College Rules

Approved: November 1, 2022

Article I. Organization and Governance

  1. The College of Engineering and Applied Science. The College of Engineering and Applied Science is established by the Laws of the Regents of the University of Colorado.
  2. The Faculty. The members of the faculty shall consist of all Professors, Associate Professors, Assistant Professors, Principal Instructors, Senior Instructors, Instructors, Scholars in Residence, Research Professors, Research Associate Professors, and Research Assistant Professors in the College of Engineering and Applied Science on the Boulder campus. The Dean may also appoint members to one-year renewable terms from departments outside the College involved in degree-granting programs such as Engineering Physics and Applied Mathematics. These additional members may be recommended for membership at the start of each academic year by their respective department chairs. Other additional members from outside the College may be appointed by the Dean for one-year renewable terms.
    1. Voting Members. The voting membership of the faculty shall consist of all Professors, Associate Professors, Assistant Professors, Research Professors, Research Associate Professors, Research Assistant Professors, Teaching Professors, Scholars in Residence, Senior Instructors, and full-time Instructors in the College of Engineering and Applied Science, plus any additional members appointed by the Dean. Faculty with such titles as adjoint, adjunct, visiting, lecturer, research associate, etc., are not voting members of the College but may be voting members of a department (or program) based on the rules of that unit.
    2. Powers. The college faculty shall collaborate with the Dean in the governance of the College of Engineering and Applied Science in all matters that concern only the College (in accordance with the Laws of the Regents, Article 4.A.5). In particular, through shared governance with the administration, the faculty shall have principal responsibility for academic and scholastic policy and ethics, and the faculty shall act jointly with the administration in areas of faculty appointment and review, regulation of student conduct and activities, budgeting review and resource recommendations, selection of academic administrators, determination of candidates for degree, and other policies concerning the general academic welfare of the College (in accordance with the Laws of the Regents, Article 5.E.5).
    3. Faculty Meetings. Faculty meetings shall be held at least once during each of the fall and spring semesters. Special meetings may be called by the Dean or shall be called by the Dean upon the written request of five members of the faculty. Twenty-four hours' notice of a special meeting will be given. The members present at any regular or special meeting shall constitute a quorum.
  3. Dean of the College of Engineering and Applied Science. The Dean of the College shall be its administrative head. The Dean shall be responsible for the enforcement of admission requirements and for the general efficiency of the College and its departments and programs, and has overall responsibility for budgetary planning and allocation of funds, space and other resources, faculty assignments and workloads, recommendations on personnel actions, planning, accountability and reporting (in accordance with the Laws of the Regents Article 4.A.2). The Dean shall enforce rules and regulations of the College. The Dean shall confer with the Department Chairs about departmental needs. The Dean shall make regular reports to the Provost of the Boulder Campus, and to the faculty of the College.
  4. Departmental Organization. (In accordance with the uniform operational policy approved by the Regents on December 1, 1961.)
    1. The executive officer of each department shall be given the title Chair and this person shall be a tenured member of the department. The term of office of a Chair shall normally be four years. Occasionally, appointments may be made for shorter periods for specific reasons.
    2. Prior to the expiration of the term of office of the Chair, the Department shall propose a nominee for the position of Chair. An individual who has already served in this capacity shall be eligible for renomination, subject to the rules of the Department. Upon review and approval of the nominee by the Dean of the College, the Provost, and the Chancellor, the nomination shall be submitted to the President and the Board of Regents for action. If the nominee is not approved, the Department shall propose another nominee.
    3. An allowance of reduced teaching load and additional salary should be provided for the responsibilities assumed by the Chair.
    4. The process for selecting a nominee for Chair, including eligibility to vote, is to be defined in departmental bylaws or rules.
    5. Each department shall develop the rules for its own organization, including whether there should be an executive committee and, if so, how it should be constituted; how personnel and budgetary matters should be handled; and how responsibilities for other departmental functions should be determined. The Dean of the College shall be consulted about the proposed departmental structure and provided a written set of the rules. These rules shall include procedures for the selection and nomination of the Chair, organization, budgetary and salary matters, and hiring, reappointment, promotion, and tenure recommendations.
  5. Procedures for Reappointment, Promotion, and Tenure. The college procedures for reappointment, promotion, and tenure of faculty are described in the document Procedures, Policies, and Criteria for Reappointment, Promotion, and Tenure, approved by the Administrative Council and found on the college website. Procedures and criteria for each individual department or program should be consistent with this document, but reflect the uniqueness of the department or program, and be approved according to the unit’s bylaws and by the Dean.
  6. Standing Committees. There shall be the following standing committees, appointed by the Dean unless otherwise specified. In addition, special or ad hoc committees are formed on an as-needed basis.
    1. Administrative Council
      • Membership. The Administrative Council of the College shall consist of the Dean, who shall be the chair, Associate Deans, Assistant Deans, the Chairs of all departments in the College, and ex-officio members designated by the Dean.
