Undergraduate Program Committee

Charge
UPC Membership
UPC Review Meeting Schedule
UPC Guidelines for Proposals

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The Undergraduate Program Committee advises the Provost on proposals from colleges, schools, and portal campuses for new undergraduate majors and degree programs, as well as for cross-school minors. The Committee reviews all such program proposals to ensure that the University’s colleges, schools, and portal campuses with undergraduate components maintain comparable standards of work for the degrees; that units proposing new programs have consulted appropriate colleges, schools, and/or portal campuses; and that there is minimal curricular overlap between or among the units. At the request of the President and Chancellor and/or the Provost, or at its own discretion, the Committee may also formulate recommendations on other matters that relate to undergraduate education in the University.

UPC Membership

The voting members of the Committee include at least:

one elected faculty representative from each college, school, and portal campus involved in undergraduate education, elected by the applicable college, school, or portal campus;
two undergraduate deans selected by the Deans Council;
a faculty representative from the NYU Libraries, elected by the faculty from the NYU Libraries;
a member of the Tenured/Tenure-Track Faculty Senators Council, selected by the Tenured/Tenure-Track Faculty Senators Council;
a member of the Full-Time Non-Tenure Track/Contract Faculty Senators Council, selected by the Full-Time Non-Tenure Track/Contract Faculty Senators Council; and
three members of the Student Senators Council, selected by the Student Senators Council.

The term of service for Committee members is three years, unless filling a vacancy; representatives from the Student Senators Council typically serve for one year. Terms are staggered, such that approximately one-third of the membership changes every year.

Members (2023-2024):

Mark Siegal (Vice Provost for Undergraduate Academic Affairs), chair
Kofi Afriye (SPS, Division of Applied Undergraduate Studies)
Ernest Davis (FAS)
Michelle Demeter (Libraries)
Richard Dorritie (Meyers)
James Felder (Tisch)
Nancy Gleason (NYU Abu Dhabi, Political Science and Hilary Ballon Center for Teaching and Learning)
Melanie Hackney (NYU Shanghai)
Gavin Kilduff (Stern, Management and Organizations)
Tatiana Linkhoeva (T-FSC; Faculty of Arts and Science)
Domingo Piñero (Steinhardt)
Dina Rosenfeld (Silver)
Victoria Rosner (Gallatin Dean)
Antonios Saravanos (C-FSC; SPS)
Wendy Suzuki (CAS Dean)
Elayne Tobin (Liberal Studies)
Alejandro Velasco (Gallatin)
George Vradis (Tandon, Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering)
TBD SGA representatives [x3]

EX OFFICIO

Georgina Dopico (Interim Provost)
Nancy Morrison (Vice President for Global Programs)
Ryan Poynter (Associate Vice Provost for Academic Affairs and Chief of Staff)
Titilayo Weech (Director, Academic Authorization; Office of Academic Program Review and Assessment)
Jonathan Williams (Assistant Vice President for Undergraduate Admissions)

Undergraduate Program Committee
Schedule of Meetings and Deadlines, 2023-2024

Fall Semester Meeting #1

Deadline for submission of proposals: Tuesday, August 29, 2023
MEETING DATE/TIME: Tuesday, September 19, 2023, 9:15-10:45 a.m.
LOCATION: Zoom meeting

Fall Semester Meeting #2

Deadline for submission of proposals: Tuesday, October 10, 2023
MEETING DATE/TIME: Tuesday, October 31, 2023, 9:15-10:45 a.m.
LOCATION: Zoom meeting

Fall Semester Meeting #3

Deadline for submission of proposals: Tuesday, November 28, 2023
MEETING DATE/TIME: Tuesday, December 19, 2023, 9:15-10:45 a.m.
LOCATION: Zoom meeting

Spring Semester Meeting #1

Deadline for submission of proposals: Tuesday, January 23, 2024
MEETING DATE/TIME: Tuesday, February 13, 2024, 9:15-10:45 a.m.
LOCATION: Zoom meeting

Spring Semester Meeting #2

Deadline for submission of proposals: Tuesday, March 5, 2024
MEETING DATE/TIME: Tuesday, March 26, 2024, 9:15-10:45 a.m.
LOCATION: Zoom meeting

Spring Semester Meeting #3

Deadline for submission of proposals: Tuesday, April 9, 2024
MEETING DATE/TIME: Tuesday, April 30, 2024, 9:15-10:45 a.m.
LOCATION: Zoom meeting

UPC Guidelines for Proposals

The following items are subject to formal review by the UPC:

I. Proposals for new undergraduate majors

II. Proposals for new undergraduate minors that include (or could include) courses from more than one school

III. Certain changes to registered undergraduate programs [New York-based programs only]

NEW MAJORS AND MINORS (categories I and II)

The review process for new majors and minors consists of the following steps:

1. Memo of intent (NEW). For each program proposal that they anticipate submitting to the UPC, schools must prepare a memo of intent (1-2 pages) that includes the following:

a. the name of the proposed program and a brief description;

b. expected demand and enrollment goals; and

c. potential overlap and/or collaboration with existing programs at other schools.

