose from emphases offered in a major or may need to choose courses from emphases designated within a major. Music is the only subject area that uses both the terms emphasis and area of study. In the music programs, emphasis is the term used for the subfield within a major, e.g. composition or performance, and area of study is the type of instrument being studied, e.g., brass or vocal, etc., within the performance emphasis. For all other majors, the term emphasis and area of study are used interchangeably. An emphasis appears on transcript. 

Integrated Undergraduate/Graduate Program: An Integrated Undergraduate/Graduate Program is a program that allows undergraduate students to be conditionally accepted into a graduate degree program while still completing undergraduate requirements. Up to 15 credit credits may be shared between the undergraduate degree program and the specific graduate program. Integrated programs require approval of both Graduate and Undergraduate Academic Councils for new programs, revisions and closures.

Major (Undergraduate): An undergraduate major is a sequence of courses and requirements in a specific subject area that leads to fulfilling a portion of overall undergraduate degree requirements. A major is required to complete all undergraduate degree requirements. The term “undergraduate degree program” incorporates the major requirements specific to the subject area addressed by the major course requirements.

Minor (Undergraduate): An undergraduate minor is a sequence of courses and requirements in a specific subject area that may be used towards fulfilling a portion of overall undergraduate degree requirements. While not required, a minor is one way to fulfill the General Education Program Exploration Focus requirement, which requires completing a secondary area of study in addition to the major. 

Program: An overarching term that refers to all types of academic programs, including

• undergraduate majors
• undergraduate minors
• undergraduate emphases
• undergraduate areas of study
• undergraduate or graduate certificates for academic credit
• undergraduate and graduate integrated programs

Program/Department: Academic units may be comprised of subunits that form the organizational structure of the academic unit. The reference to program/department is specifically to such subunits that are responsible for academic programs, and may be called divisions, departments, programs, or some combination of such organizational subunits. Each program/department is comprised of full-time faculty, usually organized by a specific academic discipline or group of disciplines, program level or program offering. Each program/department is responsible for one or more degree programs within the academic unit. The organization of faculty into program/department groupings is determined by the academic unit.

Program/Department Faculty: For the purpose of curriculum, program/department faculty are full-time faculty who teach within a program/department within an academic unit.

Program/Department Faculty Representative: The program/department faculty representative represents all faculty in a program/department and has the authority to sign off on program approvals for new programs, revisions or closures on behalf of the program/department faculty responsible for an academic program. The program/department faculty representative is determined by the program/department faculty and may be a faculty member in the program/department, a chair or division head, or an associate dean.

Term: Refers to semester, trimester or interterm. When distinctions need to be made as to type of term, the specific word will be used.

It is the department chair/academic program head’s responsibility to ensure the following:

• all academic unit/department syllabi meet the Chapman syllabus requirements
• syllabi for all sections of the same course are consistent with respect to
• the course/catalog description
• the course and program learning outcomes
• if applicable, the General Education learning outcomes
• all syllabi are posted to the Online Syllabi System each term

Requirement to Upload Syllabus to Online Syllabi System

The Online Syllabus Bank is a Chapman system that is updated every term to list all courses offered at Chapman. It consists of the following:

• Syllabus Upload Page (Secure: Available to faculty teaching the course/section and administrative staff given appropriate permission)
• Online Syllabus System Documentation and Instructions (Also available from Syllabus Upload Page)
• Syllabus View Page (Secure: Available to all faculty, staff and students with Chapman login)

Each term, all syllabi are required to be posted to the Chapman Online Syllabi System. Syllabi on this site are available for viewing on the Syllabus View Page, and are only available to the Chapman campus community. 

This Online Syllabi System replaces the previous requirement that academic units/departments maintain paper copies of all academic unit/department course syllabi each term. Should syllabi for an instructor in a program/unit not be posted or available through the Online Syllabus System as required, it is the responsibility of the program/department head to have paper or digital copies on file for use.

Maintaining syllabi each term is required for several purposes, including transfer and articulation of Chapman courses for students who transfer from Chapman or who require information about past courses for graduate school, WASC accreditation processes, and GE certification processes. The syllabi are also provided to the student body at the request of the Student Government Association, which was approved by Faculty Senate.

Syllabi should be posted using no later than the end of the fourth week of classes. Department chairs/academic program heads may ask the academic unit/department assistant to collect and post syllabi or ask faculty to do so themselves.

