| 2. Course Approvals | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 2.1 Course Approval Process | 2.2 Classification of Courses | 2.3 Course Credit | 2.4 Special Studies Courses | 2.5 Web-based and Online Courses | 2.6 Pruning | 2.7 Creation of New Academic Units and Sub-departments | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
2.1 Course Approval Process When a new course is proposed, the following must be documented on the course approval form: course number, course title, abbreviated transcript title, unit value, instructional format and contact hours, duration of course, prerequisites, estimated total number of required hours of student work per week, restrictions, and department chair or dean’s signature. As noted above, new course proposals must include information on the estimated total number of required hours of student work per week. This estimate includes course contact hours as well as time spent doing course work outside of the classroom. See section 2.3.1, Designation of Unit Value. New courses, including special topics courses, require the submission of a syllabus. A syllabus should include the following: an outline of the topics to be covered in the course (a week-by-week syllabus or other detailed format which conveys how the course will be presented), a reading list or a summary of the sort of works to be used, a list of course requirements (e.g., papers, quizzes, exams), and the relative weight of each requirement toward the final grade (e.g., two ten-page papers, 20% each; two quizzes, 10% each; final exam, 40%). 2.1.2 Changes to Existing Courses Should a request to change an existing course title, description, or instructional format be submitted that substantially alters the existing course, the course, at the Committee’s discretion, may be treated as a new course. Such a course submission should include a fully developed syllabus. Requests to increase or decrease the unit value of a course must always be explained, with sufficient justification given. Requests to change unit value must also include a revised estimate of the total number of hours of student work per week (see Section 2.3.1, Designation of Unit Value). Once a course is approved, the syllabus and readings may be changed without the Committee’s approval so long as the description, goal, and instructional format of the course, as well as the essential pedagogical approach, remain the same. However, please note that changes in final examination format must meet COCI final examination guidelines. Please see section 3.2 on Final Examinations. To request a change of the same type (for example, the addition of the same prerequisite) to more than two courses, you may send a memo or letter in lieu of course approval forms. The memo should outline the changes and indicate the courses affected. To make changes to only one or two courses, use course approval forms. For a simple withdrawal, you may list on the form only the course department, number, and title. There is no need to fill in all of the course information. To withdraw a course and use the course number for another course, you must indicate on the course approval form the semester the course was last offered. Once a course has been withdrawn, its number may not be used for a new course for three years for undergraduate courses and five years for graduate courses. For more details, see section 2.2.3 on Re-using Course Numbers. COCI reviews approvals and withdrawals at the same time. If you are withdrawing one course, and re-using that number for another course (after the appropriate period of time has passed), you must submit two forms. One form should be submitted to withdraw the old course, and one form should be submitted to establish the new course that is re-using the old number. Withdrawal of a course is different from pruning a course from the Catalog. See Section 2.6 on Pruning. COCI course approval forms (CAFs) and cross-listed course forms are available in PDF format: CAF | CLCF Fill out the forms completely. Secure the signature(s) needed; remember that cross-listed course forms must be signed by all of the participating departments. This rule applies to new courses, changes, or withdrawals of cross-listed courses. Attach supporting documents such as syllabi and reading lists. Follow any other procedures required by your department or unit. 2.1.5 Where to Send Course Approval Forms Course approval and cross-listed course forms and all attachments such as syllabi should always be sent directly to Karen Denton in the Records Division, Office of the Registrar (OR), 124 Sproul, # 5404. Send two copies of the form (only one copy of the supporting material is necessary). OR staff enter the data from the course approval forms into the COURSE system, providing an initial quality control check and adding information to each course that is relevant for student records. OR checks for and follows up on incomplete or improperly documented forms. At this stage, Publications Office staff review the course listings for spelling and grammar consistency. This adds some time to the data entry process before the courses are forwarded (both the paper forms and online) to COCI staff and the COCI subcommittees for in-depth review and to the full Committee for consideration. If you send a course approval form directly to the Academic Senate office, it will delay the processing of the course while the forms are mailed to the Registrar’s Office. Properly documented forms, supported by a complete package of information, will speed the data entry and review process. 2.1.6 Timing for Course Approvals In general, course approval forms submitted to the Office of the Registrar will be reviewed by COCI within one month. All course approval forms should be submitted to the Office of the Registrar no later than one month before the end of the semester (Fall or Spring) preceding the semester in which the course is to be offered. During high volume periods (e.g., Schedule of Classes and Catalog publication deadlines), COCI strongly recommends submission of course approval forms in advance of the one-month timeline. The Committee will not consider a request for approval of a new course or change to an existing course after the start of the semester in which the course is being offered. 2.1.7 Notification of Course Approval Status Given the large volume of courses that COCI reviews for the campus, COCI staff are unable to inform individual departments whether their courses have been approved. Instead, COCI staff will send a blanket email to all departments following approval of courses. COCI staff will notify department contacts via email if the COCI subcommittee and/or the full Committee require further information about an individual course. It is the department’s responsibility to provide the requested information once notified. 2.1.8 Changes that Departments Can Initiate Without COCI Review The following types of requests can be handled by email to COCI staff and without COCI approval:
The Committee on Courses of Instruction reminds instructors and departments to keep Catalog course descriptions and requirements up to date. Students and advisers use the Catalog descriptions to plan academic programs. To help students plan effectively, it is essential to provide correct and current information about the courses. The information should be available to students prior to the Tele-BEARS enrollment period. Descriptions that no longer accurately reflect current course content should be updated. Requirements that go beyond routine reading, writing, and studying assignments must be noted in the course descriptions. Such requirements include special or weekend field trips, community service work, off-campus activities, and special meetings outside of normal class time.
