Course Planning, Development and Approval

This page contains information and document templates for Course Teams wishing to develop a new academic course of study.

The menu items below provide information about each stage of the process, including documentation requirements and templates.

introduction

In order to maintain the quality of our academic offer, new course proposals must undergo a formal development process and sign-off before they can be offered in the University's academic portfolio.

A typical timeline for planning and developing a new course is 18 months and sufficient time should be factored in to enable system set-up, student recruitement and other post approval activities.

course planning

There are two stages to course planning.

To begin, course teams must complete Planning Stage 1. The purpose is to ensure that there is an in-principle case for inclusion of a course in the academic portfolio and that it will meet the University's strategic needs. Course teams must present a business case and evidence of market research. The approval body for this phase is the Academic Stategy Committee.

As part of this stage, course teams must liaise with the Management Accounts team to complete a financial annex and with the Planning team to complete a student number annex.

The second phase requires detailed academic plans for the course, including: course aims and learning outcomes, module details such as delivery schedule, credit value, academic direction hours and assessment methods.

Steps 1-3 of the process flow cover the planning stages.

Templates to be completed are:

Planning Stage 1 (PS1)
Planning Stage 2 (PS2)
Finance Annex and Student Number Annex (liaise with Management Accounts to complete these)
Curriculum Set-up table

Your course design should fit with one of the main University academic calendars in order to provide a consistent framework with semester and trimester structures.

A separate planning form should be completed for short courses (see below for more information).

course development

In this phase, course teams will develop the detailed curriculum and the approaches to learning and teaching, course management and student support mechanisms which will support the delivery of the course. Course teams should outline their approach to industry engagement, including Professional Statutory and Regulatory Bodies (PSRB) where applicable.

See step 4 of the process flow.

Faculty scrutiny of the proposal must be completed and receive sign-off by the Chair of Faculty Quality Committee before the proposal proceeds to University level approval.

Document templates to be completed:

course Approval

The approval process involves an examination of the academic plans for a course. It focuses on whether the course meets national and subject expectations and whether it is likely to provide a learning experience of high quality.

Courses go through a Faculty scrutiny stage before progressing to a University curriculum approval panel. The Faculty Curriculum Approval Panel will examine the proposal to confirm that it is of the expected standard of academic quality and will provide the expected student experience. The terms of reference set out the panel composition and expectations.

The University course criteria document outlines the criteria which a course proposal must meet.

See steps 5-6 of the process flow.

For completion: Faculty Curriculum Approval Panel sign-off

Course documentation is required to be submitted to the Quality and Standards Office 3 weeks prior to the University Curriculum Approval Panel.

university approval panel

The University Curriculum Approval Panel (UCAP) is convened by the Quality and Standards Office and examines the new course proposal to confirm that the University course approval process has been followed and the course will provide the expected student experience.

It will reach one of the following outcomes:

certify approval of the course with no changes required
request minor drafting alterations, to be approved by UCAP Chair's action a
the proposal is returned to the Faculty; the UCAP report will detail areas for further significant development for the course team and Faculty to consider
withdraw the course proposal in its current presentation.

The purpose of the panel is outlined in the Terms of Reference.

The University Curriculum Approval Panel guidance document gives more detail about the composition and operation of the panel.

The UCAP Process flow summarises the process for submission and approval.

short courses

Short courses are courses at or below 40 credits and are normally approved by the Faculty Quality Committee. The Quality Manual provides information about designing a short course and the approval process. It also outlines the documentation requirements for courses delivered offsite.

The Faculty Quality Committee (FQC) approves short courses for the faculty, usually for a period of 5 years. The process for short course approval is as follows:

Submission of PS1 (in-principle approval) to FPPE
If supported by the FPPE, submission of PS1 to the Academic Strategy Committee (ASC)
If ASC support in-principle approval, the Course Team complete the Short Course Planning Proposal Form and submit this to FQC
If the course is non-collaborative, FQC has the authority to approve the short course
If the course is collaborative, FQC will consider and then refer the proposal to the ASC Scrutiny Group. Section 1.4 in the Quality Manual provides full details.

If you have any queries, please contact your Faculty Director of Quality in the first instance.

externality

Course Teams developing a new course of study must appoint an External Advisor who will review the course documentation.

The External Advisor will act as a critical friend providing input to the Course Director on curriculum design and appropriateness for new course proposals. The External Advisor will complete a report on whether the course meets learning outcomes, align with academic benchmarks and where necessary Professional Statutory Regulatory Body (PSRB) standards, and that the curriculum for each module is appropriate to the course and the award title. This report will be reviewed as part of the Faculty Scrutiny process before being submitted as part of the course submission to the University standing approval panel.

A fee of £150 will be paid for this work. It is permitted, but not required, that the External Examiner may be used for this role. It is the responsibility of the course team to liaise with their external advisor to ensure that the external scrutiny is carried out.