(a) Each public institution of higher education, in
accordance with the requirements of the institution's approved accreditor,
shall have a process to review the quality and effectiveness of existing
degree programs and for continuous improvement.
(b) Board staff shall develop a process for conducting
a periodic audit of the quality, productivity, and effectiveness of
each existing master's, doctoral, and professional degree program
at a public institution of higher education.
(c) Board staff will meet the requirements of program
review established by Texas Education Code, §61.0512(e), by reviewing
program data reported in the Accountability System for each undergraduate
degree offered by a public institution of higher education in Texas.
(d) Each public university and public health-related
institution shall review each of its master's, doctoral and professional
degree programs at least once every ten (10) years.
(1) On a schedule to be determined by the Commissioner,
each institution shall submit a schedule of review for each graduate
program to the Assistant Commissioner with oversight of academic program
approval.
(2) Each institution shall begin each review of a graduate
degree program with a rigorous self-study.
(3) As part of the required review process, an institution
shall use at least two external reviewers with subject-matter expertise
who are employed by institutions of higher education outside of Texas.
Each institution shall provide its external reviewers with the materials
and products of the self-study and must participate in a site review.
(4) Each external reviewer shall be part of a program
that is nationally recognized for excellence in the discipline.
(5) Each external reviewer shall affirm that they have
no conflict of interest related to the Board, the institution, or
program under review.
(6) Each institution may review a closely-related program,
defined as sharing the same four-digit Classification of Instructional
Programs code, in a consolidated manner at the discretion of the institution.
(7) Each institution shall review a master's and doctoral
program in the same discipline simultaneously, using the same self-study
materials and reviewers. Each institution may also, at their discretion,
review a baccalaureate program in the same discipline as master's
and doctoral programs simultaneously.
(8) Each Institution shall submit a report on the outcomes
of each review, including the evaluation of the external reviewers
and actions the institution has taken or will take to improve the
program, and shall deliver these reports to Board staff no later than
180 days after the reviewers have submitted their findings to the
institution.
(9) Each institution may submit a review of a master's,
doctoral, or professional program performed for reasons of programmatic
licensure or accreditation in satisfaction of the review and reporting
requirements in this subsection.
(e) Board staff shall review all reports submitted
for a master's, doctoral, or professional degree program and shall
conduct analysis as necessary to ensure high quality. The Commissioner
may require an institution to take additional actions to improve its
program as a result of Board review.
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