Academic Degree Program Annual Tracking and Reporting

Per regent law, article 4, part B, and regent policy 4.B, the Board of Regents approves all new degree programs offered by the University of Colorado. Academic degree programs are the heart of the educational offerings of the university, bear tuition and fees approved by the Board of Regents, and lead to degrees that, upon the recommendation of the faculty, are conferred by the Board of Regents.

The Board of Regents is requiring an annual check in four broad areas on the academic degree programs they have approved.  Administrative Policy Statement (APS) 1046 is adopted to provide for this annual check. Additionally, this APS describes the annual written and oral report to the Board of Regents by the chancellor of each campus on all academic degree programs. Each campus shall develop processes to implement this APS.

This APS is part of a group of policies, including APS 1038: New Degree Program Approval, and APS 1019: Degree Program Review that are focused on academic degree programs.  APS 1046 does not supplant APS 1038 or 1019.

1. Academic Degree Program Annual Check
   1. Framing
      1. Academic degree programs are complex and varied. As such, a high-level, low administrative burden directional check will require broad categories that can be adapted to specific degree programs.  The four categories used in this APS are meant to reflect areas of potential change, growth, or challenge driven by factors internal or external to the academic degree program.  These areas are meant to be categories that can be customized as needed for different academic degree programs. The customization should be clearly understood and documented at the campus level and once developed for a degree program, used consistently until a change in the program necessitates modification.
          
      2. The four broad categories for the annual check are:
         1. Educational category
         2. Strategic Realignment category
         3. Financial or Other Resource Allocation category
         4. Enrollment Pause category
      3. For each academic degree program, the annual report shall indicate a qualitative evaluation in each of the four categories reported as: 1) No significant activities, 2) Monitoring, or 3) Significant activities.
          
      4. Each campus shall provide a report to the regents on every academic degree program for the previous (most recent) academic year, reflecting activity in each of the categories below.   Activity may originate at the degree program level, at broader organizational levels (i.e., school/college, campus), or externally. Regardless of where the action is initiated, when a degree program is impacted, the activity level will be reported.
         1. Educational category

• No significant activities – educational mission not needing significant revision
• Monitoring – educational mission being considered for significant revision
• Significant activities – educational mission undergoing significant revision

2. Strategic realignment category

• No significant activities – not being considered for, or as part of, a strategic realignment process
• Monitoring – being evaluated for, or as part of, a strategic realignment process
• Significant activities – is undergoing/has undergone a strategic realignment process

3. Financial or Other Resource Allocation category (beyond regular annual budgeting and space/capital planning)

• No significant activities – no financial or other resource allocation issues beyond the regular annual processes.
• Monitoring – being evaluated for, or as part of, financial or other resource allocation changes
• Significant activities – significant changes being taken in financial or other resource allocations

4. Enrollment Pause category

• Is the enrollment in the program currently paused?

5. Each campus shall have a documented process for the descriptive determination required in the annual report.  The process may vary, as appropriate, at the program level and is meant to be high level and qualitative.
   1. Campuses that already have an annual process for each academic degree program may adapt that process for this report. If the annual campus process would lead to a different report structure, the approval of the vice president of academic affairs is required to verify the goals of the report are being met.

2. Written Report – Board of Regents
   1. The chancellor of each campus shall provide an annual report for the Board of Regents as two tables. Each table will contain academic degree programs with their descriptive determination in each of the four categories.
      1. Table 1 includes all academic degree programs offered by a campus, organized by college or school, and then by degree level (undergraduate, then graduate degrees). The size of each degree program will be indicated in the table, as described in Appendix A.
      2. Table 2 includes those academic degree programs that had a significant activity in at least one category or have paused admissions. Each program in Table 2 shall be accompanied by a short (no more than one paragraph) description of the significant activity or activities.
      3. Templates for Table 1 and Table 2 reports are in Appendix A of this APS.
3. Oral Report – Executive Session
   1. In addition to the written report, each chancellor shall, in executive session, to the extent permitted by law, discuss:
      1. Programs in Table 2 describing in more detail the status and plans for those programs.
4. Public Report and Presentation
   1. Each chancellor shall present in public session a summary report of the number of academic degree programs with no significant activities, the number of academic degree programs with significant activities, and a brief description of the types of significant activities that the academic degree programs on their campus are encountering.

1. Regent Laws and Policies
   1. Regent Law, Article 4, Part B: Degree Programs and Other Credentials
   2. Regent Policy 4.B: Academic Planning and Accountability
2. Administrative Policy Statements
   1. APS 1019 - Degree Program Review
   2. APS 1038 - New Degree Program Approval

• Adopted:   July 1, 2026.
• Revised:  N/A.
• Last Reviewed:  July 1, 2026.

Click here to download Table 1 and Table 2 Excel File

A. TABLE 1 TEMPLATE (EXAMPLE):  ANNUAL CHECK – TYPE OF ACTIVITY

*Please organize the list of degrees by college/school, by degree level (undergraduate first, followed by graduate degrees), then by size of the program (small, medium, or large as defined by each campus). Descriptive keys are provided below. Drop down menus aligned with the keys below are in the downloadable Excel tables for ease of populating cells in this report.

^Program Size: Each campus must have a consistent, documented way of determining program size for purposes of this report.  Campus may have a size definition for all undergraduate programs and a separate definition for all graduate programs. A key that shows campus-defined program size must be included with Table 1 and Table 2.

B. TABLE 2 TEMPLATE (EXAMPLE):  ANNUAL CHECK – DESCRIPTION OF SIGNIFICANT ACTIVITY

* Please organize the list of degrees by college/school, by degree level (undergraduate first, followed by graduate degrees), then by size of the program (small, medium, or large as defined by each campus). Descriptive keys are provided below. Drop down menus aligned with the keys below are in the downloadable Excel tables for ease of populating cells in this report.

^ Program Size: Each campus must have a consistent, documented way of determining program size for the purposes of this report.  Campus may have a size definition for all undergraduate programs and a separate definition for all graduate programs. A key that shows campus-defined program size must be included with Tables 1 and 2.

~ If there are multiple degrees with significant activity for the same reason, the degrees may be grouped together with a single description for all.