CAS | Procedural Checklist for Curriculum Committee Proposals

The following list is intended to guide you through the Curriculum Committee proposal process. This includes proposals for:

  • New majors, minors, tracks, or emphases
  • Changes to majors, minors, tracks, or emphases
  • New courses (including x55 courses)
  • Course changes
  • Course deactivation
  • Course designations for core

Please note that the process for seeking a core designation for courses is slightly different. This is noted at the end of this page.

Members of the Curriculum Committee will look for each of the following, thus, if each item here is accounted for before the proposal is sent to the Curriculum Committee it has a much higher chance of being approved in its first iteration.

  • All proposals must be completed on new forms located on the CC page. Older forms or self-generated forms will not be accepted. Both Word (.docx) and PDF versions of the forms are available. The former is best for large changes, for example, changes to majors and minors. The CC prefers that you use the Word version of the forms.
  • Forms must have Department Chair and School Director signatures before being sent to the CC. Please have department chairs review and approve all proposals before bringing them to the school director to sign. School Directors will send proposals to the appropriate persons in the registrar's office and the advising center.
  • New and revised courses must have proper prefixes and numbers before coming to the CC.
    • Work with your Department Chair and Director to find appropriate prefixes and numbers.
    • When proposing a new course that is not an x55, please consult with your School Director to get a course number that is available for the prefix being used.
  • Course SLOs must be clearly addressed using accepted language and descriptors.
  • Choose prerequisites carefully. For example, all prerequisite courses should be checked for embedded prerequisites.
  • Catalog language should clearly articulate the purpose of and material to be covered in the course. Compose the catalog copy with non-expert students in mind. Pay attention to the word/character limits for course descriptions. These are noted on the CC forms.
  • If the proposal is a Course Change form, it must include the course’s old information to be revised, e.g., catalog copy, course title, number, etc.
  • There should be a clear articulation of the reasons for the changes in the Justification section for Course Change proposals.
  • Strike through or highlight old information that is being changed so that new language is easily compared.
  • For proposals that fall outside the bounds of our usual forms contact the CC Chair.
  • Check with other departments that will be included and/or affected by your proposal.
  • E-mail completed forms that are signed by the Department Chair and School Director to the Chair of the CC with a copy to Vicki McGee, the administrative assistant to the CC (mcgeevl@pacificu.edu) and Kaitlyn Guild (kaitlyn@pacificu.edu). This step does not apply to core designation forms (see below).

When seeking one or more core designations for a course:

The above items should be followed except...

Once signed by the Department Chair and School Director, completed Course Designation forms should be sent to the Director of Core Curriculum, Shereen Khoja (shereen@pacificu.edu) so the request can be reviewed by the three-person faculty review team (FRT) for the designation being sought. Once approved by the FRT, the form will be forwarded to the Curriculum Committee as an informational item. The CC will then have the registrar’s office enter the designation into the course’s record.

Please note that core designations are not applied to courses currently being offered. Please work with the Director of Core Curriculum to have designations applied to the records of students who are enrolled in the course.

The CAS Curriculum Committee page outlines the deadlines and procedures for proposing changes to courses and academic programs, and for proposing new minors, majors, and degrees.

Read more
Policies and Forms

This site provides a central location for policies that affect the university community. This ensures that faculty, staff, students and visitors to the university have easy access to all university policies and procedures. 

Note that colleges or departments may maintain policies and procedures related specifically to their units. Refer to those departments directly to access program-specific policies. Questions or comments may be directed to the Provost's Office. 

Read more