ACADEMIC PERSONNEL
100 Campus Center  Seaside, CA 93955
T (831) 582-3385  F (831) 582-4736
academic_personnel@csumb.edu
Guidelines for Low Enrollment, Independent Study,
and Special Topics Courses
Effective: November 2006
(Replaces “Guidelines for the Continuation of Low Enrollment Courses, Effective: Spring 2003)
CONTINUATION OF LOW ENROLLMENT COURSES
1. A determination is made by the Dean as to whether a low enrollment course will
continue based on a thorough analysis of the following factors:
a. Programmatic Needs (e.g., size of classes; ratio of amount of work
required to number of students to outcomes; whether course is required or
elective; number of course offerings; general education role or value;
amount of preparation required)
b. Recent History (e.g., is it the first time the class is offered; does the class
require a lot of hands-on project development or individual guidance to
students, etc.)
c. Available Rooms and Laboratories (e.g., would continuation of the small
class negatively impact space assignment for larger classes.)
2. The university community is reminded that the average class size target for
CSUMB courses is 26 students.
3. The Dean, in consultation with Department/Division Chairs, may authorize the
continuance of classes when there is a compelling reason for offering them in
spite of low enrollment, provided they can be staffed within existing faculty
allocations.
4. Consultation must occur between individual Deans and Department/Division
Chairs before a low enrollment class is offered.
Deans will consider
programmatic needs of the college (e.g., due to FTES based funding, would the
college be negatively impacted by the number of low enrollment classes.)
5. The decision to cancel the class must be made by the third class meeting.
INDEPENDENT STUDY COURSES
1. If significant changes are made due to low enrollment, the course may be offered
as an Independent Study and the number of workload units received by the faculty
member is adjusted accordingly.
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2. The basis for approximating faculty workload is 1/3 unit per student (e.g., one
student taking one credit Independent Study = .33 unit; or six students = 2 units).
This is calculation is independent of how many credits the student receives for the
class. The calculation is based on the number of enrolled students per course
section, multiplied by the adjusted factor (.33).
3. It is important to coordinate with Academic Scheduling to insure appropriate
faculty workload coding for the course. Most Independent Study courses have a
CS number (Banner Schedule Type) 36; and there is a maximum number of
students you can have enrolled per credit offered for an Independent Study section
(e.g., 1 credit = 3 students; 2 credits = 6 students; 3 credits = 9 students; 4 credits
= 12 students, etc.)
4. Each student enrolled in a supervised Independent Study, research, or reading
course must have an agreement on file in the Department/Division. The
Independent Study Agreement form must be used (enclosure 1).
5. The Agreement is to be made between the student and the faculty member at the
beginning of the course and must include the following: a description of the work
to be accomplished, specific information on the tasks required, the nature of the
final report, and the basis for determining the final grade. The Agreement must
be signed by both the faculty member and the student; as well as the
Department/Division Chair and College Dean.
6. Independent Study is not appropriate for classroom instruction and/or assisting in
classroom instruction.
7. Consultation must occur between the Department/Division Chairs and the Dean
before an Independent Study option is offered to a student. Faculty members may
be limited in the number of Independent Study courses they supervise per
semester.
SPECIAL TOPICS COURSES
1. Special Topics courses provide the medium for offering subjects of a highly
specialized and contemporary nature for intensive study. They are also used to
offer a course on a trial basis prior to the completion of the course application
process.
2. For Special Topics courses, credits and units correspond to contact hours.
3. Special Topics courses do not repeat material presented by regular semester
courses.
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4. Departments/divisions offer Special Topics only occasionally and the selection
usually changes every semester.
5. Certain numbers or parts of numbers are reserved for Special Topics courses. x95
is normally reserved for variable topic courses, especially 495 and 595.
6. For every course offered, including Special Topics, a standard course outline and
a sample syllabus, vetted and approved by the department and dean, must be kept
on file in the department/division office.
7. The standard course outline should contain the catalog description of the course; a
statement of course objectives; and an outline of the subject matter to be covered.
The outline may be thematic and/or sequential. The course syllabus is the
individual faculty member’s “plan of action” for a particular offering of the
course.
8. The faculty member offering the Special Topics course must be qualified in that
discipline to teach the course.
9. A Special Topics course expires at the end of three years, at which time it must be
converted to a regular course or deactivated.
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