The
UNC Policy Manual
400.1.1[R]
Adopted
05/06/09
Amended
08/26/13
Amended
02/01/16*
Amended
11/14/18
Amended
10/16/19
Amended 07/16/25
I. Purpose. This regulation defines the authority,
responsibilities, and required processes as related to academic program
planning and evaluation in the University of North Carolina System (UNC
System).
A.
Compliance
1.
UNC
System institutions are individually accredited by an
accreditor specified in N.C. Gen. Stat. § 116-11.4 and are responsible
for compliance with accreditation criteria and procedures.
2.
UNC
System institutions are responsible for meeting
institutional accreditor’s expectations for the review
of the effectiveness of their educational programs, including student learning
outcomes.
3.
The
University of North Carolina System Office (UNC System Office) utilizes the
most recent Classification of Instructional Programs (CIP), for the
classification of all degree programs.
4.
If
an academic program will be delivered out of state,
whether face-to-face or electronically mediated, the institution must assure
the UNC System Office that all required licensing or other authorization is
secured before the program is offered out of state.
5.
The
UNC System Office will maintain an Academic Program Inventory (API) as the
official record of degree programs offered by the University and of all actions
taken regarding degree programs.
Constituent institutions assist the UNC System Office to maintain the
integrity of the API. This inventory is
continuously updated to reflect changes to existing programs and will also be
revised following the Board of Governors’ approval of new degree programs or
program discontinuations.
B.
Constituent
Institution Policy and Procedure. Each
institution must have a clearly defined process for the review and approval of
proposals to plan or establish new degree programs, including online or
site-based distance education, off-campus, or alternative delivery of degree
programs. Institutions may submit Requests for Authorization
to Plan (RPA) to the System Office prior to the completion of an
institution’s degree program approval process. However, institutions may not
submit the subsequent Request to Establish (RTE) prior to the completion of the
institutional degree program approval process.
C.
Communication
and Forms. Chancellors of constituent institutions shall communicate to the UNC
System Office their intentions or requests with respect to the following:
1. Request for Planning Authorization
(RPA) for any new degree program.
2. Request to Establish (RTE) any new
degree program.
3. Request for authorization to
establish a new delivery mode for any existing degree program.
4. Request for authorization to change
the title, degree type, minimal credential credit hours, or CIP code of an
existing degree program.
5. Request for authorization to
discontinue a degree program.
6. Request
for authorization to consolidate degree programs.
7. Notification of intent to establish
or discontinue a certificate or teacher licensure program.
Constituent institutions must utilize the most recent versions of Request
forms as required, maintained, and made available by the UNC System Office.
Forms for new degree program requests must at minimum address the areas
indicated in Section 400.1, Policy on Academic Program Planning, of the UNC
Policy Manual, as the basis for decision making on the requests. Requests for
planning authorization (RPA) must be accompanied by the most recent version of
the financial worksheet signed by an institution’s chief financial officer.
II. Academic
Program Planning
A.
Definitions.
1.
Academic Program
Inventory (API) is a searchable database known as the Program & Degree
Finder. The database includes all approved degree programs in the UNC System
and their approved modes of delivery (online, off-campus, etc.).
2.
Classification of
Instructional Program (CIP): Classification of Instructional Program or CIP
means the taxonomy of instructional programs published and maintained by the
National Center for Education Statistics.
3.
Distance Education:
Distance Education means instruction that occurs when students and instructors
are separated and not in the same physical location. Instruction may be
synchronous or asynchronous.
4.
Educational Premium:
A method utilized to compare median occupational wages within a CIP code at
different degree levels by matching them to earnings
data for associated SOCs. Institutions may utilize the CIP-SOC crosswalk
maintained by the National Center for Education Statistics to inform this
analysis.
5.
Main campus: Main
campus means that location so specified by the institution to its institutional
accreditor. For consistency across the UNC System, all in-person instruction
sites located in the same city as the main campus may be defined as “main campus.”
6.
Off-campus Program
Delivery: Instruction that occurs when students and instructors are together at
an instructional site that is geographically separate from the main campus of
the institution.
7.
