Guidelines

The SVSU College of Education supports the increasing number of high-quality professional development experiences offered to educators outside of university offered courses. Upon request, the SVSU College of Education will work with a sponsoring educational agency to evaluate and develop appropriate professional development courses for graduate credit. Non-educational agencies must be sponsored by an educational agency (other than SVSU) and jointly plan and organize the course. It is recognized, of course, that some professional development experiences, such as conferences, while valid and worthwhile, may not be appropriate for graduate credit. The granting of graduate credit implies a well-developed course centered around a unifying topic and established upon a knowledge base of theory, research, and best practice. It also implies that the participants enrolled for credit will engage in academic work reflective of advanced study.Professional development courses taught off-campus by instructors who are not SVSU faculty members are intended to meet an identified, specialized need for the on-going education of professional educators. As such, granting graduate credit for such courses will be based on the following:

1. Course requests must include:
   • Course title;
   • Course location;
   • Class dates and times;
   • Number of credit hours and contact hours;
   • Name of contact person, sponsoring educational agency, address, and phone/fax number(s);
   • Instructor's name, current mailing address, and Vitae;
     
     
2. Course Syllabus:
   • The Course Syllabus should include:
   • Course information, including title, number of credit hours, instructor's name, location, dates, and times (Please list all course dates);
   • Course description;
   • Course outcomes/objectives;
   • Required text(s), supplemental materials, assigned readings;
   • Course schedule, including dates and topics;
   • Course requirements, including follow-up components (if appropriate);
   • Evaluation and grading criteria;
   • Statement as to whether course is Pass/Fail or letter grade (please refer to #8 for clarification);
   • Bibliography/References;
   • and the following statement, "This course will not be submitted for a regularly designated course on a degree program. Prior to registration for credit, please contact your SVSU advisor to determine if this course will count toward your degree program".
     
     
3. In most cases, courses will be approved for 1 (one) or 3 (three) credits. Minimum required contact time is 15 clock hours per credit hour.
   
   
4. Educators enrolled in professional development courses for credit will be expected to do graduate level work BEYOND the minimum required contact time. This work may include additional readings, written assignments, and application projects. Attendance and class participation alone is not considered sufficient to earn graduate credit.
   
   
5. To allow necessary time for graduate level work, summer courses should be scheduled for no more than the equivalent of one credit per week or require a follow-up component.
   
   
6. Instructors must possess a doctorate or a master's degree with demonstrated exceptional expertise and experience in the subject being taught.
   
   
7. All courses will be designated as either TE 601, Special Topics in Teacher Education, EDL 600, Special Topics in Education, TEMS 601, Special Topics in Middle/Secondary Education, or ETD 601, Workshops in Technology, unless the specific department determines otherwise.
   
   
8. Approved professional development courses may not substitute for regularly designated courses in degree programs unless determined by the respective department. With written permission of the department, professional development courses may be accepted as elective credit in a degree program.  Grades of "P" received for the course must be equivalent to a grade of "A" or "B" and be validated by the Instructor of Record at the time the grade roster is submitted.
   
   
9. SVSU may grant credit for courses offered by agencies on a "for profit" basis subject to review and approval by the Teacher Education Department at SVSU, based on standard criteria.

NOTE: The LEA/ISD application and supporting mat0erials must be submitted to the Dean of the College of Education. The application will then be forwarded to the appropriate department for consideration.

To ensure timely registration, requests must be received a minimum of 6 weeks prior to the beginning of the class. Credit cannot be granted for courses in progress.