MINIMUM FACULTY QUALIFICATIONS

Effective: August 15, 2024

Purpose: To outline the minimum requirements for faculty members to be hired to teach.

Scope: This policy applies to all faculty members.

Responsible Office: Academic Affairs

Policy Statement: Institutions accredited by the Higher Learning Commission identify qualified faculty members primarily by degree credentials appropriate to the academic discipline and level of the courses taught. In instances where the normally-expected degree is not held, faculty employment can also be based on equivalent experience.

Each full-time faculty member’s qualifications, whether by degree credentials or by equivalent experience, shall be established and documented at the time of initial hire. 

Each part-time faculty member’s qualifications, whether by degree credentials or by equivalent experience, shall be established and documented at the time of initial hire. Qualifications for part-time faculty must be re-established after a lapse of employment of more than five (5) years. Any part-time faculty member who receives a teaching assignment requiring substantively different qualifications will have their qualifications re-evaluated by the appropriate academic unit chair or dean at the time of said teaching assignment.

To be qualified on the basis of credentials, Instructors (excluding for this requirement Teaching Assistants enrolled in a graduate program and supervised by faculty) must possess an academic degree relevant to what they are teaching and at least one (1) level above the level at which they teach, except in programs for terminal degrees, where they must possess the same level of degree:

• Undergraduate level: A master’s degree or higher in the discipline or subfield of the courses taught OR a master’s degree or higher in a different discipline or subfield plus a minimum of eighteen (18) graduate credit hours in the discipline or subfield of the courses taught. 
• Graduate level: The terminal degree determined by the discipline and a record of research and scholarship appropriate for the graduate program. 
• Doctoral level: The terminal degree determined by the discipline and a record of recognized research and scholarship commensurate with doctoral expectations.

Teaching qualifications – when established by equivalent experience – are determined by disciplinary standards and faculty members within the discipline or department. 

To be qualified on the basis of equivalent experience, Instructors must have a documented record of discipline-related practice at a level that ensures mastery of the content of the courses taught and ongoing currency in the field. A determination of qualification by equivalent experience must be supported by evidence, which may include:

• Professional licensure or certification
• Documented excellence in professional practice
• Honors, awards, or special recognition
• Research and publications

Definitions: All words and phrases shall be interpreted utilizing their plain meanings unless otherwise defined in another University or Board of Regents policy or by statute or regulation.

Procedures: All procedures linked and related to the policies above shall have the full force and effect of policy if said procedures have first been properly approved by the University’s administrator in charge of Academic Affairs.

[Academic Affairs procedures - coming soon]

Related Policy Information: 3.51 – Termination of Employment; 4.01 – Minimum Faculty Qualifications; 4.03 – Faculty Performance and Recognition; 4.12 – Emeritus Status