Department / Program Review (Policy 4100)

University Policy 4100

Download a Printable Version of Policy 4100

Effective Date

March 1996

Last Revision Date

September 2009

Responsible Party

Provost and Vice President for Academic Affairs, (208) 426-1212

Scope and Audience

This policy applies to all academic departments.

1. Policy Purpose

Each academic department shall be reviewed once every five years to monitor educational quality.

2. Responsibilities and Procedures

2.1 Objectives

The objectives of the review are to recognize strengths and weaknesses in each department and program and to devise a plan to respond to recommendations for changes.

Specifically, program review will:

Provide a means for assessing each department and program systematically and collaboratively every five years.
Provide an opportunity for chairs and University administrators to collaborate in evaluating each department and program to highlight accomplishments, current issues and needs, and future directions.
Involve departments and programs in the systematic collection of information required by Northwest Association for accreditation.
Meet the requirements of the State Board of Education for five-year review for all departments and programs in all state institutions of higher education.

2.2 Procedures

a. Each department and program shall be reviewed once every five years.

b. The review will be supervised by the Associate Vice President for Academic Affairs, who will work with appropriate deans, chairs and faculty from the departments and programs under review and with a Department/Program Review Committee selected by the Associate Vice President for Academic Affairs and the Chair of the Faculty Senate.

c. Specific review procedures will be established by the office of the Associate Vice President for Academic Affairs; these procedures may be modified through a review in May each year by the Associate Vice President for Academic Affairs and the appropriate deans and the chairs of the departments and programs that were reviewed that academic year.

d. Departments and programs will be reviewed on a five-year rotating calendar established by the Associate Vice President for Academic Affairs, in consultation with the Department/Program Review Committee.

e. The review will, as much as possible, incorporate criteria of the University’s accrediting agency, so that the review will be consonant with the University’s accreditation process.

f. Departments and programs undergoing program review will complete a self-study document, which will be reviewed by the Department/Program Review Committee.

g. Outside consultants will review each self-study document, visit the campus, and prepare a report for the Associate Vice President for Academic Affairs and the Provost.

h. Departments and programs with specialized accreditation will be reviewed, insofar as possible, in the year in which their specialized accrediting agencies visit Boise State University. Each of these departments and programs will complete an abbreviated review document that supplements the materials already prepared for the specialized accrediting agency. Site visitors from the accrediting agency will be considered the outside consultants for purposes of review of these departments and programs.

i. The final report for each review will be submitted to the dean of the college and then to the Provost of the University.

Revision History