Reference Guide

(September 2024)

Refer to this document for guidance when completing your program narrative in eLumen.

All items (ITEMS 1-7) are required by Title 5 for new degrees and certificates, other than ADTs. (Transfer degrees require only ITEMS 1-3.) This information was summarized from a curriculum submission guide created by the State Chancellor’s office, and outlines the recommended criteria for a thorough response to the narrative items.

ITEM 1. PROGRAM GOALS AND OBJECTIVES

Describe how this program fits within the mission and strategic plan of the college:

GUIDANCE: 

The stated goals and objectives of the program must be consistent with the mission of the community colleges, Education Code §66010.4

• Must not be directed at a level beyond the first two years of college.
• Must address a valid transfer, occupational, basic skills, civic education, or lifelong learning purpose.
• Can include program level student learning outcomes.
• If CTE, must clearly indicate the specific occupation(s) or field(s) 
• If Transfer, must describe how it meets the lower division requirements of a major at baccalaureate institutions. 
• If applicable, describe relevant entry criteria or election process for admission to the program and compliance with provisions of Title 5, §55201 and §58106. 
• If applicable, specify all mandatory fees (for materials, insurance, travel, and/or uniforms) that students will incur, aside from the ordinary course enrollment fee prescribed in Education Code §76300.

CTE programs must also include the following attachments:

• Labor Market Information (for new & revised programs)
• Advisory Committee Minutes (for new & revised programs)
  • A single document 
  • Includes advisory committee member names, job titles, and business affiliations 
  • Highlighting the action to approve the proposed program
• BACCC Regional Consortia Recommendation (for new programs only)  
• NOTE: unlike credit Career Technical Education programs, noncredit vocational programs do not require Advisory Committee or Regional Consortium recommendations

Transfer programs must also include the following attachments:

• Completed TMC template (Coordinate with Articulation Officer for assistance.)
• Articulation documentation, current within 5 years (Coordinate with Articulation Officer for assistance)

ITEM 2. CATALOG DESCRIPTION

Enter the program description exactly as it will appear in the college catalog.

NOTE:  A Catalog Description field also appears on the first page of your proposal in the “Cover Info” tab in eLumen. Please copy and paste the catalog description from your narrative into that field for consistency. (The catalog description from the Cover Info tab is the one that will be published in the eLumen online catalog.)

GUIDANCE: 

The catalog description represents a commitment to the student and must convey what students may expect as an outcome. Assertions of transfer or career applicability must be reasonable and capable of being documented. The description must also:

• Convey the program’s goal(s) and objectives.
• Provide an overview of the knowledge and skills that students will learn.
• List all prerequisite skills or enrollment limitations.
• Convey any caveats that students must be aware of concerning job market data or other factors or risks, such as occupations that are inherently competitive or low-salaried and/or occupational areas where inexperienced graduates are not generally hired. 
• List the potential careers students may enter upon completion, if the program goal is (CTE).
• Advise students if this is a high-unit program (more than 60 semester) and how this impacts degree completion.
• Reference accrediting and/or licensing standards if applicable, including an explanation of any departures from the standards. Specify whether the program will fully prepare completers for the recognized professional certification, if applicable. 
• Please copy the applicable language below (based on award type) at the end of your catalog description: ▪           Certificate of Achievement:   

A certificate of achievement may be earned by completing all the courses required for this major with a grade of ‘C’ or better.

• Certificate of Accomplishment:
  • certificate of accomplishment may be earned by completing all the courses required for this major with a grade of ‘C’ or better.

• Noncredit Certificate of Completion:
  • noncredit certificate of completion may be earned by completing all the courses required for this major with a grade of ‘P’ (Pass).

• Noncredit Certificate of Competency:
  • noncredit certificate of competency may be earned by completing all the courses required for this major with a grade of ‘P’ (Pass).

• A.A. Degree:  

An Associate of Arts Degree may be earned by completing a minimum of 60 units of degree credit coursework, including the major requirements and local GE requirements, with a minimum grade point average of 2.0. Students must complete all courses for the major with a grade of ‘C’ or better.

• A.S. Degree:  

An Associate of Science Degree may be earned by completing a minimum of 60 units of degree credit coursework, including the major requirements and local GE requirements, with a minimum grade point average of 2.0. Students must complete all courses for the major with a grade of C or better.

• A.A.-T Degree:   

Pursuant to SB1440, section 66746, a student must complete the following requirements in order to earn the Associate in Arts Degree for Transfer:

• Completion of 60 semester units or 90 quarter units that are eligible for transfer to the California State University (CSU), including the CalGETC GE requirements
• A minimum of 18 semester units or 27 quarter units in a major or area of emphasis
• Obtain a minimum grade point average of 2.0. 
• Minimum grade of “C” (or “P”) for each course in the major, and  
• Completion of CalGETC GE requirements

                             ▪    A.S.-T Degree:   

Pursuant to SB1440, section 66746, a student must complete the following requirements in order to earn the Associate in Science Degree for Transfer:

• Completion of 60 semester units or 90 quarter units that are eligible for transfer to the California State University (CSU), including the CalGETC GE requirements
• A minimum of 18 semester units or 27 quarter units in a major or area of emphasis
• Obtain a minimum grade point average of 2.0. 
• Minimum grade of “C” (or “P”) for each course in the major, and  
• Completion of CalGETC GE requirements

ITEM 3: PROGRAM REQUIREMENTS  

Check box to confirm completion of the program requirement course blocks (required/optional courses & units)

GUIDANCE:

The program requirements must be consistent with the catalog description. The number of units, specific course requirements and design of individual courses, and the sequence of the courses must be coherent, complete, and appropriate, given the program objectives and the resources with which the college has to work. 