Required Syllabus Content

While the format of the syllabus is not proscribed, all Chapman syllabi must contain at a minimum the following items:

• Course designation, number and title
• Faculty member’s contact information and office hours
• Catalog description, including restrictions, prerequisites, grading system, fees, and credits
• Course and program learning outcomes for the course and for the degree program(s) that the course supports, including General Education outcomes and/or DEI outcomes when applicable
• Linkages to or listings of program learning outcomes, general education learning outcomes, and DEI learning outcomes if applicable, should be indicated
• Content description
• Current required text and readings
• Instructional strategies employed in the course
• Method of evaluation including:
  • All exams, papers and other graded requirements
  • Grade weight for each requirement
  • Grade scale needed for the various final course letter grades
  • Dates of exams and due dates for other requirements (to the extent possible)
  • Attendance policy guidelines
• Chapman University’s Academic Integrity Policy
• Chapman University’s Students with Disabilities Policy
• Chapman University’s Equity and Diversity Statement
• Optional Statements to include:
  • Chapman University Statement on Student Support at Chapman University
  • Chapman University Statement on Religious Accommodation
• Bibliography (optional)
• Special requirements for travel courses (if applicable) 

Detailed information on each category required in the syllabus:

Catalog Description

This is the exact wording of the course description in the catalog. Include prerequisites, followed by the description. The last part of the description regarding grading method, if a course may be completed, when a course is offered, the course fee if applicable, and number of credits, should also be included. You may also include a separate course description if appropriate, particularly for courses that have a generic catalog description but a unique course topic, for instance, FFC 100 courses. These courses all share the same catalog description, which is to be used on the syllabus, but may also include a course description specific to the topic of the FFC course.

Course Learning Outcomes

This section should specify the intended learning outcomes of the course. The outcomes are brief statements of student abilities or behaviors that can be observed or demonstrated as a result of the course.

Program Learning Outcomes

This section should specify the learning outcomes for the degree program that the course supports and, if not apparent, describe how course outcomes support the program outcomes.

General Education Learning Outcomes

If the course is designated to satisfy a GE requirement or requirements it must state the correlating GE learning outcome (s).

Content

This section should provide a fairly comprehensive sketch of the course content so that another scholar in the same field could readily judge what is being covered.

Current Required Text(s) and Reading(s)

• Normally, all courses should have a required text that is current to the field, except for the use of primary sources.
• If supplementary or recommended texts are provided, those should be listed in a separate category.
• Publisher and date of publication should be indicated for each book and appropriate bibliographic citation form should be followed consistently.
• Required reading must be challenging for the course level, both in content and amount.

Instructional Strategies

• A variety of instructional strategies should be specified. These may include lectures, written assignments, oral presentations by students and exercises in critical thinking.
• If a class is taught utilizing online teaching strategies in whole or in part, this information must be provided in the syllabus.
• Regular writing that reflects all aspects of the writing process is expected in all classes where it is an effective means of learning. If writing assignments are not included, this section should explicitly explain their absence.
• Graduate courses should require students to use a significant number of learning resources other than textbooks, such as primary sources, monographs and journals, in research projects/papers, etc.

Methods of Evaluation

• The types of assessment of student performance and their timing throughout the term should be specified.
• Assessment of student performance, particularly for undergraduate students, should begin early in the term.
• Assessment should reflect the diversity of the modes of student learning. It should include but not be limited to knowledge acquisition, critical analysis, integration and creative synthesis. Written and spoken material should normally be included as an expectation of student work. Written work should be evaluated not only on the basis of content but also structure and style.
• Syllabi that do not require regular evaluation, such as in-class examinations, must provide a rationale for such an exception. These syllabi, including the statements of rationale, must be submitted to the academic unit/department for review.
• Students should be evaluated with enough frequency and in sufficiently challenging formats to enable faculty members to determine accurately the students’ ability to utilize primary sources, to think critically, to integrate disparate information, to write cogently and to apply the course content to new issues and/or questions.
• Additional Requirements for Graduate Courses: Graduate courses that are cross-listed with undergraduate courses should require additional assignments, such as one or more additional research papers/projects, as well as a comprehensive evaluation process that is based on graduate level performance expectations.

Dates of Exams and other Requirements

To the extent possible, students should be provided with dates of examinations and other important project due dates. Many faculty provide a weekly calendar showing topics covered by date and all other due dates. It is always a good policy to indicate that such a calendar is subject to change.

Chapman University’s Academic Integrity Policy

The course syllabus must include the following statement:

“Chapman University is a community of scholars that emphasizes the mutual responsibility of all members to seek knowledge honestly and in good faith. Students are responsible for doing their own work and academic dishonesty of any kind will be subject to sanction by the instructor/administrator and referral to the university Academic Integrity Committee, which may impose additional sanctions including expulsion. Please review the full description of Chapman University's policy on Academic Integrity.

Chapman University’s Students with Disabilities Policy

The course syllabus must include the following statement:

“In compliance with ADA guidelines, students who have any condition, either permanent or temporary, that might affect their ability to perform in this class are encouraged to contact the Office of Disability Services. If you will need to utilize your approved accommodations in this class, please follow the proper notification procedure for informing your professor(s). This notification process must occur more than a week before any accommodation can be utilized. Please contact Disability Services at (714) 516–4520 if you have questions regarding this procedure or for information or to make an appointment to discuss and/or request potential accommodations based on documentation of your disability. Once formal approval of your need for an accommodation has been granted, you are encouraged to talk with your professor(s) about your accommodation options. The granting of any accommodation will not be retroactive and cannot jeopardize the academic standards or integrity of the course.” 

