3.4.5 Academic Policies

Comprehensive Standard: The institution publishes and disseminates policies that adhere to principles of good educational practice.  These are disseminated to students, faculty, and other interested parties through publications that accurately represent the programs and services of the institution.

X Compliance
    Partial Compliance
    Non-Compliance

Narrative:

The academic policies of Georgia State University are collected in four central documents all of which are available on the web: the Undergraduate and Graduate Catalogs, [1] the Student Handbook [2]and the Faculty Handbook [3]. Adherence to good educational practices is assured by a variety of review mechanisms.  The academic policies of the University are divided into four groups:  university-level undergraduate policies, university-level graduate polices, college-level policies, and department-level policies.  University-level undergraduate policies are reviewed by the University Senate Committee on Admissions and Standards, [4] with one exception: the Core Curriculum is considered by the University Senate Committee on Academic Programs.  The Committee on Academic Programs also considers university-level graduate policies. [5]  Recommendations of the Committee on Admissions and Standards and the Committee on Academic Programs are reviewed by the University Senate. 

The procedures for the approval of college and department level policies are set forth in the Bylaws of the various Colleges. [6] [6] [6] [6] [6] [6] The faculty is responsible for developing and approving college and departmental level policies.  These college and departmental policies are also published in the Undergraduate and Graduate Catalogs and are available on the web. [7] Department-level policies are reviewed by outside experts and a faculty committee as part of the Academic Program Review process, [8] and in cases where programs are subject to specialized accreditation [9]. Finally, all University academic policies conform to the rules governing academic policies set forth by the Board of Regents of the University System of Georgia. [10] 

Supporting Documentation:

1. Registrar’s Office, Catalog Web Information
2. Student Handbook
3. Faculty Handbook
4. University Senate, Committee on Admissions and Standards
5. University Senate, Committee on Academic Programs
6. The bylaws of each college can be found on the web.

7. Registrar’s Office, Catalog Web Information
8. Academic Program Review
9. Specialized Accreditations
10. Board of Regents, Academic Programs