Ensure the program requirements demonstrate how the required courses must be completed in sequence by term, including prerequisite courses if applicable. The sequence must be arranged so that a full-time student could complete a degree program in two years, except in the case of a high-unit technical or health occupation program where a sequence longer than two years is necessary.

ITEM 4. MASTER PLANNING ITEMS (NOT required for ADTs)

(4A)  Address the role that the proposed program will fulfill in the College’s master plan and its relevancy for the region that is served by the college.

GUIDANCE: 

This discussion addresses the role the proposed program will fulfill in the college’s mission and curriculum offerings, the placement of the proposed program in the district master plan, and how the program is appropriate to the objectives and conditions of higher education and community college education in California

• Must demonstrate a need for the program that meets the stated goals and objectives in the region the college proposes to serve with the degree.
• Need is determined by multiple factors, including the master plan of the college or district and accreditation standards.
• Must not cause undue competition with an existing program at another college.
• If high-unit program (above 60) the rationale for additional units must be addressed in this section. 
• If (CTE) program offered in close cooperation with one or more specific employers, a discussion of the relationship must be provided. For example, an employer’s facilities may be used to provide the training, or the program may be structured to meet training needs of a specific employer. Must include explanation of how open enrollment requirements for California community college courses (California Code of Regulations, Title 5, §51006 and §§58100-58108) will be observed in this context.
• May include some history of the program proposal origins, a description of the program purpose, and/or the program’s relevancy for the region and college including related community support.
• If applicable, this section may also be used to justify program objectives or the inclusion of a given course as a requirement

4(B) Identify any additional resources that will be required for this program and estimate the associated cost

GUIDANCE: 

• Describe additional resources required to implement and maintain the level of quality outlined in this proposal. Note what is already available, planned or in development, or needed after approval. 
• Estimate cost and indicate whether these expenses are one-time or ongoing. 
• Programs that require new facilities, major renovation to existing facilities, or an expenditure of over $100,000 in district and state funds for equipment must submit an itemized matrix that details program costs and anticipated revenue (either public or private), both for the initial year of operation and in the near future years. 

ITEM 5. ENROLLMENT AND COMPLETER PROJECTIONS (NOT required for ADTs)

(5A) Estimate the number of students to be awarded the degree/certificate each year when the program is fully established.

GUIDANCE: 

If the program is (CTE) the enrollment and completer projections must be compared to the net annual labor demand projection and stated in the Labor Market Information and Analysis provided as supporting documentation. The data must demonstrate adequate demand for the completer projections.

GUIDANCE: 

 If using enrollment data (method 1):

Use a table format to provide final (not census) enrollment data for all required existing courses for the last two years to validate the need for this program in the college service area. Include course department number, course title, annual sections, and annual enrollment total.

Sample Table:

If using Survey data (method 2):

The survey questionnaire, a description of the population surveyed, and survey results must be included. Upload a file attachment, if necessary:

ITEM 6. PLACE OF PROGRAM IN CURRICULUM/SIMILAR PROGRAMS 

(NOT required for ADTs)

How does this program fit within the college’s existing curriculum inventory? Does this program replace any existing program(s)?

GUIDANCE:

Describe how the proposed program affects other departments or related programs offered by the college.  Provide relevant details if this program is related to the termination or scaling down of another program(s). 

ITEM 7. SIMILAR PROGRAMS AT OTHER COLLEGES IN SERVICE AREA 

(NOT required for ADTs)

Provide a brief description of all similar programs offered by other colleges within the college service area.

GUIDANCE:

• The ‘college service area’ is commonly within commuting distance of the college.
• Pages from other colleges’ catalogs may be included as additional attachments
• Identify similarities, differences, and justification for a program of this type in this region.
• Provide evidence of communication with faculty offering similar programs at other community colleges and how it helped design the proposed program. 
• Explain why the existing capacities at other colleges are insufficient to meet the demand.
• If the proposed program has a different emphasis than similar programs at other colleges, targets a different market, demonstrates state-of-the-art offerings, or for a number of reasons will be a stronger program, documentation and/or explanation need to be provided. 

IMPORTANT NOTE FOR PROGRAM REVISIONS

Don’t panic! Due to the new template format, many of the fields from the “Program Development Criteria” page of the previous program template will not appear in the new program template when you are revising an existing program. This information is not lost! You can find the old program outline in the library history:

Please note, the previous questions will not match the new format exactly (some questions have been reworded, combined, separated, etc. to align with the narrative submission guidelines from the State Chancellor’s office). Copy/paste/modify this information into the narrative ITEMS 1-7 in the new template, as needed.

 (If the old program outline has blanks in any of those fields, it is because there wasn’t a narrative on file with the State Chancellor’s Office, or the narrative on file was incomplete. This seems to be the case for many of our older degrees and certificates.)