Chapman University’s Equity and Diversity Policy

The course syllabus must include the following statement:

“Chapman University is committed to ensuring equality and valuing diversity. Students and professors are reminded to show respect at all times as outlined in Chapman’s Harassment and Discrimination Policy. Please review the full description of Harassment and Discrimination Policy. Any violations of this policy should be discussed with the professor, the Dean of Students and/or otherwise reported in accordance with this policy.”

Optional Statements that may be included:

• Chapman University Statement on Student Support at Chapman University
• Chapman University Statement on Religious Accommodation

Bibliography

Follow these guidelines if you choose to include a bibliography in your course syllabus.

• Faculty members are strongly urged to consult with their subject liaison librarian/ university librarian when developing the bibliography. This will ensure that faculty members are familiar not only with all current holdings but also with electronic resources available for major research projects. If this is done before the course is approved, the library is committed to ensure that all necessary information resources are available in time for the course.
• Based on the nature of the courses as well as relevance, currency and accessibility of the materials, the bibliography for graduate courses should normally include monographs, journal articles, etc. and other resources in addition to textbook type materials.
• The bibliography should list current and/or classic research titles for the course topic and study units.
• Format may vary by discipline (MLA, APA, etc.), but should consistently include author, title, date, publisher and place of publication according to the chosen format.

Travel Courses – Special Requirements Related to the Trip

Provide the following:

• Itinerary: destination, length of the trip, sites to be visited and how these visits connect to what is covered in the course
• Schedule of lectures before, during and after the trip
• Detailed assignments during the trip 

For new degree programs to be included in the 2026-2027 catalog:

Planning and submission process begins a year and a half before program can be listed in catalog.

February 1, 2025

• Notify the Vice Provost for Graduate/Undergraduate Education of intention to file
• Begin consultation process with university offices/administrators
• Obtain recommendations on approval from academic unit dean, curriculum committee and program/department faculty

April 1, 2025 Deadline to file final new degree program proposal for review by

• Faculty Senate Councils
  • UAC/GAC in April-May
  • LPRC in June-September
  • SEB in September
• leading to Senate recommendations on approvals (October-November)
• Provost recommendation on approval (December), and
• Submission to Board of Trustees (March 2025)

All other course/curricular changes (except new degree programs) are due in the fall and early spring of the academic year prior to the publication of a new catalog, as listed below.

For inclusion in the 2025-2026 catalog:

August 1, 2024 Submissions may begin for the following:

• new undergraduate minor
• new undergraduate or graduate certificate for academic credit
• new graduate emphasis, area of study, specialization, or credential
• new integrated program
• all program revisions (simple and complex)
• all program closures
• new and revised course proposals 

November 15, 2024 Submission deadline for inclusion in 2025-2026 catalog

• new undergraduate minor
• new certificate for academic credit
• new graduate emphasis, area of study, specialization, or credential
• new integrated program
• complex program revisions 

December 1, 2024 Submission deadline for inclusion in 2025-2026 catalog

• simple program revisions
• program closures

February 1, 2025 Submission deadline for inclusion in 2025-2026 catalog

• changes to the school/college/department narrative section catalog
• academic plans for inclusion with degree listings (2-, 3- or 4-year completion plans)

March 15, 2025 Submission deadline for inclusion in the 2025-2026 catalog

• new courses*
• changes to existing courses
• inactivated courses
• changes to 4-year plans of study

*For information on travel course deadlines, see the Center for Global Travel Resources for Faculty page.

Important information about program and course proposal submission:

All new, revised or inactive or closed course proposals are submitted through the Curriculog management system.

Only revised program proposals are submitted through the Curriculog online management system.

New and closed program proposals are still submitted using standard forms to document approval recommendations, unless otherwise notified.

For further information on course and program proposal processes, please see the instructions provided in this handbook. Questions can be directed to the following:

• Course Proposals: Stephen Hall, Associate Registrar, sdhall@chapman.edu
• Undergraduate Program Proposals: undergrad@chapman.edu 

Revisions to all academic programs are done through Curriculog.

For new program proposals, program closures, and cross-listed courses, use forms below. If you have difficulty downloading and saving the forms below to your computer desktop or files please contact Margaret McDonough Monroe at mmonroe@chapman.edu. Please do not make edits directly onto the original forms.

Budget Template for New Undergraduate Program Proposals (Excel)

New Undergraduate Major Degree Program Form

New Undergraduate Minor Form

New Integrated Undergraduate/Graduate Degree Form

New Certificate for Academic Credit Form

Closing an Undergraduate Major Degree Program Form

Closing a Minor, Emphasis, Area of Study or Certificate Program Form

Cross-listed Course Form (to be attached to Curriculog Course Proposal)

Shared Courses Approval Form