Course Cap Guidance2
The Curriculum Committee is tasked with deciding (equitably and fairly) whether a proposed course is allowed an exemption from the standard course caps. The following guidance outlines current practice.
Standard course caps:3
100-level courses: 28
200-level courses: 26
300-level courses: 18
Exemptions for lower course caps:
- Safety, equipment, or space considerations
- a. Science labs (labs are typically capped at 16-20, although they often have larger lecture sections)
- b. Studio space (e.g., arts/dance)
- c. Technology Limitations (e.g., limited availability of equipment)
- Course-level considerations
- a. Scribner Seminars (16)
- b. 100-level Expository Writing courses (15-17)
- c. Senior capstone courses (15)
- Pedagogy considerations
- a. Writing Intensive courses (guidelines in the documentation below) (17)
- b. Skill-intensive courses (such as language courses or music theory, some mathematics and statistics courses) (17-20)
- c. Creative writing workshops (15)
- d. Bridge Experience courses (20)
- e. IGR or other non-standard pedagogies
- f. One-credit add-ons (10-15)
- g. Team teaching (1.25x cap rather than 2x cap)
- Other
- a. Professional or accreditation requirements
- The Curriculum Committee does not allow exemptions for the following cases:
- a. Honors Forum courses
- b. Service learning courses
Exceptions that do not fall under these criteria must be approved on a case-by-case basis in consultation with DOF and CC.
Documents and history:
History of course cap policy guidance:
- Minutes of Department Chair/Program Directors Meeting, August 27, 2014, where DOF implementation of the following reports was discussed.
- “Resource Implications of Lower Course Caps: Preliminary Analysis” (2013)
- “Course Cap Report by a joint subcommittee of CEPP, CC, and DOF” (Spring 2012)
- “Curriculum Committee and CEPP Subcommittee on Course Caps Report” (Spring 2009; superseded by Spring 2012 report and 2013 response)
- “CEPP-Curriculum Committee Statement on Maximum Caps” (3/27/2000; superseded by 2009 report)
Other Documents:
- CEPP Proposal on Contact Hours Earned for Team-Taught Courses (5/15/2014, implemented Fall 2014 – see item (1): minutes of DC/PD, 8/27/14)
- Curriculum Committee Guidelines for the Writing Requirement (n.d.)
- CEPP Motion: Plan for Improving Student Writing (3/20/2007)
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2 Approved by the Curriculum Committee on April 18, 2016.
3 The standard course caps reflect the DOF/VPAA implementation of the 2009 and 2013 recommendations.