New Summer courses or changes to existing Summer courses must be routed through the approval process and reviewed by COCI in the same manner as all other courses. Academic units are allowed to bypass COCI review when adding Summer terms of ten, eight, or six weeks to courses that have already been approved for the Fall and/or Spring semesters. In these instances, the number of contact hours for the Summer term must be the same or slightly greater than those of the Fall and/or Spring term. The type of instructional format (lecture, seminar, lab, etc.) must also remain the same. For example, a three-unit course offered in the Fall or Spring with three hours of lecture per week has a total of 45 contact hours. If this course were offered for eight weeks in the summer, the format would have to be six hours of lecture per week for eight weeks, for a total of 48 contact hours. For a six week Summer term, the format would have to be 7.5 hours of lecture per week for six weeks for a total of 45 contact hours. In both cases, the number of contact hours is equal to or greater than 45 (the number of contact hours for the Fall/Spring semester). To have a Summer term added for an already approved course, send email to Karen Denton in the Office of the Registrar at kjed@berkeley.edu. She will add the new version to the COURSE system and forward the course to COCI staff for approval. You do not need to fill out a course approval form. Make sure to include the length of the term you wish to add as well as the instructional format. You must show that the number of contact hours for the Summer term will be equal to or greater than the number of contact hours for the regular term. If the number of contact hours for the proposed Summer term is not consistent with the Fall or Spring term offerings or if there are any other changes being made to the course, the Summer term will not be automatically approved. To make any additional changes to the course for the Summer term, such as changing the unit value or description, submit a CAF and the course will undergo review by COCI. In addition, any Summer courses with a term of fewer than six weeks must undergo review by COCI. Departments may use the N prefix for Summer courses that are different from regular term offerings. For example, MCELLBI N130L, which is taught in the Summer, is not the same course as MCELLBI 130L, which is taught in the Fall and Spring, because it has fewer units. Changes to instructional format, such as the addition or removal of a discussion section for the Summer term, also require an N prefix. The following are the minimum enrollment limits set by Systemwide policy: lower division: 12; upper division: 8; and graduate division: 4. In the event that enrollment in a class falls below the specified limit in two successive offerings, the class should not be conducted again with enrollment below the norm without approval of the dean. Even where this history does not exist, a course that fails to attain the minimum enrollment size after the second class meeting should be cancelled, if practical, and the instructor given another teaching assignment. Exceptions may be made for courses required for graduation, if canceling the class would affect the date of graduation of enrolled students, or for courses required in a major program, if the class must be offered at a particular time to maintain the proper sequence of courses. 2.2 Classification of Courses 2.2.1 Senate Regulation 740: Classification of Courses Systemwide Senate Regulation 740 classifies course numbers as follows:
2.2.2 Additional Restrictions on Course Numbers The following course numbers are not governed by Academic Senate regulations but are reserved for specific purposes at UC Berkeley:
Berkeley Division Regulation A230 designates the following course numbers for Special Studies Courses:
See Section 2.4 on Special Studies courses for the full text and additional information. Once a course has been withdrawn, its number may not be used for a new course for a period of three years for undergraduate courses and five years for graduate courses. This rule is designed to avoid confusion among faculty and students and to avoid the need for variances if students who have taken the old course wish to take the new course. (The time restriction is based on the latter consideration and represents the time in which most students enrolled at the time of the change will have left the University.) Exceptions to this rule may be requested if the department can demonstrate that the above concerns are not a problem – for example, if the course has not been taught in the last three years. Use of a suffix with a new course may avoid the above problems – course 101 is considered to be different from course 101A and similarly 101C from 101D. 2.2.4 Approved Instructional Formats
No more than five characters can be used to distinguish courses; this includes the use of prefixes and suffixes. This is due to limitations imposed by the Student Database. COCI utilizes the following guidelines for the use of prefixes and suffixes: Prefixes
Suffixes The AC suffix has campus-wide significance. COCI has stipulated that, as of Spring 1996, all courses meeting the American Cultures requirement are to be identified with the AC suffix. For new courses, use of the AC suffix supersedes the use of any other prefix or suffix. Courses with a suffix which were approved for American Cultures prior to this stipulation are exempt from the requirement. Prior to receiving COCI approval, courses designed to fulfill the AC requirement must be reviewed and recommended for approval by the Subcommittee on the Breadth Requirement in American Cultures (AM CULT). See Section 3.4 for information on fulfilling the AC breadth requirement. An umbrella course has a generic description and several individual courses listed under the umbrella heading. The umbrella course is not an actual course, but represents a description common to all the courses listed under it. Any listing of course format and units applies to the courses listed under it. The courses listed under the umbrella heading are differentiated by suffixes and represent independent courses. For example, History 103 Proseminar: Problems in Interpretation in the Several Fields of History, is not a course. However, the courses listed under it, 103A Ancient, 103B Europe, 103C England, etc., are actual courses. Umbrella courses cannot be cross-listed with other courses. 2.2.7 Cross-listed Courses and Room Shares Types of Cross-Listed Courses Cross-listed courses are courses offered jointly by more than one department. There are two types of cross-listed courses:
