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Regulations & Policies

Academic Affairs

I. OBJECTIVE & PURPOSE

To establish policy for the review of academic degree programs on a five-year cycle.

II. STATEMENT OF POLICY

Each academic degree program that is not disciplinarily accredited will undergo an Academic Program Review, formally termed Outcomes-Based Program Review (OBPR) on a five-year cycle with two cycle types, Self-Study and External Review. This OBPR process will serve to evaluate the academic and administrative quality and productivity of academic programs. The outcome of the process is to provide information such as program strengths, strategic value, areas to be strengthened and future opportunities. This information will provide input for knowledge-based strategic planning, analysis, and decision-making. As a result, the university will be positioned to ascertain whether programs should be enhanced, maintained, eliminated or studied further.

Note: Academic degree programs that are disciplinarily accredited will submit applicable disciplinary accreditation documentation to satisfy the OBPR requirement.

III. STATEMENT OF PROCEDURES

Note: Information about OBPR is available on the Office of Institutional Effectiveness website at: /oie/.

1. OBPR Self-Study Cycle

1. Academic programs will develop a self-study addressing questions referencing human, financial, and physical resources, faculty needs and qualifications, student experience and support, and general program qualities.
2. To complete the OBPR self-study, academic programs will develop responses to each question through consultation with program faculty, relevant constituents, and collegiate leadership as relevant and appropriate to the academic program.
3. After the self-study is complete, academic programs will develop an Action Plan based on continuous improvement, considerations made through the self-study process, and recommendations from the provost. The Action Plan serves as a five-year planning document for the program.
4. Approximately 2.5 years after the most recent Action Plan was submitted (i.e., at the mid-point of the 5-year OBPR cycle) academic programs will submit a Mid-Cycle Action Plan Progress Report. This will serve as a brief progress report on the most recently submitted action plan.

2. OBPR External Review Cycle

1. External reviewers are required to conduct a review of the most recent OBPR Self-Study documents and Mid-Cycle Action Plan Progress Report, conduct a virtual visit of or on-site visit to ÀÏ°ÄÃÅ×ÊÁÏ for at least two days, and prepare recommendations, as well as commendations and suggestions, considering their review of materials and interviews.
2. The department chair, in consultation with program faculty, will submit a minimum of three external reviewer nominees along with the curriculum vitae (CV) to the college dean for consideration.
3. The dean will review the submissions and take one of the following actions:
   1. Select the external reviewer from the list of potential reviewers
   2. Request additional reviewers from the department chair
   3. Recommend another list of potential reviewers to the department chair
4. Once the external reviewer is selected by the dean, the department chair will notify OIE via email and submit the reviewer’s CV.
   1. The department chair will contact the reviewer to identify several two-day options for the external review.
   2. The department chair and OIE will work together to select the visit date.
5. After the external review is complete, academic programs will develop an Action Plan based on continuous improvement and considerations made through the external review process.
6. Approximately 2.5 years after the most recent Action Plan was submitted, academic programs will submit a Mid-Cycle Action Plan Progress Report.

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