Peer List: A peer
list is a collection of similar institutions that can be used to facilitate
objective and useful comparisons and benchmarking for the constituent
universities. The UNC Board of Governors has responsibility for reviewing
and approving all institutional peer lists.
8.
Return on Investment
(ROI): A method to compare the costs of tuition and fees across the years it
takes to earn the degree as a ratio compared to the median wage for similar
occupations within the CIP-SOC crosswalk, five years into employment.
9.
Standard Occupational
Classification (SOC): A system used to organize and categorize jobs for
statistical purposes. This system classifies all occupations in the U.S. into
groups based on similar job duties, skills, education, and training.
B.
New
Baccalaureate, Master’s, and Doctoral Degree Program Proposals
1.
The
major considerations in the planning and evaluation of new degree program
proposals are those found in Section 400.1(IV)(C) of
the UNC Policy Manual, Policy on Academic Program Planning.
Institutions shall provide the UNC System Office with information on each such
consideration, including without limitation the contribution of the program to
professions which are critical to the health, education attainment, and quality
of life of North Carolinians.
2.
New degree program applications shall include the following:
Student Demand Analysis; Workforce Demand Analysis; Education Premium Analysis;
and Student Return-on-Investment (ROI) Analysis.
i.
The Student Demand
analysis shall include:
1.
For undergraduate
degrees, a count of student enrollments and completions from the most recent 5
years within the UNC System for programs with the same or similar
Classification of Instructional Programs (CIP) and the same degree level. The
source for this data is the UNC System Student Data
Mart.
2.
For graduate degrees,
a count of student applications, admissions, enrollments, and
completions from the most recent 5 years within the UNC System for programs
with the same or similar Classification of Instructional Programs (CIP)
and the same degree level. The source for this data is
the UNC System Student Data Mart.; or,
3.
Student Demand will
also include completion counts and trends from the most recent 5 years for
programs with the same or similar CIP codes and same degree level from the UNC
Board of Governors approved Peer Institutions. The source for
this data is the National Center for Education Statistics, IPEDS.
4.
As part of the
Student Demand Analysis, the proposing institution
shall also identify anticipated impacts on enrollment in other programs offered
at the institution.
ii.
The Workforce Demand
Analysis shall include an analysis of the workforce demand in North Carolina
for those SOCs which the institution projects as employment outcomes for the
program, informed by the CIP-SOC crosswalk. Institutions may, but are not
required to, include additional national workforce analysis, especially for
degree programs that anticipate a significant portion of graduates seeking
employment out-of-state.
1.
Workforce Demand in
North Carolina shall include the estimated current employment in North
Carolina, estimated projected employment in North Carolina in ten years, the
net change, and percentage change for the SOC(s) identified based on the
CIP-SOC crosswalk published by the National Center for Education
Statistics.
2.
Workforce Demand
Analysis data are from NC Commerce for the required North Carolina
analysis. The recommended data source for the optional national workforce
analysis is the United States Department of Labor Bureau of Labor
Statistics.
iii.
The Education Premium
Analysis for new program applications shall include the median wages earned for
the SOC(s) identified compared to median wages earned for similar SOC(s) with a
lower minimum education requirement as well as all SOCs with a lower minimum
education requirement. Doctoral will be compared to Masters, Bachelor’s, and
HS/no credential; Masters will be compared to
Bachelor’s and HS/no credential; Bachelor’s will be
compared to HS/no credential.
iv.
The Student
Return-on-Investment (ROI) analysis and calculation will multiply the institution’s most recent time-to-degree published
metric by the cost of the proposed program’s proposed tuition and fees, and compare that figure to the expected earnings for
those SOCs which the institution projects as employment outcomes for the
program, informed by the CIP-SOC crosswalk. Other measures may be included and
explained in addition to the CIP-SOC metric. The analysis will also include a
discussion of available student earnings information from similar academic
programs offered at an institution’s UNC Board of Governor’s approved
peer institutions. Data sources for the analysis of student earnings from
approved peer institutions are the U.S. Census Bureau’s Postsecondary
Employment Outcomes database or the United States Department of Education’s
College Scorecard.
3.
Institutions may, but
are not required to, submit additional measures of student demand, education
premium, student ROI, and workforce demand in support of their
applications.
4.
