DUS Meetings and Related Information

DUS Meetings and Notes
Calendar of Curricular Deadlines

DUS Meetings and Notes
The Directors of Undergraduate Studies (DUS) meet several times each fall and spring semester to discuss issues of mutual interest. A call for agenda items is sent by the Associate Dean for Undergraduate Education before each meeting.

The Associate Dean also welcomes feedback and agenda items related to undergraduate education at any time during the semester or summer session. Notes from the DUS meetings are shared informally with the DUS and are then added to this website, below.

DUS are asked to share important information and topics from these meetings with their departments or other units.

Fall 2023
September 7, 2023

Spring 2023
April 6, 2023
March 8, 2023
February 16, 2023

Archived Notes

  • February 26, 2020, including the discussion of the GE CLAS Core Review and progress made to date. 
  • February 20, 2019, discussion about minimum s.h. for a major that must be taken at UI, with departments asked to add a reasonable minimum to the General Catalog for inclusion in the degree audit; discussion about the definition of a major; ideas on how to grade "class participation," an area of student confusion;and how to handle distracting use of technology by students.

Notes from previous meetings are available; email requests to jennifer-eimers@uiowa.edu.

Calendar of Curricular Changes: Guidelines

Please note: Many of these deadlines and processes come from the Registrar and are tied to the academic calendar, including the dates for the "Opening of Classes," "Early Registration," and the "Close of Classes." Each department or program will schedule the actions below while using the start and end dates that work best for the department while maintaining adherence to these final start and end dates. Please see the Registrar's Academic Calendar for specific dates for each semester or session.

 Late spring through early August
  • Annual Program assessment update due to the Office of Assessment by the end of June.
  • Planning for a new or a substantially revised major, minor, or certificate: Speak to the CLAS Associate Dean for Undergraduate Education as soon as possible and while still in the pre-planning stage of the possible new offering to discuss feasibility, action steps, and a timeline. Resources also need discussion, with the Associate Dean for Undergraduate Education guiding this process.
  • Course revisions: Any final revisions to courses in the MAUI Course Library must be completed before the related MyUI schedule is published for students. Most changes, however, are expected to be made following the Registrar's Offerings Planner deadlines. After the schedule is published, CLAS allows only minor changes to fix typos or other small errors. Other changes disrupt the students' Schedule Builder and can make the course appear to be no longer available.
  • Review current Catalog pages and consider course revisions needed for the next edition: Revise any courses that must be updated as part of the Catalog editing process; this is especially important if a department or other unit is revising a major, minor, or certificate. The Catalog opens in mid-November and closes in mid-February.
  • Syllabi review: The DEO must review each syllabus before the start of the semester to ensure that the syllabus upholds UI and CLAS policy; this review should be done soon enough to give instructors time to revise a syllabus, if needed.
  • Textbooks orders:  Textbooks must be ordered before Early Registration starts for the session or semester. The Registrar and the UI bookstore oversee compliance of this deadline mandated by Federal legislation. ER for Spring generally starts in early November, and ER for Fall in early April.
  • Syllabi attachment: CLAS strongly encourages instructors to attach a syllabus, a short document with key course information, or a thorough MyUI description in MyUI for any course offered for the following session before Early Registration begins. 
September-October
  • General Education CLAS Core proposals: Proposals are due in the fall semester by the first week of classes. Information on proposal requirements are here. There is also a spring deadline; see below.
  • Removal of Inactive Courses: Courses not taught in the last four years are considered inactive and must be removed from the Course Library. This is done through workflow process related to the Course Library and is overseen by the Registrar, generally with the process starting in mid-September and ending in mid-October. The Registrar compiles a report for the Regents, as mandated, each year on courses removed and added. 
September through March
  • Planning for a new or a substantially revised major, minor, or certificate: Speak to the CLAS Associate Dean for Undergraduate Education as soon as possible and while still in the pre-planning stage of the possible new offering to discuss feasibility, action steps, and a timeline. Curricular planning information is here. Changes are implemented at the beginning of the Fall semester after approval.

November
  • Catalog Editing: The Catalog opens for editing in mid-November and closes for editing by early February. Please begin reviewing Catalog pages early in this timeframe. Any curricular revisions anticipated should be completed in time to add to the Catalog or they cannot be implemented until the following year. A first draft of the Catalog is published in time for summer Orientation, generally by June 1. A final draft is published by the start of the fall semester. The Registrar oversees these dates as well as the editing of the Catalog. Wait to make changes to departmental websites until late spring since changes are not effective until the Fall semester.
November through February
  • Course revisions: Revisions to courses must be completed for the Summer session and the Fall semester before MyUI Courses is live. The live date for MyUI Courses is decided by the Registrar.

  • Textbooks orders:  Textbooks must be ordered before Early Registration begins. The Registrar and the UI bookstore oversee compliance of this deadline. ER for Spring and the following Summer usually begins in early November. See the Registrar's academic calendar for exact dates.

  • Syllabi attachment: CLAS strongly encourages instructors to attach a syllabus, a short document with key course information, or a thorough MyUI description in MyUI for any course offered for the following session before Early Registration begins.

December through January

First-Year Seminar Proposals: These proposals are generally due before the start of the Spring semester, with the deadline overseen by the Office of the Provost.

General Education CLAS Core proposals: Proposals are due in the Spring semester by the first week of classes. Information on proposal requirements are here.

February

The General Catalog closes for editing, generally by early February.

March

Textbooks orders:  Textbooks must be ordered before Early Registration begins. The Registrar and the UI bookstore oversee compliance of this deadline. Fall Early Registration usually starts in the second week of April. See the Registrar's academic calendar for exact dates.

Late Spring

Undergraduate Sample Plan Editing: Once the Catalog revisions have been approved by related collegiate offices, the sample plans open for editing and are revised to reflect any changes made to the majors, minors, or certificates in the Catalog.