2.32 Administration of Courses Offered in Shortened Format

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POLICY STATEMENT

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Courses offered in a shortened format for which the student earns credit hours must meet the guidelines of the Texas Education Higher Education Coordinating Board (and Texas Administrative Code) guidelines for minimum course length: 15 weeks (45 contact hours ), and also non-contact-hour time for out-of-class learning and refection.

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RATIONALE

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This policy ensures that a course offered in a shortened format provides an opportunity for the quality of student learning similar to that of a traditional 15-week course. These guidelines apply to both on- and off-campus courses.  

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SCOPE

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This policy applies to all courses in which the student earns credit hours.

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WEBSITE ADDRESS FOR THIS POLICY

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http://www.utsa.edu/hop/chapter2/2.32.html

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RELATED STATUTES, POLICIES, REQUIREMENTS OR STANDARDS

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UTSA or UT System Policies or the Board of Regents’ Rules & Regulations

1. UT System Regents’ Rule 40309, Administration of Courses Offered in Shortened Format
2. UTSA Handbook of Operating Procedures policy 2.17, Final Examinations

Other Policies & Standards

3. Texas Administrative Code, Title 9, Part 1, Chapter 4, Subchapter A, Rule 4.6
4. Texas Higher Education Coordinating Board, Chapter 4 - Rules Applying to All Public Institutions of Higher Education in Texas (cites TAC Rule 4.6)
   

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CONTACTS

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If you have any questions about HOP policy 2.32, Courses Offered in Shortened Format, contact the following office:

The Office of the Provost and Vice President for Academic Affairs
210-458-4110

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DEFINITIONS

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Shortened Format
The elapsed time for a three-semester-credit-hour course from the first class meeting through
the meeting for the final examination is less than 15 weeks.  All requirements for a three credit hour course are applied proportionately to one, two, four, or other credit hour values.

Semester Credit Hour
A semester credit hour is a unit of measure of instruction that awards a student one unit of credit for the equivalent of three hours of student work (one hour of classroom or direct faculty instruction and two hours of outside of the classroom student work) per week over a fifteen-week long semester.

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RESPONSIBILITIES

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1. Department Faculty
   1. Submits justification for course to be offered in shortened format to Department Chair for approval.
2. Department Chair
   1. Submits approved justification and request for approval to deliver course to be offered in shortened format to the College Dean.
3. College Dean
   1. Submits approved justification and request for approval to deliver course to be offered in shortened format to the Provost and Vice President for Academic Affairs for approval.
4. Provost and Vice President for Academic Affairs (or designee)
   1. Approve/reject course to be offered in shortened format.
5. Registrar's Office
   1. Validates contact hours to conform to Coordinating Board standards.

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PROCEDURES

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1. Criteria for a Course Offered in a Shortened Format:
   1. The course will consist of the same number of class contact hours as similar courses offered in a regular long semester: normally 45 contact hours.
   2. The course will consist of the same amount of outside of classroom student work: normally two hours for each hour of direct faculty instruction.
   3. The course will have the same objectives, requirements and quality of instruction as regular length courses.
   4. The standards for admission, drop/withdrawal and grading are substantially equivalent to similar courses taught in a normal semester or summer session term format.
2. Exception:
   1. A course may be offered in a non-traditional way (for example, over the internet, or through a shortened, intensive format) that does not meet these contact hour requirements, if:
   2. The course has been reviewed and approved through a formal, institutional faculty review process that evaluates the course and its learning outcomes.
   3. The process determines that the course does, in fact, have equivalent learning outcomes to an equivalent, traditionally delivered course.
3. Restrictions
   1. No three-credit-hour course shall consist of at least than nine days of classes offered over a period of time not less than three weeks.
   2. All requirements for a three-credit-hour course are applied proportionately to one, two, four, or other credit-hour values.
   3. To ensure the quality of student learning, every three-semester-credit-hour course is assumed to involve a significant amount of non-contact hour time for out-of-class student learning and reflection.
      1. Students will not be allowed to carry more courses in one time in a shortened format than will allow them to earn more than one semester credit hour perk week over the course of the term (6 hours in a 5-week term).
4. Approval Process
   1. The department faculty shall develop justification for the course to be offered in a shortened format and submit the justification and a request for approval to the Department Chair for review and approval.
   2. The Department Chair shall submit an approved justification and request for approval for the course to be offered in a shortened format to the College Dean.
   3. The College Dean shall submit an approved justification and request for approval for the course to be offered in a shortened format to the Provost.
   4. The Provost must approve the course offered in a 3 week format before it can be offered.

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X. SPECIAL INSTRUCTIONS FOR INITIAL IMPLEMENTATION

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None

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XI. FORMS AND TOOLS/ONLINE PROCESSES

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None

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XII. APPENDIX

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None

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XIII. Dates Approved/Amended

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04-10-2015
10-15-2010