Standard 4: Programs and Instruction
General
Undergraduate Degree Programs
Graduate Degree Programs
Scholarship and Research
Instruction
Admissions and Retention
4.1
The institution's primary focus is the education of its students. The institution offers collegiate-level programs that lead to degrees in recognized fields of study and require at least one academic year to complete. The institution for which the associate's degree is the highest awarded offers at least one program in liberal studies or general studies. A program is defined as a curriculum of studies, however formulated, that leads to a degree or other form of academic recognition.
4.2
The institution's programs are consistent with and serve to fulfill its mission and purposes. Each educational program demonstrates consistency through its goals, structure, and content; policies and procedures for admission and retention; instructional methods and procedures; and the nature, quality, and extent of student learning and achievement. The institution provides sufficient resources to sustain and improve programs and instruction.
4.3
The institution clearly specifies and publishes degree objectives and requirements for each program.[*] Such objectives include the knowledge, intellectual skills, and methods of inquiry to be acquired. In addition, if relevant to the program, objectives include creative abilities and values to be developed and specific career-preparation practices to be mastered. Programs have a coherent design and are characterized by appropriate breadth, depth, continuity, sequential progression, and synthesis of learning.
4.4
The institution undertakes academic planning and evaluation to achieve and, where possible, to enhance the achievement of program objectives. These activities are realistic and take into account stated goals and available resources. The institution allocates human, financial, and physical resources on the basis of its academic plans, needs, and objectives. It recognizes and takes account of the increased demands on resources made by programs offered at a higher degree level.
4.5
As part of its overall planning and evaluation, the institution develops, approves, administers, and periodically reviews its degree programs under established, clearly defined, and effective institutional policies which are demonstrably implemented by designated bodies with clearly established channels of communication and control. The faculty has a substantive responsibility for the design and execution of the curriculum.[*] The evaluation of existing programs includes an assessment of their effectiveness and continued need. Additions and deletions of programs or courses are consistent with available resources, faculty expertise, student needs, and academic planning. Curricular planning and evaluation take into account the role of the multiple resources required for the development and improvement of academic programs.
4.6
When programs are eliminated or program requirements are changed, the institution makes appropriate arrangements for enrolled students so that they may complete their education with a minimum of disruption.
4.7
Programs and courses are designed to ensure an opportunity for reflection and for analysis of the subject matter. The institution offering programs and courses for abbreviated or concentrated time periods demonstrates that students completing these programs or courses acquire levels of knowledge, understanding, and competencies comparable to those expected in similar programs offered in more traditional time periods.
4.8
Courses and programs offered for credit off campus or through continuing education, evening or week-end divisions are consistent with the educational objectives of the institution. Such activities are integral parts of the institution and maintain the same academic standards as courses and programs offered on campus. They receive sufficient support for instructional and other needs. Students have ready access to appropriate learning resources. The institution maintains direct and sole responsibility for the academic quality of all aspects of all programs and assures adequate resources to maintain quality. On-campus faculty have a substantive role in the design and implementation of off-campus programs. In programs and/or courses that use special delivery systems (such as computers, newspapers, television, video or audiotape) appropriate opportunities are provided for students to question and discuss course content with faculty.
4.9
If the institution depends on resources outside its direct control (for example, classrooms, library resources), provision is made for a clear, fixed understanding of that relationship which ensures the reasonable continued availability of those resources. Clear descriptions of the circumstances and procedures for the use of such resources are readily available to students who require them.
4.10
Conferences, institutes, workshops, or other instructional or enrichment activities that are sponsored by the institution or carry its name are compatible with its purposes and are administered within its organizational structure. The institution assumes responsibility for the appropriateness and integrity of such activities.
4.11
The institution has the responsibility for the academic elements of all instructional programs and courses for which it awards institutional credit. These responsibilities include course content and the delivery of the instructional program; selection and approval of faculty; admission, registration, and retention of students; evaluation of prior learning; and evaluation of student progress, including the awarding and recording of credit.
Undergraduate Degree Programs
4.12
Undergraduate degree programs are designed to give students a substantial and coherent introduction to the broad areas of human knowledge, their theories and methods of inquiry, plus in-depth study in at least one disciplinary or interdisciplinary area. Programs have an appropriate rationale; their clarity and order are visible in stated requirements in official publications and in student records. Curricula are appropriate, within the context of collegiate education, to the abilities and scholastic preparation of the students admitted to the programs.
4.13
While these criteria apply to all undergraduate programs, specific expectations for associate's and bachelor's degree programs, as expressed through the Commission's accreditation processes, will reflect program degree level. Distinctions made in such expectations may concern such matters as the level, scope, and dimension of degree requirements, and expected outcomes.
4.14
Each undergraduate program includes a general education requirement and a major or concentration requirement. Curricula include requirements above the introductory level with appropriate prerequisites. Wherever possible, the institution also affords undergraduate students the opportunity to pursue knowledge and understanding through unrestricted electives. All undergraduate programs require the use of information resources in addition to course texts and formal instruction.
