Modify a Degree or Dual Degree Program

RIT Policy D01.0 (Policies for Curriculum Development), Section IV (Academic Programs) provides guidance for modifying an existing academic degree program at RIT. 

The addition or deletion of courses, changes to course titles and course credit hours typically occurs during the annual RIT bulletin process and generally does not require NYSED approval provided that these changes do not exceed one-third of the minimum credits for the award type (for General Academic Programs) or trigger any of the other changes that require NYSED approval (see “Changes that Require NYSED Approval” section below). All changes to professional education program requirements (except retitling of courses) must be reviewed with the Office of the Vice Provost to determine if NYSED approval will be required.

Contact the Office of the Vice Provost as early in the process as possible to discuss the following:

• Whether the proposed changes will be considered substantive, based on the percentage of change from the most recent NYSED approval of the program. 
• Process, supplemental forms, and required approvals that will be needed, based on the program type and proposed changes. Review the required approvals for a variety of curricular actions.

A market analysis is the first step for title changes to existing programs. The purpose of the market analysis is to ensure that there is sufficient demand for the proposed new title. Learn how to request a market analysis.

If a title change is the ONLY change being made to the existing program, skip all of the steps and guidance below and proceed to RIT’s guidance page for Title Changes.

Review all changes to professional education program requirements (except retitling of courses) must be reviewed with the Office of the Vice Provost to determine if NYSED approval will be required.

The following program changes require NYSED approval:

• Title change
  • If a title change is the ONLY change being made to the existing program, an abbreviated change process is available. See RIT’s guidance page for Title Changes.
• Discontinuation of a registered program
  • If the program is being deactivated or discontinued, see RIT’s guidance page for Deactivating or Discontinuing a Degree or Certificate Program.
• Significant changes to the program goals and/or learning objectives and accompanying content of the program, including a change to the program’s major disciplinary area (such as eliminating management courses in a business administration program).
• Substantive (cumulative) curricular changes which represent one-third or more of the minimum credits required for the award type. 
  • The most recently approved NYSED submission for the program is used as the baseline when calculating substantive change.
  • Adding courses to the required core counts towards the substantive change calculation, even if those courses are currently part of a concentration that a student could choose. If moving the courses eliminates a concentration or changes the name of it, this would also count towards substantive change.
  • Moving a course from the required core to a concentration counts towards the substantive change calculation because students could choose NOT to take it.
  • When minor changes are made to a course (such as course number, title, prerequisites, topics, description, etc.) the changes do not count towards the program’s substantive change. If, however, the course learning outcomes change significantly, this course would count towards the program’s substantive change calculation. 
• Addition or removal of a degree option or concentration.
• Addition or removal of a requirement for completion, including an internship, cooperative education, or other work-based experience.
• Change to the degree/award (such as moving from ME to MS) and/or altering the Liberal Arts and Sciences content in a way that changes the degree classification (such as moving from BS to BFA), as defined in Section 3.47(c)(1-4) of the Rules and Regulations of the New York State Education Department’s Board of Regents.
• Change to the mode of delivery (such as adding or removing Distance Education).
  • If, as part of the proposed changes, a major portion (i.e., 50% or more) of the program requirements can be completed through study delivered by distance education, a NYSED Distance Education application must be submitted along with the changed program application. Learn more about this requirement.
• Change to the format that alters the program’s financial aid eligibility (such as moving from full-time to part-time, or to an abbreviated or accelerated semester)

The Classification of Instructional Programs (CIP) is a national taxonomy of academic programs developed by the US Department of Education to assist in the classification of academic programs for federal surveys and reporting of institutional data. Universities assign CIP codes to their academic programs. At RIT, each program of study has a 6-digit CIP code which can be viewed in the RIT Program Library.

If the proposed changes to the program will impact the program’s current CIP code assignment, a new CIP code may be needed. The proposal of a new CIP code is an internal process that occurs after the program is approved internally but before NYSED submission. Learn more about the CIP code assignment process.

The New York State Board of Regents requires that degrees registered with NYSED meet specific standards related to minimum credit hours, coursework and faculty credentials, which vary depending upon the award type. Review the NYSED requirements for minimum credit hours and faculty credentials to ensure that the proposed changes are in compliance.

If new courses will be created for the proposed program changes, refer to RIT guidance for creating a new course.

Degree programs must comply with all requirements from RIT’s institutional accreditor, Middle States Commission on Higher Education, including Transfer of Credit, Prior Learning, and Articulation Agreements.

Review specific requirements for the type of degree program that is being modified:

• Associate and Bachelor’s Degree Programs
• Graduate Degree Programs (non-doctoral)
• Doctoral Degree Programs

• Complete one of the following NYSED application forms:
  • General Academic Programs (which do not lead to licensure or certification)
  • Professional Programs (which DO lead to licensure or certification)
  • Teacher or Educational Leader Programs (which DO lead to licensure or certification)

• If any NYSED-registered dual degree programs will be impacted by the proposed changes, they must be noted on the application form. Changes that are made to the component undergraduate and/or graduate programs of a dual degree must be reflected in the dual degree.
• RIT typically requests a placeholder from NYSED for title changes and/or extensive curricular changes to allow time for current students to complete the program, and for the modified program to be reflected in all RIT systems. The placeholder date is generally seven years from the date the change proposal is submitted to NYSED.

The process and required approvals vary based on the program type and proposed changes. Review the required approvals for a variety of curricular actions.

Most curricular actions require the following approvals:

• Department and College Curriculum Committees
• ICC or Graduate Council
• Faculty Senate

After Faculty Senate approval has been secured, send the completed, approved proposal to the Office of the Vice Provost via email. 

The Office of the Vice Provost will review the final proposal, obtain approval from the Provost, and submit the application to NYSED.

The proposed doctoral degree program MAY NOT be advertised or admit students until a formal approval has been received from NYSED.

Once the proposed new doctoral degree program has been approved by NYSED, the following actions will occur:

• The Office of the Vice Provost will work with the college(s) and Enrollment Management to determine a first admit term and request a plan code from the Registrar’s Office.
• The Office of the Vice Provost will send an official campus notification to the applicable campus departments and the applicable Dean/Associate Dean.
• The new doctoral degree program will be added to the graduate bulletin and RIT Programs of Study website during the annual bulletin process.

Refer to the following document for instructions regarding promotion of the new program: Marketing, Recruitment and Communication Guidelines for RIT’s New or Changed Academic Programs.