G/PPS 02.02 - Short Courses

POLICY STATEMENT

Texas State University is committed to maintaining an effective process for curricular development.

1. BACKGROUND INFORMATION

   1. This policy governs the provision and administration of short courses, according to the rules established by the Texas Higher Education Coordinating Board (THECB), Chapter 4, Rules Applying to All Public Institutions of Higher Education in Texas, Subchapter A, General Provisions, Section 4.6.

   2. Short courses may be delivered in an intensive format, which condenses the same amount of material covered in a traditional course into a shorter time frame, often involving longer class hours or more frequent meetings. Additionally, courses delivered in a non-traditional way, such as online courses, hybrid courses (combining online and in-person components), or accelerated formats, must meet equivalent learning outcomes to traditional courses.

   3. Short courses shall adhere to the following guidelines set by the THECB regarding Minimum Length of Courses and Limitation of the Amount of Credit Earned in a Given Time Period:

      1. Traditionally-delivered, three-semester-credit-hour courses should contain 15 weeks of instruction (45 contact hours), plus a week for final examinations so that such a course contains 45 to 48 contact hours depending on whether there is a final exam.

      2. Every college course is assumed to involve a significant amount of non-contact-hour time for out-of-class student learning and reflection. To ensure the quality of student learning, institutions should not allow students to carry more courses in any term (that is, regular or shortened semester), that would allow them to earn more than one semester credit hour per week over the course of the term. For example, in a five-and-a-half-week summer term, students should not generally be allowed to enroll for more than six semester credit hours.

      3. Institutions should have a formal written policy for addressing any exceptions to Section 01.02 b.

      4. Courses delivered in shortened semesters are expected to have the same number of contact hours and the same requirement for out-of-class learning as courses taught in a normal semester.

      5. Institutions may offer a course in a non-traditional way (e.g., over the internet, or through a shortened, intensive format) that does not meet these contact hour requirements, if the course has been reviewed and approved through a formal, institutional faculty review process that evaluates the course and its learning outcomes and determines that the course does, in fact, have equivalent learning outcomes to a traditionally delivered course.

2. GUIDELINES FOR SHORT COURSES

   1. The minimum number of class contact hours is 15 per semester credit hour.

   2. Quality assurance procedures for short courses are the same as for all other courses. Short courses are monitored and evaluated the same as other courses. Short courses must be taught by either full-time or part-time faculty who are reviewed by the appropriate department and hired under normal university procedures.

   3. A course is eligible for a shortened format if it includes any of the following characteristics:

      1. subject matter or special projects that require an intensive, concentrated delivery format;

      2. field trips or internships;

      3. association or affiliation with a workshop;

      4. necessity of accommodating work schedules of special groups of students;

      5. availability of special faculty; or

      6. availability of specialized facility.

   4. Short course offerings must be created in the Courseleaf CLSS tool. Once a request is submitted a workflow will be triggered to obtain approval from the department chair and college dean. Graduate or postgraduate short course offerings must also be approved by the dean of The Graduate College. Approved short courses will be included by the academic department in the schedule of classes for registration.

   5. It is the responsibility of the chair and dean to ensure these courses meet the required metrics. These are not optional guidelines but rather requirements set by THECB. If unable to meet these metrics, it may be necessary to reconsider offering the courses.

   6. The drop and withdrawal deadlines for short courses are established based on the part of term in which the class is scheduled for the respective semester, as outlined in the academic calendar.

3. REVIEWERS OF THIS PPS

   1. Reviewer of this PPS includes the following:

      Position	Date
      University Registrar	July 1 E5Y

4. CERTIFICATION STATEMENT

   This PPS has been approved by the following individuals in their official capacities and represents Texas State Global policy and procedure from the date of this document until superseded.

   University Registrar; senior reviewer of this PPS

   Associate Vice President for Enrollment Management

   Vice President for TXST Global