4.15
The general education requirement is coherent and substantive, and it embodies the institution's definition of an educated person. The requirement informs the design of all general education courses, and provides criteria for its evaluation.
4.16
The general education requirement in each undergraduate program—general, specialized, or professional—ensures adequate breadth for all degree-seeking students by showing a balanced regard for what are traditionally referred to as the arts and humanities; the sciences including mathematics; and the social sciences. General education requirements include offerings that focus on the subject matter and methodologies of these three primary domains of knowledge as well as on their relationships to one another.
4.17
The institution ensures that all undergraduate students complete one-third of their studies (or the equivalent of forty semester hours in a bachelor's degree program, or the equivalent of twenty semester hours in an associate's degree program) in general education. If the institution offers any program which does not include at least one-third of its requirements in general education, it is able to demonstrate that the program meets the goals expressed in Paragraph 4.19 of this Standard. In no case, however, does the general education component of an undergraduate program constitute less than one-quarter of its degree requirements (or the equivalent of thirty semester hours in a bachelor's degree program, or the equivalent of fifteen semester hours in an associate's degree program).
4.18
The major or area of concentration affords the student the opportunity to develop knowledge and skills in a specific disciplinary or interdisciplinary area above the introductory level, through properly sequenced course work. Requirements for the major or area of concentration are based upon clearly defined and articulated learning objectives, including a mastery of the knowledge, methods, and theories pertinent to a particular area of inquiry. Through the major or area of concentration, the student develops an understanding of the complex structure of knowledge germane to an area of inquiry and its interrelatedness to other areas of inquiry. For programs designed to provide professional training, an effective relationship exists between curricular content and current practice in the field of specialization. General studies associate's degree programs designed to provide the foundation for later specialization through transfer into baccalaureate programs are exempted from the requirements of this paragraph.
4.19
Graduates successfully completing an undergraduate program demonstrate competence in written and oral communication in English; the ability for scientific and quantitative reasoning, for critical analysis and logical thinking; and the capability for continuing learning. They also demonstrate knowledge and understanding of scientific, historical, and social phenomena, and a knowledge and appreciation of the aesthetic and ethical dimensions of humankind. In addition, graduates demonstrate an in-depth understanding of an area of knowledge or practice and of its interrelatedness with other areas.
Graduate Degree Programs
4.20
Graduate degree programs are designed to give students a mastery of a complex field of study or professional area. Programs have an appropriate rationale; their clarity and order are visible in stated requirements, in relevant official publications, and in the demonstrated learning experiences of graduates. Program objectives reflect a high level of complexity, specialization, and generalization. The institution's graduate programs have cohesive curricula and require scholarly and professional activities designed to advance the student substantially beyond the educational accomplishments of a baccalaureate degree program. The demands made by the institution's graduate programs on students' intellectual and creative capacities are also significantly greater than those expected at the undergraduate level; graduate programs build upon and challenge students beyond the levels of knowledge and competence acquired at the undergraduate level. The institution offering both undergraduate and graduate degree programs assesses the relationship and interdependence of the two levels and utilizes the results for their individual and collective improvement.
4.21
Graduate programs are not offered unless resources and expectations exceed those required for an undergraduate program in a similar field. Institutions offering graduate degrees have an adequate staff of full-time faculty in areas appropriate to the degree offered. The faculty responsible for graduate programs are sufficient by credentials, number, and time commitment for the successful accomplishment of program objectives and program improvement. Research-oriented graduate programs have a preponderance of active research scholars on their faculties. Professionally oriented programs include faculty who are experienced professionals contributing to the development of the field.
4.22
Degree requirements of the institution's graduate programs take into account specific program purposes. Research-oriented doctoral programs and disciplinary master's degree programs are designed to prepare students for scholarly careers; they emphasize the acquisition, organization, utilization, and dissemination of knowledge. Doctoral degree programs afford the student substantial mastery of the subject matter, theory, literature, and methodology of a significant field of study. They include a sequential development of research skills leading to the attainment of an independent research capacity. Students undertake original research which contributes to new knowledge in the chosen field of study. Disciplinary master's programs have many of the same objectives but require less sophisticated levels of mastery in the chosen field of study than does the research doctorate. While they need not require students to engage in original research, they do provide an understanding of research appropriate to the discipline and the manner in which it is conducted.
4.23
Professional or practice-oriented programs at the doctoral or master's degree levels are designed to prepare students for professional practice involving the application or transmission of existing knowledge. Such programs afford the student a broad conceptual mastery of the field of professional practice through an understanding of its subject matter, literature, theory, and methods. They seek to develop the capacity to interpret, organize, and communicate knowledge, and to develop those analytical and professional skills needed to practice in and advance the profession. Instruction in relevant research methodology is provided, directed toward the appropriate application of its results as a regular part of professional practice. Programs include the sequential development of professional skills which will result in competent practitioners. Where there is a hierarchy of degrees within an area of professional study, programs differ by level as reflected in the expected sophistication, knowledge, and capacity for leadership within the profession by graduates.