Procedures for Cross-Listing Courses Conversion to cross-listing, even temporarily, requires approval by COCI. Each set of cross-listed courses must specify an administrating department that will carry the primary administrative responsibility for the courses, including course scheduling and assignment of instructors. The administrating department may share these duties with other sponsoring units, but remains responsible for ensuring that these tasks are completed in accordance with campus policy and regulations. Unless stated otherwise, duplicate credit will not be given for cross-listed courses nor for those with the same number but without the C prefix (e.g., no duplicate credit for both History C159A and History 159A). With respect to the COURSE system, addition of a C prefix to a course number identifies it as a different course; e.g., History 113 is a different course from History C113. If a course routinely shifts between the regular and cross-listed format, a department may choose to maintain a Catalog listing for each. This approach should be used if a cross-listed course is given for a single term. When the term is over, the C course will expire and there will be no need to reactivate the regular course. In such cases, departments need to specify whether taking one course precludes receiving credit for the other (i.e., whether the course is repeatable for credit). Academic Senate Regulation 762 states “No student, by merely performing additional work, may receive upper division credit for a lower division course, or graduate credit for an undergraduate course. Related courses may share lectures, laboratories, or other common content but must have clearly differentiated and unique performance criteria, requirements, and goals.” COCI has determined that SR 762 is inconsistent with cross-listing lower and upper division courses and undergraduate and graduate courses. However, the regulation does permit room sharing under certain conditions. Departments may room share lower and upper division courses, and upper division and graduate courses. In these instances, the standards and requirements for each course must be clearly articulated. Room sharing should only occur between courses that are equal in unit value, grading option, and instructional format. COCI also encourages departments to formalize room shares as cross-listed courses whenever practicable. A prerequisite is intended to ensure the necessary background to undertake study in the course concerned. The use of nominal or artificial prerequisites should be avoided. The prerequisites for courses are established by the departments and require the approval of COCI. If no prerequisites are stated, it is understood that the course is open to any matriculated student. The minimum prerequisite for all upper division courses is either junior standing or a specified lower division course. If a course has a prerequisite, the instructor in charge of the course is responsible for its enforcement. 2.3 Course Credit 2.3.1 Designation of Unit Value Unit value for course offerings is governed by Academic Senate Regulation (SR) 760, which states in part: “The value of a course in units shall be reckoned at the rate of one unit for three hours’ work per week per term on the part of a student, or the equivalent.” COCI defines “work” to include class contact time as well as time spent outside of class studying and doing research or homework. Thus, a three-unit class will be expected to require nine hours of total work per week on the part of the student. SR 760 does not specify a relationship between unit value and class contact hours. Thus, COCI utilizes the following model: one unit equals 15 contact hours per term. Thus, the three-unit course should generally have 45 contact hours over the course of the term. Such a course might have a format of three hours of lecture per week for 15 weeks. The course would have nine hours of total work per week, three of which would be in-class lecture. Students would be expected to do six hours of additional out-of-class work. Departments are responsible for submitting course approval requests that include a detailed description of how unit value is justified. Lecture and Seminar Classes
Laboratory Courses or their Equivalent Additional Units Variable Units 2.3.2 Maximum Allotment of Units In general, undergraduate courses should not carry more than four units. Exceptions should be limited to cases where intensive study is appropriate and practicable, such as introductory language courses. Special justification must be presented for courses with more than four units of credit. 2.3.3 Courses that May be Repeated for Credit There are courses that may be repeated one or more times for credit. Such courses are usually advanced courses and vary in content from instructor to instructor and from term to term. If the content of a course is not constant from term to term and one instructor to another, the department may decide that a student should be able to repeat the course for credit one or more times. In considering a course for which the department includes the provision “may be repeated for credit,” the Committee expects the department to provide information concerning the probable instructors, and the advising or enrollment procedures that will be employed to inform prospective students of the specific format and emphasis in the term, and the measure to be employed so that a student does not receive duplicate credit for the same course content. 2.4 Special Studies Courses Special Studies courses are governed by Berkeley Division Regulation (BR) A230, which sets requirements for credit, course numbers, approvals, and limitations as follows:
