New Program Proposals
New programs are approved through a multi-step process.
- A pre-proposal phase with an intent form that structures initial administrative review. Find more information on the Intent Request Information page.
- A fully developed program proposal that will include the submission of curricular information, full catalog copy, program learning objectives, and all other relevant required information. This phase is where most of the curriculum development work takes place. Find more information on the Proposal Overview page.
- New courses that form part of the new program must be approved prior to program approval or as a concurrent process. New programs will not be approved unless related curricular requirements are also approved.
- Following approval through the academic unit, a public-facing proposal will be developed for approval by the Council of Deans and Board of Trustees. The Office of the Provost works with academic units to develop appropriate materials for this approval stage.
- Once approved by the Board of Trustees, the Office of the Provost reports information about the newly approved program to the Connecticut Office of Higher Education.
- New program approvals must be in place by set deadlines to be included in the catalog for the next academic year. Details of these deadlines for the current academic year are found in the Academic Affairs Governance Documents Library.
New programs require substantial time for all reviews to take place and to work through the various approval stages. This work usually takes a minimum of a year from start to finish. September 30 is the latest date in the academic year for a pre-proposal intent submission to be considered for approval within the same academic year. Even if meeting this submission date, there is no guarantee that all review and approval stages will be completed by the end of the spring semester. Approval may also come after the publication deadline for the next catalog year.
Undergraduate programs have a longer cycle of approval to meet the Common Application deadline. Program information must be approved and provided to Admissions by the end of the spring semester for inclusion in the next admissions cycle, which runs a year ahead of the matriculation date of students. E.g., approval in Spring 2025 means that a program can be included on the Common Application for students applying for entry in Fall 2027.