AVP, 9/27/10, v 5.1
Plan/Sub-Plan Clean-Up Worksheet
Degree Name: _________________________________________________________________
Purpose and Overview of the Degree Program
The first paragraph consists of two to five sentences that describe the program’s audience, program focus and
learning outcomes, and/or unique aspects of the program. The various emphases can be succinctly highlighted here
as well. The second paragraph includes two to five sentences that describe the program delivery mode(s), delivery
schedule, total number of credit hours, accreditation, any special admission instructions, etc.
Degree Requirements
The first item here is a short bulleted list that succinctly identifies the common core and the emphasis names. For
example: For this 30 unit plan, you complete:


Core courses (24 units)
One emphasis area (18 units)
For each core and emphasis areas, complete the following tables.
Common Core (Suggested guidance for interpreting ABOR 2-202: a common core for graduate programs is at
least 12 units, for an undergraduate program is at least 24 units.)
Course or Non-Course Requirement
# of Units
Add'l Requirements (Grade, etc.)
Additional Common Requirements: If there are special requirements such as approvals for substituting
courses, oral exam requirements, milestones, etc., include that information here.
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Emphases (Suggested guidance for interpreting ABOR 2-202: Emphases should differ from each other by 12 units
at the graduate level and 18 units at the undergraduate level.)
Emphasis Title: ____________________________________________________________
Description: Two or three sentences describing the emphasis.
Course or Non-Course Requirement
# of Units
Add'l Requirements (Grade, etc.)
Additional Emphasis Requirements: If there are special program requirements such as approvals for
substituting courses, oral exam requirements, milestones, etc., include that information here.
Emphasis Title: ____________________________________________________________
Description: Two or three sentences describing the emphasis.
Course or Non-Course Requirement
# of Units
Add'l Requirements (Grade, etc.)
Additional Emphasis Requirements: If there are special program requirements such as approvals for
substituting courses, oral exam requirements, milestones, etc., include that information here.
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Emphasis Title: ____________________________________________________________
Description: Two or three sentences describing the emphasis.
Course or Non-Course Requirement
# of Units
Add'l Requirements (Grade, etc.)
Additional Emphasis Requirements: If there are special program requirements such as approvals for
substituting courses, oral exam requirements, milestones, etc., include that information here.
Attach current catalog text as a separate document that will be used to compare against by the UCC and/or UGC
coordinators. For the 10-11 catalog go to http://www4.nau.edu/academiccatalog/2010/academiccatalog.htm
If curricula changes (i.e. what students are required to complete for degree) are identified, this worksheet will be
returned to the initiating program so they may proceed using the formal curriculum review processes.
Routing
Route this worksheet electronically with printed names designating approval from initiating program faculty
member, department chair and/or program director, and dean’s office. For undergraduate curricula, submit to
Nicole Morrow. For graduate curricula, submit to Evie Garcia. Administrators will record and transmit
worksheets to CASA.
Completed By: (Print Name)
Date:
Chair or Director: (Print Name)
Date:
Dean’s Designee Approval: (Print Name)
Date:
UCC or UGC Administrator: (Print Name)
Date:
Received by CASA: (Print Name)
Date:
AVP, 9/27/10, v 5.1
Plan/Sub-Plan Worksheet for Communicating Structural Changes to Curricula
Background:
The purpose of this worksheet is to encourage and facilitate a clean-up of current curricula structure;
moving programs to a plan/sub-plan1 organizational scheme. This scheme is attractive because we can
now – and will be beginning with fall 2010 graduates – print sub-plan titles on transcripts. It will no
longer be necessary to use excessively long plan (i.e. major) names to differentiate emphases on official
documents. In addition, there are many other internal benefits to programs, students, and business
systems by aligning curricula structure with the hierarchal logic of software programs. Structural
reorganization, in and of itself, does not change the program requirements. And because degree
requirements have not changed, the compelling reason for faculty review via the regular curriculum
committee process is void. What is needed, however, is a documentation process that effectively and
efficiently communicates the intended changes to the staff responsible for encoding and managing this
information in our PeopleSoft based systems and our academic catalog. This worksheet is intended to
serve this documentation purpose.
A fictitious set of programs – a M.A. in Architecture - is being used here to illustrate the reorganization
process. This fictitious program, however, is very similar in form to many of our own current NAU plans.
The current structure of the fictitious situation is seven active plans, as follows:
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
Architecture (M.A.)
Architecture - Sustainable Building Design (M.A.)
Architecture - Urban Landscapes (M.A.)
Architecture - Structural Systems (M.A.)
Architecture - Electrical and Mechanical Systems (M.A.)
Architecture – Public Facilities (M.A.)
Architecture – Sociocultural Interactions (M.A.)
Currently, the transcripts would read, say for the case of Architecture – Sustainable Building Systems, as
follows.
Degree
Confer Date
Plan
: Master of Arts
: 2010-08-02
: Architecture – Sustainable Building Design (MA)
In the NAU lexicon, a plan is associated with majors, extended majors, minors and certificates.
A sub-plan is an emphasis or focus.
1
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A reorganization to the plan/sub-plan hierarchy results in one plan with a common core and six subplans as shown below.
Architecture
(M.A.)
Sustainable
Building Design
Urban
Landscapes
Structural
Systems
Electrical and
Mechanical
Systems
Public Facilities
Sociocultural
Interactions
With a structural reorganization, the transcripts would read, again for Sustainable Building Design subplan as follows.
Degree
Confer Date
Plan
Sub-Plan
5
:
:
:
:
Master of Arts
2010-08-02
Architecture (MA)
Sustainable Building Design Emphasis