Constituent
institutions must comply with Section 400.1.5 of UNC Policy Manual, Policy
on Fostering Undergraduate Student Success, including credit hour maximums
for baccalaureate degrees.
5.
The
UNC System Office will be responsible for managing the review process for new
degree proposals and for making recommendations to the Board of Governors of
the University of North Carolina (Board) according to the timelines maintained by the UNC System Office and published
on the UNC System Office Division of Academic Affairs’ website. The UNC System Office may request
and/or approve expedited authorizations to plan proposed programs that clearly
meet the considerations in II.A, above.
External reviews will be required for all doctoral programs and may also
be sought to evaluate constituent institution
readiness to deliver online or site-based distance education, off-campus, or
alternative delivery of degree programs at any level.
6.
The maximum number of new degree program
proposals an institution may have under review at the UNC System Office at any
time is five. The Senior Vice President for Academic Affairs may waive
this provision on the request of an institution and for good cause. Proposals for new joint degree programs
shall be exempt from these limitations.
C. The UNC System Office has authority
to approve online and site-based distance education delivery and off-campus
delivery of degree programs previously established by the board according to
the timelines maintained by the UNC System Office and
published on the UNC System Office Division of Academic Affairs’ website,
otherwise, new degree programs to be delivered online, site-based, or
off-campus are processed in the same way as all other new degree program
proposals and require board approval.
Approval by the UNC System Office is required if 50 percent or more of
the degree program will be offered in an alternative, online, or distance
delivery mode, or a combination of these modes with the following exceptions:
1.
The
distance education degree program offering for which a constituent institution
must follow its institutional accreditor’s substantive change procedure,
regardless of the percent offered in that format, must be approved by the UNC
System Office.
2.
Any
off-campus offering of a degree program, regardless of
the percent offered in that format, must be approved
by the UNC System Office.
Constituent
institutions proposing such programs will be expected to document how online
and site-based distance education programs and off-campus programs exhibit
comparable quality to programs offered on site at the constituent institution
in terms of both academic standards and standards for student support. The application and maintenance of academic
standards are the responsibility of the academic unit and constituent
institution offering the instruction online or at a
site off-campus.
Constituent
institutions proposing such programs will also be expected to document how
online and site-based distance education programs and off-campus programs do
not result in an unnecessary duplication of effort and resources, including
among programs delivered to students on campus.
For off-site
delivery, priority should be given to partnering with UNC constituent
institutions and with the North Carolina Community College System where
appropriate.
Rapidly changing
technology may lead to new modes of delivery of courses and degrees. Proposals for other methods for delivery of
degree programs must document the comparable quality of the proposed programs
to programs offered by the constituent institution in terms of both academic
standards and standards for student support.
Degree-Related
Distance Education Courses. The
development and delivery of individual degree-related distance education
courses are institutional responsibilities.
Courses may be offered without prior approval of the UNC System
Office.
D.
Doctor’s
Degree – Professional Practice.
Professional practice doctoral program proposals (formerly First
Professional program proposals, as in medicine, pharmacy, dentistry, veterinary
medicine, law, and others) normally involve outside reviewers in the early
stages of development and in many cases an on-site review team. Other high-cost programs may also be
addressed in the same manner.
Constituent institutions should consult with the UNC System Office
before beginning to prepare a Professional Practice program proposal.
E.
Joint
Degree Programs. Joint Degree programs
result in the awarding of a single joint degree by two or more UNC constituent
institutions or by a UNC constituent institution and non-UNC educational
institution. Joint degree programs must
be approved through the regular institutional processes and have the approval
of the chancellor of each participating UNC institution before submission to
the UNC System Office for review and presentation to the board for
approval.
Proposals for joint degree programs
must include documentation that, at minimum, the fundamental elements of the
following institutional processes have been agreed to by the partners:
1.
Admission
process;
2.
Registration
and enrollment process for students;
3.
Committee
process for graduate students;
4.
Plan
for charging and distributing tuition and fees;
5.
Management
of transcripts and permanent records;
6.
Participation
in graduation; and
7.
Design
of diploma.
Each student who will receive a
Joint Degree must be approved by each UNC institution whose name will appear on
the diploma using the institutional process for certifying a student to receive
a degree.