4.24
Programs encompassing both research activities and professional practice define their relative emphases in program objectives that are reflected in curricular, scholarly, and program requirements.
4.25
Students who successfully complete a graduate program demonstrate that they have acquired the knowledge and developed the skills that are identified as the program's objectives.
Scholarship and Research
4.26
All faculty pursue scholarship, an activity fundamental to the achievement of institutional purposes. Scholarship includes the ongoing application, utilization, and dissemination of existing knowledge as well as creative activity both within and outside the classroom. Scholarship and instruction are integrated and mutually supportive.
4.27
Where compatible with the institution's purposes, research is undertaken. Research involves the creation, revision, or application of knowledge as undertaken by faculty and students. Physical and administrative resources together with academic services are adequate to support the institution's research commitment. Faculty workloads reflect the institution's research commitment. Policies and procedures related to research, including ethical considerations, are established and clearly communicated throughout the institution. The faculty play a substantive role in the development and administration of research policies and practices.
4.28
Scholarship and research receive encouragement and support appropriate to the institution's purposes and objectives. Faculty and students are accorded the academic freedom to pursue scholarship and research.
Instruction
4.29
Instructional techniques and delivery systems are compatible with and serve to further the mission and purposes of the institution as well as the objectives of individual courses. Methods of instruction are appropriate to the students' capabilities and learning needs. Scholarly and creative achievement by students is encouraged and appropriately assessed. Students are taught by a variety of faculty in order to ensure experience in different methods of instruction and exposure to different viewpoints.
4.30
The institution endeavors to enhance the quality of teaching.[*] It encourages experimentation with methods to improve instruction. The effectiveness of instruction is periodically and systematically assessed using adequate and reliable procedures; the results are used to improve instruction. Adequate support is provided to accomplish this task.
4.31
The institution provides support for faculty development opportunities directed toward enhancing the quality of teaching. Faculty take advantage of such opportunities and collectively and individually endeavor to fulfill their responsibility to improve instructional effectiveness.
4.32
The institution has in place an effective system of academic advising which meets student needs for information and advice and is compatible with its educational objectives. Faculty and other personnel responsible for academic advising are adequately informed and prepared to discharge their advising functions.
Admissions and Retention
4.33
The institution has an orderly and ethical program of admission which complies with the requirements of legislation concerning equality of educational opportunity. Its admission and retention policies and procedures are clear, consistent with its mission and purposes, and available to all students and prospective students through appropriate publications. It endeavors to develop a student body which as a whole is broadly representative of the population the institution wishes to serve.
4.34
Standards for admission ensure that student qualifications and expectations are compatible with institutional objectives. Individuals admitted demonstrate through their intellectual and personal qualifications a reasonable potential for success in the programs to which they are admitted. If the institution recruits and admits individuals with identified needs that must be addressed to assure their likely academic success, it applies appropriate mechanisms to address those needs so as to provide reasonable opportunities for that success. Such mechanisms receive sufficient support and are adequate to the needs of those admitted. The institution endeavors to integrate specifically recruited populations into the larger student body and to assure that they have similar academic experiences.
4.35
The institution with a policy of open admissions for undergraduates utilizes appropriate methods of evaluation to identify deficiencies and offers appropriate developmental or remedial support where necessary to prepare students for collegiate study. Such testing and remediation receive sufficient support and are adequate to serve the needs of students admitted.
4.36
If the institution accepts undergraduate transfer credit from other institutions, it applies policies and procedures which provide adequate safeguards to ensure that credit accepted reflects appropriate levels of academic quality and is applicable to the student's program. The institution does not erect barriers to the acceptance of transfer credit that are unnecessary to protect its academic quality and integrity, and it seeks to establish articulation agreements with institutions from which and to which there is a significant pattern of student transfer. Such agreements are made available to those students who are affected by them.
4.37
The institution accepts graduate credit in transfer only on a strictly limited basis to preserve the integrity of the degree awarded.
4.38
The evaluation of student learning or achievement and the award of credit are based upon clearly stated criteria that reflect learning objectives and are consistently and effectively enforced. They are appropriate to the degree level at which they are applied.
4.39
There is demonstrable academic content for all experiences for which credit is awarded. Credit awards are consistent with the course content. No credit toward graduation is awarded for pre-collegiate level or remedial work designed to prepare the student for collegiate study.
4.40
Credit for prior experiential or non-collegiate sponsored learning is awarded only at the undergraduate level. When credit is awarded on the basis of prior experiential or non-collegiate sponsored learning alone, student learning and achievement are demonstrated to be at least comparable in breadth, depth, and quality to the results of institutionally provided learning experiences. The policies and procedures for the award of credit for prior or experiential learning are clearly stated and available to affected students.
4.41
The institution specifies and publishes requirements for continuation in, termination from, or re-admission to its academic programs which are compatible with its educational purposes. Graduation requirements are clearly stated in appropriate publications and are consistently applied in the degree certification process.[*] The degrees awarded accurately reflect student attainments.
Source: New England Association of Schools and Colleges, Commission on Institutions of Higher Education, Standards for Accreditation, 1992.