      • Duties. This committee shall serve in an advisory capacity to the Dean in making decisions related to issues of administration, including, but not limited to, personnel, budget, space, strategic planning, diversity, and faculty hiring and evaluation.
    2. Undergraduate Education Council
      • Membership. This committee consists of a faculty representative appointed by the Chair of each undergraduate degree-granting department/program within the College of Engineering and Applied Science (normally this faculty member will be the Chair of that department/program’s Undergraduate Committee), a staff representative appointed by the Chair of each degree-granting department/program within the College of Engineering and Applied Science (normally this staff member will be the staff Undergraduate Advisor of that department/program), the Assistant Dean for Students, and the directors of programs and services related to student support and learning. The Undergraduate Education Council is chaired by the Associate Dean for Undergraduate Education. Voting members include the faculty representatives, the Associate Dean for Undergraduate Education, the Assistant Dean for Students, and other members as designated by the Associate Dean for Undergraduate Education.
      • Duties. As the decision-making body for academic policies and practices applicable to all CEAS undergraduate students, the Undergraduate Education Council is responsible for developing and coordinating undergraduate educational initiatives as described in the College’s Strategic Plan, for those responsibilities specifically assigned to the Undergraduate Education Council in these Rules, and such other activities related to undergraduate education within the College as may be brought before the committee. The Associate Dean for Undergraduate Education will notify the Administrative Council as necessary about issues being considered by the Undergraduate Education Council to ensure visibility of its work and to seek broader input when appropriate.
    3. ​Graduate Education Council
      • Membership.  This committee consists of a faculty representative appointed by the Chair of each graduate degree-granting department/program within the College of Engineering and Applied Science (normally this faculty member will be the Chair of that department/program’s Graduate Committee), a staff representative appointed by the Chair of each degree-granting department/program within the College of Engineering and Applied Science (normally this staff member will be the staff Graduate Coordinator or Advisor of that department/program), and the Director of Graduate Programs. The Graduate Education Council is chaired by the Associate Dean for Graduate Education. Voting members include the faculty representatives, the Associate Dean for Graduate Education, the Director of Graduate Programs, and other members as designated by the Associate Dean for Graduate Education.
      • Duties. As the decision-making body for academic policies and practices applicable to all CEAS graduate students, the Graduate Education Council is responsible for developing and coordinating graduate educational initiatives as described in the College’s Strategic Plan, for those responsibilities specifically assigned to the Graduate Education Council in these Rules, and such other activities related to graduate education within the College as may be brought before the committee. The Associate Dean for Graduate Education will notify the Administrative Council as necessary about issues being considered by the Graduate Education Council to ensure visibility of its work and to seek broader input when appropriate.
    4. Undergraduate Scholarship Committee
      • ​â¶Ä‹M±ð³¾²ú±ð°ù²õ³ó¾±±è.&²Ô²ú²õ±è;Members of the Undergraduate Scholarship Committee include one faculty member from each undergraduate degree-granting department/program, selected by his or her department chair or program director. Membership also includes college affordability staff, an Advancement Team representative and a BOLD Center representative. The Undergraduate Scholarship Committee is chaired by the Dean’s designee.
      • Duties. The Undergraduate Scholarship Committee assists with awarding the College’s scholarships in accordance with the wishes of the Dean and scholarship donors, and meets as required but at least once per academic year.
    5. First-Level Review Committee
      • ​â¶Ä‹â¶Ä‹â¶Ä‹â¶Ä‹See Procedures, Policies, and Criteria for Appointment, Promotion, and Tenure on the college website for a description of the membership, duties, and procedures of this committee.
    6. ​Engineering Advisory Council
      • See EAC Bylaws on the college website for a description of the membership, duties, and procedures of this council of external advisors.
    7. Inclusive Culture Council
      • ​â¶Ä‹M±ð³¾²ú±ð°ù²õ³ó¾±±è.&²Ô²ú²õ±è;This committee consists of a faculty representative and a staff representative appointed by the Chair/Director of each degree-granting department/program within the CEAS, the Assistant Dean for Access, Inclusion, and Student Programs (Chair), the Director of Inclusive Culture, a representative to the IDEA Council, at least one staff or faculty representative from non-degree-granting programs, representatives from undergraduate and graduate student organizations as invited by the Inclusive Culture Council and appointed by the respective student organizations in the College. The Dean will appoint ex-officio members as necessary. All members of the Inclusive Culture Council as recognized by the Assistant Dean of Access, Inclusion and Student Programs (Chair) are voting members. Council representatives may rotate after fulfilling a two-year term.
      • Duties. This committee provides strategic leadership and transparency to CEAS and its units for cultivating an inclusive, equitable, interculturally competent, and supportive environment. The committee identifies, gathers, and openly communicates data outlining the state of equity, diversity, and inclusion in CEAS. The Inclusive Culture Council strives to bring justice, equity, diversity, and inclusion leaders within the college together for systematic, intentional, and integrative planning and to formalize equitable and inclusive practices with established metrics. The Council works closely with the College’s representative(s) to the IDEA Council to ensure alignment with the university’s equity, diversity, and inclusion overall goals.
    8. Faculty Governance Council

