Online Delivery

Requests for Online Delivery are always part of a larger proposal to create a new program or change an existing program. (Adding Online Delivery to an existing program is a major program change. For program changes, it is possible that the only change is the request for Online Delivery.) Below are links to guidance for a new program and for changing an existing program. To request online delivery of the program, the proposer must upload the documentation required for Online Delivery as an attachment to the proposal for a new program or for changing an existing program. Click on the links below for information on the relevant process’s approval steps.

• New Online Program: To create a new program that will be offered online from the outset, upload a single PDF with all required files for a Online Delivery request (described below). This will be attached in addition to the other uploads required for the new program proposal in Curriculog. (Proposers may opt to upload the DL Workbook as a separate Excel file.)
  • For assistance with processes and requirements related to new programs, visit the Senate’s page for a New Degree Program.
• Add Online Delivery to Existing Face-to-Face Program: To begin offering an existing entire program or part of a program (track, concentration, or specialization) online, upload all required files for a Online Delivery request (described below) as a single PDF. (Proposers may opt to upload the DL Workbook as a separate Excel file.) This will be attached in the addition to the other uploads required for a program change proposal in Curriculog.
  • For assistance with processes and requirements related to program changes, visit the Senate’s page for a significant program change.

Required Files for Online Delivery

The required components of a request for Online Delivery request are described below. Convert all required files for a Online Delivery request into PDF format, combine into a single PDF, and as an attachment to the program change or new program form, upload into Curriculog the single PDF file for Online Delivery. (Proposers may opt to upload the DL Workbook as a separate Excel file.)

1. Online Delivery Form
    
2. Distance Learning Workbook
    
3. SAP Program Structure (description of the broader academic structure of an existing program) from the Office of Strategic Planning and Institutional Effectiveness (OSPIE)
    
4. Letter of online administrative feasibility from the Dean(s)
    
5. Written documentation of both: support for use of courses offered by another unit (“borrowed”); AND a reasonable commitment to continue offering the course(s) online (see below)

1. Online Delivery Form

Online Delivery Form: Proposers will need to complete the Online Delivery form, which describes how the online program or part of a program will be offered and managed.

• Online Delivery Form (DOCX)

2. Distance Learning Workbook

Distance Learning Workbook: The DL Workbook helps proposers and reviewers identify any curricular differences between a residential program and the online program that is delivered 100% via distance learning.

• Distance Learning Course Workbook (XLSX)

3. SAP Program Structure (for existing programs only)

SAP Program Structure: To request Online Delivery of an existing program or minor, the proposal must include the SAP Program Structure. This file, provided to the proposer by the Office of Strategic Planning and Institutional Effectiveness (OSPIE) upon the proposer's submission of the Substantive Change Checklist, describes the broad academic structure of an existing program. (This requirement is not applicable for online delivery requests for new programs.)

4. Letter of Online Administrative Feasibility from Dean(s)

Online Letter of Administrative Feasibility: UK's accreditor, the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools - Commission on Colleges (SACSCOC), expects that a sufficient number of regular full-time faculty will be assigned to a program: 1) to ensure its ongoing program viability; and 2) ensure that learning experiences for online students are comparable to those of students in a residential program. In addition to the myriad other administrative considerations related to a online program, the Dean’s letter must specifically address these two considerations.

For requests for Online Delivery for a newly proposed degree program, note that the issues discussed in the online letter of administrative feasibility are distinct from what is expected in a new degree program letter of administrative feasibility.

5. Written Documentation of Approval for Courses Borrowed from Another Unit

Borrowed Courses and Ensuring Continued 100% Delivery via Distance Learning: To include a course in a online program that is offered by a unit other than the unit offering the program, a Online Delivery proposal must include the two components described below. In other words, if program faculty wish to include in a program any course that is not offered by the program faculty’s department, they must request permission from the other unit to use that course and confirm it will continue to be delivered 100% via distance learning.

1. Correspondence from other department chair/DUS/DGS (or meeting minutes) granting approval for use of borrowed courses (must include specific course prefix(es) and number(s)); and
2. Written confirmation that the unit will continue to deliver the borrowed course(s) 100% via distance learning instruction.