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• Guidelines for Developing and Revising Rackham Graduate Programs

Content of Proposals for New Programs

Proposals for all new degree programs, including dual degrees, certificates of graduate study, and concurrent undergraduate/graduate degree programs should provide the following information.

Program Objectives and Justification

• Explain how the program complements and is defined in relation with other Rackham degree programs, and why a new program is needed rather than modifying an existing program.
• Discuss relative features and strengths of the proposed program in the context of similar programs at peer universities, and with similar programs at other Michigan universities.
• Show the need for the program, explaining how graduates will contribute to research, education, public service, or the private sector, and the anticipated demand and career paths of the graduates.
• Discuss the demand for the program and, using firm evidence, explain the prospects of job availability.
• Discuss any possible impact the program may have on career opportunities for graduates of other U-M programs.

Curriculum and Requirements

Proposals should include a comprehensive description of the curriculum and requirements, including:

• Proposals for master’s programs should list required courses and credit hours, stipulating the minimum number of required credit hours, and include distribution requirements and electives. Faculty occasionally designate areas of concentration within a master’s program. There are two ways to do this.
  • A plan is a distinct and formal area of concentration that appears on both the diploma and the transcript. The proposal should discuss each plan within the program, including courses, credit hours and other requirements.
  • Alternatively, a sub-plan is a more flexible and less formal designation of a cluster of courses, and possible additional requirements, which appears only on the transcript. The proposal should discuss each sub-plan, including courses, credit hours, and other requirements.
• Proposals for doctoral programs should include requirements for achieving candidacy, including a list of required courses and credit hours, distribution and cognate requirements, electives, and any additional requirements for the acquisition or demonstration of competencies or skills such as language or research methods. Any requirement during candidacy, such as seminars accompanying dissertation research and writing, should also be discussed.
• A sample program, including the expected time to completion and, for doctoral programs, expected time to candidacy.
• A discussion of expectations and requirements for preliminary, qualifying and candidacy exams; theses; dissertations; or other capstone projects or experiences such as work, internships, fieldwork or a practicum, and a comparison of proposed requirements with those of peer programs.
• Any requirements mandated by an accrediting agency, which should be specified in the proposal. Proposals for doctoral program that include a stand-alone master’s degree should discuss requirements for this degree. Doctoral programs that do not include a stand-alone master’s should provide for a master’s option for successful pre-candidates who leave the program without completing the doctorate.

Faculty Resources

Proposals must provide evidence of sufficient faculty with records of research and graduate teaching, including:

• Names, rank and tenure status of faculty who have agreed to serve as regular participants in the new program.
• Evidence of the commitment by core faculty to provide leadership, to ensure that required courses are taught regularly, and to devote time to mentoring and advising.
• Evidence of funding sufficient to support the faculty time for upholding this commitment.
• Doctoral program proposals should include short CVs of participating faculty.

Program Implementation

Proposals should discuss:

• How the program chair will be selected, how the appointment will be made, and faculty available to provide future leadership.
• The formation, composition and duties of the faculty program committee.
• How faculty will be assigned teaching, advising, and other administrative responsibilities.
• How administrative support will be provided, including support for student services.
• How faculty will assess program goals, outcomes and quality.

Admissions and Enrollment Planning

Proposals should discuss:

• Enrollment targets, anticipated application and admissions activity, and desired steady-state cohort size.
• Application requirements, including credentials incoming students are required or expected to have, and the admissions review and decision-making process.
• Whether enrollments are expected to be incremental to those in other programs, or if these are expected to have an impact on enrollments in these programs.
• Measures that actively support the successful recruitment of a diverse pool of graduate students, including students traditionally under-represented in the program or field.

Advising, Mentoring and the Student Community

Proposals should discuss how the program will support a climate for student success, including:

• Plans for academic advising, mentoring, annual reviews, and other steps to support degree completion and professional and career preparation.
• Steps for building and maintaining an academic community among students and faculty.
• Measures for ensuring the successful degree completion of students traditionally underrepresented in the program or field.

Finances, Space and Equipment

Proposals should outline funding arrangements to support a program of high quality. Rackham approval does not convey or imply funding for any costs associated with starting or maintaining a new program. Proposals should provide detailed information about:

• Start-up or bridging costs.
• Sources for supporting a five-year full-funding model for doctoral programs and any funding for a master’s program, as well as anticipated needs and sources of any additional funding for dissertation or thesis research required for students to meet program requirements.
• Administrative funding and other program costs.
• Specialized equipment or other resources for teaching or research.
• Space for program administration and operations.
• Firm commitments from the units that will provide resources to meet transition and ongoing program costs.