6,091: Curricula-Review of Academic Programs
Revised: September 2015
In accordance with Title 4, Chapter 14, Section 5 of the Board of Regents Handbook, NSHE institutions with academic programs are required to review existing programs on at least a ten-year cycle. Reviews of degree-granting programs at the University are conducted more frequently, with the process beginning in the 7th year following programs approval or following a prior program review.
The Office of the Provost maintains a program review master schedule indicating when academic programs are scheduled for review. When possible, closely related programs and programs in the same academic department are scheduled to undergo review in the same year, typically with the same team of external reviewers. The program review master schedule is updated and revised annually and is distributed to the deans of the colleges with academic units prior to the start of the fall semester.
A program review may be scheduled to be combined with an accreditation review already scheduled. In order to accomplish this, the leadership of the academic program must alert the Office of the Provost of an expected accreditation review and the request that the accreditation review be combined with a program review. If granted, the requirements for this combined review described in the Program Review Manual must be met.
The program review process calls for a systematic analysis of the objectives and performance of an academic unit and its academic programs based on both quantitative and qualitative evidence, as well as planning for the future. The review process should be collaborative and interactive, with open, professional dialogue among all regular faculty in the department or who participate in the program, and those individuals should be invited to be participants in the program review visit. This collaboration should occur at all stages of the program review, from development of the self-study through the review visit to the construction of a department or program response to the external review report following the visit. For a description of the process and requirements, see the most recent Program Review Manual.
Before July 1 of each year, the Provost will distribute a memo to departments with programs scheduled for review in the next academic year. A program review orientation is offered by the Office of the Provost each academic year at the start of the fall semester. Departments and programs are encouraged to send multiple representatives to the orientation.