      • ​â¶Ä‹M±ð³¾²ú±ð°ù²õ³ó¾±±è.&²Ô²ú²õ±è;This committee consists of an elected and representational membership of the regular faculty rostered within the CEAS, and will explicitly include:

        1. Tenured, tenure-track, instructor-rank, scholars-in-residence, and research faculty rostered in a department; and
        2. CEAS faculty rostered in a program who are not affiliated with a CEAS department.

        Each member will serve a two-year term, and members can be re-elected for a second term (maximum of four years of consecutive service).

      • Duties. This committee shall serve in an advisory capacity to the Dean in making decisions related to issues of administration including, but not limited to, budget and resource policy and distribution, faculty evaluations and grievances, and faculty advancement. In addition, this committee shall appoint an evaluation committee to perform a fair, thorough, and confidential evaluation of the Dean.

Article II. Undergraduate Degree Requirements

To be eligible for a traditional Baccalaureate Degree from the College of Engineering and Applied Science on the Boulder Campus, a student must meet all of the following minimum requirements:

  1. The satisfactory completion of the prescribed and elective work in any curriculum as determined by the college and the appropriate academic department/program. A student must complete a minimum number of semester hours, not less than 128 for a Bachelor of Science or 120 for a Bachelor of Arts, of which the last 45 must be Boulder coursework earned after admission to the University and the College.
  2. A University of Colorado cumulative grade point average of 2.250 for all courses attempted.
  3. A separately computed grade point average, Major GPA, of at least 2.250. The manner in which the Major GPA is computed is to take the most recently earned grade in all courses designated by the major department/program.
  4. The satisfactory completion of all Minimum Academic Preparation Standards (MAPS) deficiencies.

It is possible for an undergraduate student to complete degree requirements for two or more degree programs within the College of Engineering and Applied Science, as long as all degree requirements for each program are met. The decision to earn more than one degree in a College baccalaureate program should be carefully weighed, since qualified students may be able to obtain a master’s degree for a similar number of credit hours. Representatives of degree-granting departments and programs certify their list of graduates following the close of the fall and spring semesters and the final summer term.

Article III. Undergraduate Program

Academic policies for undergraduates in the College of Engineering and Applied Science will be reviewed and published by the Undergraduate Engineering Council on the college web site. Any changes must be approved by a majority vote of the voting members on this council.

Article IV. Academic Programs

  1. ​New Degree Programs. Proposed new degree programs are vetted through the Undergraduate Education Council and/or Graduate Education Council. Upon Council and Dean approval, the proposal moves forward for campus, regent, and state approval.
  2. Minors and Options. Proposed new minors and degree options are vetted through the Undergraduate Education Council and/or the Graduate Education Council.
  3. Certificates. Proposed new certificate programs are vetted through the Undergraduate Education Council and/or Graduate Education Council. Upon Council approval, certificates are reviewed by the Vice Provost for Undergraduate Education and/or the Vice Provost for Graduate Affairs.

