Program Review and Renewal Procedures

A. ANNUAL PROGRAM REVIEW

1. Institutional Research (IR) compiles a report for each program annually. The report can be adjusted based on the needs of a particular program at the request of the department, but includes:
   
   
   
   1. Student profile data
   
   
   2. Student Outcomes Data from BC Student Outcomes Survey and VCC Student Survey
   
   
   3. Student enrolment data
   
   
   4. The departmental Action Plan from the previous year.
   
   
   
   


2. The office of the Vice President, Academic & Research (VP Academic) informs Department Leaders when the reports are ready for review.


3. The Department Leader or delegate, in consultation with the faculty/instructors, support staff, and/or administrators of the department, completes a report that includes:
   
   
   
   1. Comments on the data provided by IR
   
   
   2. Any additional information about the program
   
   
   3. A reflection on teaching, learning and assessment methodologies used in the program
   
   
   4. An update on the Action Plan from the previous year
   
   
   5. A departmental Action Plan for the upcoming year.
   
   
   
   


4. The Dean reviews the Program Review report with department leader's comments, adds any additional comments, and approves the report prior to submitting it to the VP Academic.


5. The VP Academic shares the Program Review reports with the Education Quality Committee (EQC). The EQC meets with all of the Deans to discuss the reports and the action plans from the previous year.


6. The EQC reports to Education Council and other College bodies regarding trends and barriers affecting the College. These can include upcoming curriculum changes, new programs, curriculum development funding, capital or facility needs, educational technology, accreditation, and Program Renewal.


7. Programs do not have to complete an Annual Program Review during the time they have an ongoing Program Renewal.

B. PROGRAM RENEWAL

8. The VP Academic prepares a draft five-year renewal schedule, which is based on a need for revitalization identified in the annual Program Review process, a significant change in the field/industry, or at the request of the department.


9. The schedule is reviewed by the EQC, and a final version is submitted to Education Council for information in September of each year. There are typically two (2) to five (5) renewals scheduled in a fiscal year.


10. Degree programs are renewed every five (5) to seven (7) years.


11. Programs that are related and set in the same program area should be scheduled for Program Renewal at the same time to increase the efficiency of the process and increase integration among programs.


12. Program Renewal will typically not exceed twelve (12) months in length but will vary according to the capacity of the program area and size of the program.


13. A typical Program Renewal will include:
    
    
    
    1. An internal self-study of the program
    
    
    2. An external review of the program
    
    
    3. A report that summarizes the self-study and external review reports and includes recommendations and any institutional responses
    
    
    4. An action plan guiding changes to the program.
    
    
    
    

Program Renewal Steering Committee

14. The VP Academic appoints a Steering Committee for each Program Renewal.


15. The committee consists of:
    
    
    
    1. Instructional Associate(s) as Chair
    
    
    2. Dean of the program
    
    
    3. Department Leader of the program
    
    
    4. One (1) to three (3) program instructors (depending on size of department and availability)
    
    
    5. One (1) departmental support staff person, where applicable
    
    
    6. Director of Institutional Research or delegate
    
    
    7. Other members as necessary (e.g. school operations manager).
    
    
    
    


16. The Steering Committee launches the renewal process with orientation for the members, where they discuss the key questions or issues to focus on, set an expected timeline for deliverables, and identify needed resources for a successful Renewal process.

Internal Self-Study

17. The department, supported by the Steering Committee, conducts an internal self-study that systematically reviews the program strengths, weaknesses, needs, and recommendations for quality improvement.


18. The self-study is a comprehensive and evidence-informed report that includes the use of a broad range of relevant data as appropriate to the context of the program under review. At a minimum, all self-study reports contain the following:
    
    
    
    1. Curriculum and Instruction
    
    
    2. Instructors and Staff
    
    
    3. Student Outcomes
    
    
    4. Educational Support Services
    
    
    5. Program Planning and Administration
    
    
    6. Physical and Learning Environments
    
    
    
    


19. The indicators and metrics are agreed upon through consensus by the department and Steering Committee.


20. Data is typically collected from a variety of sources such as:
    
    
    
    1. Annual Program Reviews
    
    
    2. Faculty/instructors and support staff from the department
    
    
    3. Educational support services
    
    
    4. Current and past students, and graduates
    
    
    5. Program Advisory Committee, relevant industry parties, community representatives, and employers
    
    
    6. Institutional Research reports (e.g. enrolment or completion data)
    
    
    7. Curricular documents (e.g. Program Content Guides, Course Outlines, course syllabi, and program handbooks)
    
    
    8. Program and course evaluations
    
    
    9. Input from the Faculty Association, CUPE, and the Students' Union
    
    
    10. Financial reports
    
    
    11. Labour market data
    
    
    12. Comparable programs at other institutions
    
    
    
    

21. The department, with the support of IR, analyzes the data collected. The Department Leader or delegate, supported by the Steering Committee, prepares a report with findings and recommendations that focuses on purposeful and reasonable suggestions for change and identifies the existing strengths of the program.


22. The Department Leader or delegate provides the self-study report to the Steering Committee for final approval.

External Review

23. An external review team typically consists of three (3) members selected by the VP Academic, based on recommendations from the Steering Committee, with at least one team member from an academic institution. The external reviewers are:
    
    
    
    1. Experts who are academic peers from other post-secondary institutions, and if applicable
    
    
    2. Appropriate industry/employer/community representatives with expertise in the field.
    
    
    
    


24. The external review typically includes:
    
    
    
    1. A review of the self-study report
    
    
    2. A site visit that includes participation from students, faculty/instructors, staff, administration, educational support services, and representatives from relevant external parties.
    
    
    
    

25. The external review team submits to the Steering Committee a report that identifies strengths and recommendations for improvement. This report is available to all department members.

Summary Report

26. The Steering Committee will ask for any responses to the external report, either from the department, Dean, or VP Academic.


27. The Steering Committee will prepare a final report that summarizes the key findings and recommendations of the self-study and the external review. The Steering Committee provides final comments or recommendations.

Action Plan

28. The department, supported by the Steering Committee, will prepare an action plan based on the Renewal recommendations. The action plan identifies the following:
    
    
    
    1. Key projects and initiatives
    
    
    2. Resources needed for completion
    
    
    3. Reasonable timelines for the completion of the projects
    
    
    4. An evaluation plan to validate the effectiveness of the identified projects
    
    
    
    

Reporting

29. The summary report and action plan are sent to the VP Academic, to the EQC, and to Education Council for information.

C. PROGRAMS WITH EXTERNAL ACCREDITATION

30. Programs that undergo review by an external accrediting body are required to submit a summary report that reflects the findings of the accreditation review, final recommendations and action plan.


31. The summary report is sent to the VP Academic, to the EQC, and to Education Council for information.

D. PLANNING AND ACCOUNTABILITY

32. The Department Leader and the Dean are responsible for monitoring and reporting out on the action plans from annual Program Review, Program Renewal, and program accreditation as part of the College's integrated planning process.


33. The EQC is responsible for tracking action plans and following up as needed.


34. The EQC and the VP Academic identify major trends, goals, needs, barriers, and action items, and prepare reports for Education Council and other appropriate committees.


35. The VP Academic, with the support of Education Council, prepares an institutional response to the major trends emerging from reviews and renewals and sets goals as part of the College's planning process.