2.4.1 Student-Facilitated Group Study Courses (98 and 198 “DeCal” Courses) Proposals for student-facilitated courses should be submitted on the Special Studies Course Proposal Form available on the Special Studies website (http://education.berkeley.edu/specialstudies/). This website also contains checklists and detailed information for faculty and departments on sponsoring and approving student-facilitated courses. COCI reiterates that department chairs are responsible for monitoring the academic rigor of all courses in their departments, including student-facilitated courses. Before approving student-facilitated course proposals, department chairs should carefully review each syllabus and verify that the instructor of record will appropriately supervise the course. Instructors of record for student-facilitated courses are governed by SR 750, which states that “Only regularly appointed officers of instruction holding appropriate instructional titles may have substantial responsibility for the content and conduct of courses which are approved by the Academic Senate.” In short, if an individual has been approved to teach as an instructor of record for an academic unit, he or she may “sponsor” a student-facilitated group study course as the instructor of record. This does not apply to graduate students who have been appointed as Acting Instructor-Graduate Students. BR A205.A states “An instructor may be in charge of no more than one such undergraduate course [graded passed/not passed] in any term, exclusive of individual study or research courses, except with the consent of the dean of the school or college in which the course is offered.” A copy of the approved proposal (form, syllabus, and responses to the five questions on the form) must be submitted for information to the Committee on Courses of Instruction (COCI), 320 Stephens Hall, # 5842, before the end of the semester prior to the semester in which the course is to be taught. COCI reviews the proposals for compliance with Senate regulations. Courses are considered approved once signed by the department chair; however, COCI may revoke the approval of courses not conducted according to Senate regulations. Courses affiliated with the DeCal program are subject to the requirements outlined in BR A230. DeCal is a program affiliated with the Associate Students of the University of California (ASUC) to help students create and facilitate their own courses under faculty sponsorship. Departments are responsible for the content and conduct of special studies courses advertised through DeCal. Proposals for group study courses led by faculty or other personnel (non-students) should not be submitted on the Special Studies Course Proposal Form. Facilitators should instead submit to COCI a written proposal addressing the matters required by BR A230. The department chair’s approval is required. Please note that SR 760 states that students should do three hours of work per week per term for each unit of credit received (see Section 2.3.1, Designation of Unit Value). This applies to all courses, including group study courses. The course syllabus must reflect this workload. Additionally, variable unit classes must specify how unit value will be assigned. 2.5 Web-based and Online Courses Background Criteria for Review Final Exams Supplementary Questions When submitting a course approval form for a new web-based course or a web-based version of an existing course, the instructor must submit answers to the following questions for COCI’s review. The list of questions is also available here: Supplemental Questions.
Instructional Formats
COCI has developed procedures to ensure that the Catalog provides an up-to-date and accurate representation of courses offered at UC Berkeley. Undergraduate and graduate courses that are not taught for ten consecutive Fall and Spring terms will be automatically removed, or ”pruned,” from the Catalog. A pruned course is still an active course that can be scheduled and taught; it has not been withdrawn. In order for a course to be “un-pruned” and placed back in the Catalog it must be scheduled and taught. COCI staff cannot un-prune a course, although academic units may request that courses be pruned from the Catalog. Each Spring, academic departments will receive two pruning reports. The first will list the department’s currently pruned courses; the second will list courses that have not been taught in three or more calendar years (or six terms). The latter courses are set for imminent pruning if not taught before the five year (ten term) limit. 2.7 Creation of New Academic Units and Sub-departments The creation of new academic units, such as the sub-departments Greek and Latin in the department of Classics, requires review and approval by the Office of Planning and Analysis. COCI must approve the abbreviation (or department code) that will be used to designate the new academic unit on the COURSE system. Departments can write a letter to COCI that provides this information. COCI strongly recommends that departments begin the process of creating sub-departments at least one year in advance of the semester in which courses are to be offered. This is due to time constraints associated with the Schedule of Classes. The same time constraints apply in instances where an academic unit, such as a graduate group, wants to add a department code to the COURSE system so that they may offer courses.
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