The committee will discuss the memo of intent at a regular meeting and will provide guidance regarding the preparation of the full program proposal, as well as any necessary inter-school consultation. Since the goal of this exercise is to start the review process earlier, schools are asked to submit the memo by the proposal deadline of the meeting before the one at which the full proposal will be reviewed. (For example, a school wishing to have a program proposal reviewed at the UPC’s December 19, 2023 meeting should submit a memo of intent for discussion at the October 31 meeting. The submission deadline for that meeting is October 10.) Memos of intent should be sent via email to Ryan Poynter (Associate Vice Provost for Academic Affairs and Chief of Staff) at ryan.poynter@nyu.edu.

2. Full program proposal

a. For all proposals for new undergraduate majors (category I) the following two documents must be submitted to the UPC: (i) either the New York State Education Department (NYSED) "Application for Registration of a New Program" for non-licensure programs (available here) or the NYSED form for programs in a licensed profession (available here); and (ii) the UPC Supplemental Form for Degree Program Proposals

[N.B.: Proposers are asked in the UPC's supplemental form to report on consultation with the Office of Academic Program Review & Assessment. This is required for all new major proposals, to ensure that appropriate learning outcomes have been identified for the program, and also (for New York-based programs) that NYSED standards for the relevant bachelor’s degree are being met.]

b. Proposals for new undergraduate minors (category II) must be submitted using the UPC Proposal Form for New Minors.

Proposals must be submitted three weeks before the committee meeting at which they will be reviewed. (Please see above the committee meeting schedule and submission deadlines.) Completed proposal forms should be sent via email to Ryan Poynter (Associate Vice Provost for Academic Affairs and Chief of Staff) at ryan.poynter@nyu.edu.

3. Presentation and next steps. Proposers (typically 1-2 faculty members from the sponsoring school/department) are invited to the meeting to give a 5-minute presentation, which is followed by Q&A with the committee. (This typically takes between 30 and 45 minutes.) There are four possible outcomes to the committee’s deliberations:

a. the proposal is recommended, with no conditions, for approval by the Provost;

b. the proposal is recommended, contingent upon certain revisions, which are communicated to the proposers;

c. the proposers are asked to make revisions and resubmit the proposal for further review at a future UPC meeting; or

d. the proposal is not recommended for approval.

Once the Provost has approved the proposal, the proposers will be notified about the next steps towards implementing the program.

CHANGES TO REGISTERED PROGRAMS (category III - New York-based programs only)

The following types of program change requests must be submitted to the UPC for formal review (and approval by the Provost) before they are sent to NYSED:

a proposal to offer two registered undergraduate programs as a time-shortened dual degree program (for example, a BFA and a B.S. combined as a five-year BFA/B.S. program)
altering the liberal arts and science content in a way that changes the degree classification (for example, from a B.A. to a B.S.)
a proposal to change a non-licensure-qualifying program to one that is licensure-qualifying

The following types of program change requests will be shared with the UPC as point of information—unless the Vice Provost for Undergraduate Academic Affairs determines that a particular request may have an impact on another school. In such cases, proposals must go through the UPC's formal review process.

a cumulative change of one-third or more of the minimum credits required for the award (for example, a change of 20 or more credits in an associate degree program, 40 in a bachelor’s program) since the last approval
a proposal to offer two registered programs (one undergraduate, the other graduate) as a time-shortened dual degree program (for example, a B.S. and a 2-year M.S. combined as a five-year B.S./M.S.)
a change in a program’s focus or design
a program title change
adding an option or concentration
any change in the courses required for a program as registered that leads to, or is proposed to lead to, teacher certification
a change in the location at which a complete program is offered
a change in the mode of delivery (for example, through contractual arrangement with an external entity, in another language, in an accelerated format, through distance learning)
a proposal to change an undergraduate certificate or diploma
a change in award (degree title) to which a program leads (for example, from a B.A. to a B.S.)
discontinuance of a program
eliminating an option or concentration
eliminating a requirement for program completion (for example, eliminating an internship requirement)
a format change that may result in a change in the program's financial aid eligibility (for example, from day to evening, from weekday to weekend, from full-time to part-time)

If formal review by the UPC is deemed necessary, then the program change request must be submitted to the committee using the relevant New York State forms, which are available on the website of the Office of Academic Program Review & Assessment. (Please see above the committee meeting schedule and submission deadlines.) Completed proposal forms should be sent via email to Ryan Poynter (Associate Vice Provost for Undergraduate Academic Affairs) at ryan.poynter@nyu.edu.

Proposers (typically 1-2 faculty members from the sponsoring school/department) are invited to the meeting to give a 5-minute presentation, which is followed by Q&A with the committee. (This typically takes between 30 and 45 minutes.) There are four possible outcomes to the committee’s deliberations:

a. the program change request is recommended, with no conditions, for approval by the Provost;

b. the program change request is recommended, contingent upon certain revisions, which are communicated to the proposers;