Before you begin
The items listed below must be completed before submitting a proposal for a new undergraduate certificate:
Creating a new certificate
- The proposal should be accompanied by letters of support from the deans of schools that may be affected by the new certificate through any potential overlap of the proposed certificate or proposed new courses.
- Any new courses required for the program should have been approved or be in the course remonstrance process.
- All online and hybrid certificates must go through the IU Office of Online Education approval process.
Instructions
The steps listed below for new undergraduate certificates must be completed as described. Incomplete proposals will be returned. If you have any questions about the approval process, please contact your Undergraduate Affairs Committee representative.
Step 1
Pre-proposal approval
When a department decides to propose a new certificate, the department should submit a pre-proposal document to the senior associate vice chancellor for academic affairs. Once the pre-proposal is approved, the department may continue the process of creating a new certificate.
Required item
Step 2
Proposal form and supporting materials
Complete all sections of the new certificate proposal form and addendum form. Following final school-level approval, send the proposal form and addendum form to the chair of the Undergraduate Affairs Committee, requesting review and approval. All proposals will be reviewed using a rubric, which schools should follow when developing the proposal to avoid delays in the approval process.
Required items
- New certificate proposal form
- Certificate addendum form
Send your materials to the chair of the Undergraduate Affairs Committee.
Step 2.1
Determining financial aid eligibility
If the proposal is for a stand-alone certificate and is financial aid eligible, a Notice of Intent to Offer a Gainful Employment Program form must be submitted. Learn more about determining financial aid eligibility.
Step 3
Undergraduate Affairs Committee (UAC)
After the chair of the Undergraduate Affairs Committee receives the proposal form and addendum form, members of a subcommittee will review the proposal and make recommendations to the full committee regarding approval. After the presentation in Step 4, the full UAC will vote on whether to approve the proposal.
Step 4
Presentation to UAC
The chair of the Undergraduate Affairs Committee will invite the originating unit to present the proposal at a regularly scheduled UAC meeting. These meetings occur once a month during the academic year.
Step 5
Chief academic officer and trustees
Following approval by the UAC, the proposal will be forwarded by the UAC to the chief academic officer for approval. If approved by the chief academic officer, the proposal will be entered into the APPEAR system by the Office of Academic Affairs and will be forwarded to the Academic Leadership Council to continue in the approval process. Following approval at this stage, the proposal is presented to the IU trustees.
Once a proposal has been entered in the APPEAR system by the Office of Academic Affairs, school representatives can review the status of the proposal by using APPEAR.
Resources
Step 6
Indiana Commission for Higher Education
Following university-level approval, requests for new stand-alone certificates also require the approval of the Indiana Commission for Higher Education.Step 7
Unit and campus notifications
Following the final approval, the Office of Academic Affairs will send notification of approval to the originating unit, IU Communications and Marketing, the IU Indianapolis registrar, the director of the Office of Student Financial Services, and the director of undergraduate admissions where the certificate will be coded for inclusion in the master inventory.