CONTENTS:
11.1  TEACHING GRADUATE LEVEL COURSES
11.2  MINIMUM NUMBER OF FACULTY FOR A GRADUATE PROGRAM
11.3  RESEARCH COMMITTEE MEMBERS

11.1. TEACHING GRADUATE LEVEL COURSES

Effective:  January 10, 2001

AUTHORITY/SOURCE

Provost and Executive Vice President
Southern Association of Colleges and Schools, Criteria 4.8.2.3

POLICY

Faculty eligibility for teaching graduate-level courses at the 5000 level or above includes holding the terminal degree in the teaching or related discipline and demonstrating a high level of competence in teaching and scholarship.  Systematic evaluation is documented at appointment, annual faculty evaluations, and various tenure reviews.

Substitution for the terminal degree may be granted with documented exceptional experience and/or scholarly or creative activity when approved by the chairperson, and academic dean.  Faculty teaching at the 7000 level whom do not meet the above eligibility requirements, must also be approved by the Dean of Graduate Studies, or by a positive review by three experts in the discipline from outside the University.

More stringent requirements can be established by individual programs, and these must be published in that program's graduate policies and procedures manual.

PROCEDURE:

Each Academic Dean is responsible for ensuring that the following actions related to graduate teaching are completed and documented:

a.  Discipline specific criteria and procedures must be developed for evaluating faculty credentials.

b.  Assessment of faculty performance in support of graduate teaching and research objectives is documented through the university processes of appointment, annual review, pre-tenure, tenure and post-tenure reviews.

In those cases not covered by the above review processes, an evaluation of the teaching, scholarship, and research contributions must be completed and placed in the faculty member's file, together with a statement, such as, "I have reviewed and evaluated this faculty member's credentials and have determined that they are supportive of the department's graduate teaching and research objectives."

The Graduate Dean is responsible for auditing the review process, recommending changes when necessary to maintain institutional compliance with the SACS criteria, and ensuring that the criteria to teach at the graduate level are published. 

The Academic Dean is responsible for ensuring that all faculty with primary responsibility for a course meet these qualifications.  Exceptions must be documented with internal/external reviews.

c.  Assessment of faculty requiring exceptions.

1. Internal Reviews by Program Chairperson and Academic Dean:  

Faculty requiring internal reviews include full and part-time faculty teaching courses at the 5000 and 6000 level, who do not have an earned terminal degree (usually a doctorate) in the discipline or related discipline, and full and part-time faculty with an earned doctorate teaching doctoral level courses at the 7000 level, who do not have a high level of scholarship, research or creative activity.

2. External Review to Department by Program Chairperson, College Dean and Dean of Graduate Studies, or by three experts in the discipline outside the University:

Faculty requiring external reviews are those teaching at the 5000 and 6000 level who do not have at least an earned master's degree in the discipline or related discipline.

Faculty teaching at the 7000 level who do not have an earned doctorate in the discipline or related discipline.

11.2. MINIMUM NUMBER OF FACULTY FOR A GRADUATE PROGRAM

Effective: March 28, 1989

AUTHORITY/SOURCE

Provost and Executive Vice President

POLICY

A graduate program offering a masters degree shall have a minimum of four full-time faculty members who are qualified to teach graduate-level courses in the subject field or discipline. To meet this requirement faculty members in related disciplines may be included.

A graduate program offering a doctoral degree shall have a minimum of four full-time faculty members whose scholarly fields are interdependent and directly relevant to a candidate's doctoral program.

11.3. RESEARCH COMMITTEE MEMBERS

Effective: March 28, 1989

AUTHORITY/SOURCE

Provost and Executive Vice President

POLICY

To be eligible to serve on a research committee a faculty member must be eligible to teach graduate-level courses, be experienced in directing independent study, and have a recent record of creative, artistic and/or professional achievement or other evidence of scholarship.

To be eligible to be the chairperson of a doctoral committee a faculty member must have served on masters and/or doctoral committees at Florida International University or another graduate degree granting institution.

Page last updated:   July 9, 2001
Page Content: Dennis Wiedman
Web Design By: Amy Perez, Dennis Wiedman