Article V. Course Outline Approval Procedures

  1. New Courses.
    1. The appropriate faculty member(s) has the responsibility of preparing a draft course proposal, including a course outline and answering all relevant questions in detail. The course proposal form maintained on the Curriculum Inventory Management (CIM) for Courses system should be used for this purpose to ensure that all required information is provided.
    2. The Department Chair (or Program Director)—in collaboration with their unit’s undergraduate and/or graduate committees—reviews the course proposal draft with the faculty member to assure that the proposed course is compatible with the department’s or program’s goals, rules, human resources, and physical facilities. After unit approval, the course proposal is sent to the Associate Dean for Undergraduate or Graduate Education. The Associate Dean reviews the proposal, iterating with the unit as necessary. After preliminary review, the Associate Dean forwards the proposal to the members of the Undergraduate Education Council (for undergraduate-level courses) or the Graduate Education Council (for graduate-level courses). Each recipient has 14 days in which to discuss the draft with members in their units and to collect any reactions. Each voting member of the respective Council should return his/her written responses, if any, to the Associate Dean, who will lead a discussion about the proposal at the next regularly scheduled meeting of the relevant Council or online using the relevant Council’s mailing list. If needed, feedback will be returned to the submitting department/program to make changes to the proposal or to provide additional information. Subsequent reviews of that proposal will be expedited by the Associate Dean.
    3. Once a course proposal has passed review by the Undergraduate Education Council or Graduate Education Council, the course proposal will be approved by the Associate Dean and forwarded for inclusion in the Course Catalog.
  2. Revised Courses. When revision pertains to form rather than content (e.g., changes of wording in the catalog description, changes of course number, etc.), the responsible department/program prepares the Registrar’s Office Course Revision Form in CIM for Courses. It is then forwarded to the Office of the Associate Dean for Undergraduate or Graduate Education for review and approval.
  3. Course Schedule Information. Each department and program may list under the heading Special Topics those topical areas of its interest in which courses may be given when the demand arises. A student who takes a course for credit under a Special Topics number shall have the topical area shown on his or her transcript. If a course has been taught as a Special Topics course every other year or more often, and covers essentially the same material, then a New Course Proposal must be submitted after the third occurrence.

Article VI. Major Department/Program Curriculum Change Procedures for Baccalaureate Programs

Curriculum changes in the College of Engineering and Applied Science Baccalaureate degree programs need to be communicated internally and externally so that faculty, advisors, and students are well-informed of degree requirements. The steps for this process are:

  1. After major department/program vetting and endorsement, the respective Undergraduate Curriculum Committee (or Committee Chair) submits the form through the CIM for Programs system to the Associate Dean for Undergraduate Education.
  2. The Associate Dean reviews the proposed curriculum changes (iterating with the submitting department/program on any minor concerns) and then forwards the proposal to the members of the Undergraduate Education Council (UEC). Each recipient has 14 days in which to discuss the proposal with members in their units and to collect any reactions. Written responses, if any, should be returned for review by the Associate Dean and for discussion at UEC.
  3. A discussion of the impact of the proposed curriculum change will be held at the next regularly scheduled UEC meeting after the 14-day review process.
  4. If issues are raised within the 14-day period or during the UEC discussion, the Associate Dean will compile and convey feedback to the proposing unit’s Undergraduate Curriculum Committee to address these issues. The Associate Dean will then mediate a mutually-agreeable resolution of the curriculum change with representatives of the proposing and affected units.

Article VII. Revisions

Revisions to these rules require approval of a two-thirds vote of the voting members of the faculty of the College present at any regular or special meeting. Revisions may be initiated and proposed by any voting member of the faculty or by any standing committee of the faculty. Written notice of a proposed revision shall be given to members of the voting faculty at least 30 days in advance of any meeting in which a revision is to be considered. The revision may be made at any regular or special meeting of the faculty held during the academic year.

Revisions to the rules shall be distributed to all members of the faculty within a period of sixty days following the date of approval. Publication on the college website shall satisfy this requirement.