F.
Dual
Degree Programs. A Dual Degree program
involves two academic units, either at the same institution or at different
institutions, including non-UNC institutions, in a formal agreement to offer
two degrees as part of a program of study that will result in a student being
awarded both degrees (two diplomas).
While such programs offer the advantage that some course work may count
for each degree, the requirements for each of the two degrees in a Dual Degree
program must be substantially equivalent to the requirements for a student
taking only one of the degrees. For
example, a juris doctorate and an MBA could be linked in a Dual Degree program.
If institutional accreditors must approve dual degree arrangements, these
arrangements are considered by the UNC System Office as articulation agreements
among existing degree programs and do not require additional approval by the
UNC System Office or the Board.
G.
Expedited
Program Review. While Board policy
requires that the academic program planning and evaluation process achieve a
balance between responsiveness, due diligence, and a state-wide outlook, it
also necessitates development of expedited program review processes for
circumstances when rapid response is warranted.
The UNC System Office or an institution may
make a request for an expedited review when there is an extraordinary need
to have a program start up immediately to meet a clear and emerging state need,
or to announce immediately that the program will be available at a certain
future time. An example might be the need for a degree program as
part of a state effort for recruiting or expanding business, industry, or a
governmental function. An expedited
review will not require a request for permission to plan, and some or all
external review requirements may be eliminated at the discretion of the UNC
System Office academic affairs leadership.
The UNC System may also initiate an expedited
program review on its own initiative without the request of an institution and
may develop expedited review procedures for certain classes of applications,
such as applications to develop a degree program from an existing concentration
within a degree.
H.
Discontinuation
of Academic Degree Programs. The Board of Governors has the authority to
establish and discontinue degree programs.
A constituent institution may recommend the discontinuation of a degree
program at any time. The proposal for
discontinuation should provide a reasonable time for currently-enrolled
students to complete their academic requirements or provide an alternative way
for these students to complete their program of study. The constituent institution may submit a
letter for approval to reinstate the degree program within five years of its
discontinuation. If one partner institution elects to withdraw from a
joint academic degree program, the remaining institution may continue to offer
the program as a standalone degree. The institution must submit a teach-out
plan for the joint program and provide documentation of institutional resources
to support the program as a standalone offering.
I.
Program
Consolidation. Constituent institutions may request that two or more existing
degree programs be discontinued in order to be
combined in a single degree program. If the resulting consolidated program differs
substantively from the component programs in both curricular requirements and
program classification, then the constituent institution must complete an
abbreviated request for establishment for expedited review by the UNC System
Office and approval by the Board as a new degree program. Alternately, a constituent institution may
seek to discontinue one or more degree programs to
become concentrations or tracks within another degree program whose core
requirements and program classification will otherwise not change. In this
case, the request for establishment and board approval as a new program are not required, but for the programs to be discontinued,
the request to discontinue must be completed and approved by the board. Constituent institutions should work closely
with the UNC System Office to assure the correct steps
are taken for consolidation requests.
J.
CIP code and Degree
Title Changes. The UNC System Office may approve changes to an academic
degree program’s CIP code or title for good cause.
a. In
the case of a request to change a degree program’s CIP from one which is not
designated as STEM for the purposes of the UNC System funding model to one
which is, the institution must demonstrate that fifty percent or more of the
courses making up the program are STEM courses. For
the purposes of this section, a “STEM course” is a course for which fifty
percent or more of the content and learning objectives are reasonably made up
of science, technology, engineering, or mathematics.
b.
The UNC System Office
may, in its discretion, determine that a program’s CIP code change, title
change, or combination thereof would create such a departure from the original
degree program that the institution must apply for a new academic program in accordance
with this Regulation.
III. Other Matters
A. Effective Date. The requirements of this regulation shall be
effective on the date of adoption of this regulation by the president.
B. Relation to Federal and State Laws
and Policies. The foregoing regulation
as adopted by the president is meant to supplement, and does not purport to
supplant or modify, those statutory enactments, regulations, and policies which
may govern or relate to the subject matter of this regulation.
*Supersedes Section 400.1.1[R] of the same title, originally adopted May
6, 2009, and amended August 26, 2013.