For most academic units, the department manager, or other staff, tend to submit proposals on behalf of instructors for new courses or to modify existing ones in the course proposal system. Please consult your respective unit for their preferred workflow. With few exceptions, most course proposals will require an up-to-date syllabus in alignment with the CCC Syllabus Requirements (see below). Alignment with these guidelines greatly reduces the approval turnaround time.

Not all proposals require CCC review. The Course Proposal Guidelines outline the conditions that necessitate review. With few exceptions, review requires an up-to-date syllabus and can take anywhere from 1-6 weeks. Below are some conditions that activate a review. Please refer to the linked guidelines for the full and nuanced list of conditions. The linked guidelines also outline enrollment limits tied to certain types of courses.

• New course taught by adjunct/visiting faculty or graduate students.
• Modifications to courses taught by graduate students.
• Courses seeking curricular designations.
• Courses taught online or with a travel component.
• Course with credit value other than 1.0.
• Second time a course is offered by voting faculty.
• Substantive renumbering a course (e.g. IAPA 1700 to IAPA 0700).

Minor changes to a course title, description, or a reading generally do not require review.

Proposals that require a syllabus should include one in alignment with the CCC Syllabus Requirements. This checklist is derived from the more comprehensive Course Proposal Guidelines. We encourage academic units to share these guidelines with their instructors in advance of submitting course proposals.

While new and change course proposals are reviewed on a rolling basis, deadlines for approval by pre-registration and the start of the term are outlined below. If the course requires CCC review, please expect a 4-6 week turnaround from the time the proposal is department approved in the course proposal system by the Chair or Director.

Course proposals that do not require CCC review are generally processed by the Registrar’s Office 1-3 business days after it is department approved in the course proposal system. Here is the rough sequence of steps for course proposals that require CCC review. 

1. Proposer submits the course proposal. The proposer is generally department staff. Please consult your department for their preferred submission process. 
2. The department Chair or Director approves the course proposal.
3. The Registrar’s Office assesses whether the course requires CCC review in accordance with CCC Guidelines. Courses not requiring review are pushed through and can then be built (or scheduled) in the Course Offering Builder (COB). The proposer will receive an automated notification when this is done. Courses requiring CCC review are then passed along to the CCC.
4. CCC faculty review course proposals for alignment with CCC, University, and federal guidelines. They will recommend approval as is, approval with minor revisions, or request revisions before approval. This step can take from a few days up to 6 weeks.
5. If applicable, CCC communicates to the instructor any revisions requested, generally copying departmental administrators associated with the course proposal.
6. CCC approves course proposal.

The Registrar’s Office processes the proposal, and the academic unit can then build (or schedule) the course in COB.

During the academic year, courses are expected to be delivered in-person save for unique pedagogical reasons approved by the instructor’s Chair or Director. CCC approval of online delivery only affirms alignment with federal distance learning requirements. Even when approved for online instruction, Brown requires its instructors to be in residence during the academic year. For questions around residency obligations, please consult with Zachary Sng, Senior Associate Dean of the Faculty at zachary_sng@brown.edu.

Courses taught in the Winter and Summer Sessions must align with federal distance learning requirements, but do not carry the same in residence expectations, unless otherwise noted by your Chair or Director.