Course Proposals

Quick Access Links

Academic Subject Codes (Prefixes)

Academic subject codes, also known as prefixes, are four-letter abbreviations that appear before course numbers to identify the department offering the course (e.g., JRNL 5001 is offered by the Department of Journalism).

  Course Prefix Guidelines 

  1. Log in to CourseLeaf to access Miscellaneous Request Management.
  2. Click the Propose New Miscellaneous button.
  3. In the pop-up window, open the Request Type drop-down menu, then select New Academic Subject Code/Prefix.
  4. When you're finished, select:
    • Cancel: Discard your changes and return to the previous window.
    • Save Draft: This saves your changes but does not submit your proposal for review. You can return at a later time to complete your request.
    • Submit for Approval: Begin the workflow.
  5. To log out, close your browser window.
  1. Log in to CourseLeaf to access Miscellaneous Request Management.
  2. Click the Propose New Miscellaneous button.
  3. In the pop-up window, open the Request Type drop-down menu and select Change to Existing Academic Subject Code/Prefix.
  4. When you're finished, select:
    • Cancel: Discard your changes and return to the previous window.
    • Save Draft: This saves your changes but does not submit your proposal for review. You can return at a later time to complete your request.
    • Submit for Approval: Begin the workflow.
  5. To log out, close your browser window.

​Note: All associated courses with this prefix will be updated with the same effective term.

Before a prefix can be inactivated, all associated courses must first be inactivated. Once that's done:

  1. Log in to CourseLeaf to access Miscellaneous Request Management.
  2. Click the Propose New Miscellaneous button.
  3. In the pop-up window, open the Request Type drop-down menu and select Inactivation of Existing Academic Subject Code/Prefix.
  4. When you're finished, select:
    • Cancel: Discard your changes and return to the previous window.
    • Save Draft: This saves your changes but does not submit your proposal for review. You can return at a later time to complete your request.
    • Submit for Approval: Begin the workflow.
  5. To log out, close your browser window.

Courses

Dates & Deadlines

Each semester's curriculum update calendar applies to curriculum changes intended to go into effect that semester. (The deadlines below refer to courses reaching the Peoplesoft step in the workflow, not when they were submitted.)

Fall Deadlines
  • Priority deadline: Nov. 11 (preceding calendar year)
  • Final deadline: Jan. 15 (same calendar year)
Spring Deadlines
  • Priority deadline: July 1 (preceding calendar year)
  • Final deadline: Oct. 1 (preceding calendar year)
Summer Deadlines
  • Priority deadline: Sept. 1 (preceding calendar year)
  • Final deadline: Dec. 1 (preceding calendar year)

Proposals & Revisions

All course proposals and revisions are managed through our curriculum inventory management system (CIM). Once a proposal or revision is fully approved in CIM:

  • The CU Boulder catalog is updated weekly or monthly, depending on its stage in the publication cycle.
  • Degree audit updates must be submitted separately (see instructions below).

Follow the step-by-step instructions to begin.

  Step-by-Step Instructions    Course Proposal & Revision Form

 

Follow the step-by-step instructions to begin.

  Step-by-Step Instructions    Course Proposal & Revision Form

If you are part of the approval workflow for a department, you will be notified when a course request is ready for your review. You will receive an automated email from the Office of the Registrar that includes:

  • The name of your role (select this in your approval queue)​
  • Which page is ready for review ​
  • A direct link to your approval queue​
  • Links to training resources​

Click on the link in the automated email to open the approval page. If your queue looks empty, make sure your role is selected in the drop-down menu (upper right).

For information about how to edit and approve catalog pages and instructions on how to access the approval page without going through the automated email, see our step-by-step instructions below.

  Step-by-Step Instructions    Curriculum Approval Queue

 

To check the progress of your course proposal or revision:​

  2. Use the search box to find your course, then click on the course title.​ The course form will display below the course table.
  3. To the right of the form, you'll see two blocks:
    • The "In Workflow" block lists each step in the approval workflow for your proposal or revision. Completed steps are green, in-progress steps are orange, and incomplete steps are gray. If you hover over a step, the approvers' email addresses will appear in the lower left of your browser window.
    • The "Approval Path" block lists the date and time that approval step was completed and the name of each approver.

After your new course or course change has been approved through the appropriate workflows, email degreeaudit@colorado.edu with the below information:

  • The academic plan code
  • The first term the change will be in affect (please note, we will not make changes to previous catalog years)
  • The course prefix and number
  • Where it needs to appear in the audit
Need Assistance with a Degree Audit Issue?

Submit a help ticket to the degree audit team.

Submit a Degree Audit Help Ticket 

Course Types (Components) & Contact Hours

Follow the link below for:

  • An overview of federal and state credit and contact-hour guidelines.
  • General definitions of each class type and instructional modality employed by CU Boulder.
  • Guidance on how credit hours translate to each class type and instructional modality.
  • Guidelines for classes offered within special sessions and for fractional-credit courses.
  • Step-by-step instructions to calculate awarded credit hours for a class.
  • Definitions of "base contact hour," "credit hour" and "distance education."

  Credit & Contact-Hour Guidelines

Contact Us

Resources

Curriculum Calendar

See past & future deadlines...