Academic planning refers to the planning and design of new academic programmes at SU.
These are new programmes that are not currently on the Programme and Qualifications Mix (PQM) of the University. These programmes have to undergo an internal approval process as well as an external approval process consisting of approval by the Department of Higher Education and Training (DHET), accreditation by the Council on Higher Education (CHE) and registration by the South African Qualifications Authority (SAQA).
Programme review, re-design and renewal refer to major or minor changes to existing programmes offered by SU.
Major Changes
Major changes to an existing qualification/programme on the PQM of SU include any of the following changes:
- The title of a qualification;
- The rationale, purpose, exit level outcomes and associated assessment criteria of a programme;
- An increase or decrease in the total credit value of a programme;
- The programme design, including adding new modules and/or changing the credit value of existing modules that influence the total credit value of the programme;
- The CESM codes assigned to modules that impact on the 50% rule applicable to the use of designators and qualifiers;
- The mode of provision (applicable when amending face-to-face to distance learning);
Major changes are often the result of new developments in disciplines, fields of study or domains of practices. Professional bodies (statutory and non-statutory) may also introduce new professional standards that may result in significant changes to an existing programme offered by SU.
Major changes to an existing programme, as outlined in a Programme Specification (Form A) should be submitted to the Programme Advisory Committee, Academic Planning Committee and Senate for consideration and approval. External approval from the DHET, accreditation from the CHE and re-registration of the qualification with SAQA are also needed.
Minor Changes
Minor changes to an existing qualification/programme (including its modules) on the PQM of SU include any of the following changes:
- Redefining the name of the module(s);
- Redefining the description of the module(s) content;
- Redefining the credit value of module(s) based on changes to the module content (less than a 50% change only);
- Redefining the learning outcomes and associated assessment criteria of module(s) in an existing programme;
- Redefining the rules of combination within the programme design of an existing programme (i.e. pre-requisites and co-requisites);
- Revising the mode of delivery and provisioning from face-to-face contact-based to hybrid learning.
- Implementation of a new hybrid learning module.
Minor changes to existing module(s) of a programme on the PQM of SU are considered by the Programme Advisory Committee, Academic Planning Committee and Senate. A module specification (Form B) must be completed for each module. Where several modules of an existing programme are revised, a programme review, re-design and renewal specification (Form C) must be completed.
Please refer to the
workflow for the internal and external approval process on the development of new academic programmes to obtain more information on the approval, accreditation and registration of a new academic programmes from the Department of Higher Education and Training (DHET), Council on Higher Education (CHE) and the
South African Qualifications Authority (SAQA) respectively.
Click 
for access to all curriculum templates, insitutional dates and resources for the planning of a module (Form B).
In the table below, a distinction is made between new academic programmes, major and minor changes to existing programmes. For additional resources on any of the aspects listed in this table, please click on the hyperlink in the table.
Please take note that some resources are currently being developed or revised and will be made available as soon as possible.
CHE Programme Accreditation
| Admission criteria |
|
|
|
| Selection criteria |
|
|
|
| Recognition of Prior Learning (RPL) and Credit Accumulation and Transfer (CAT) |
|
|
|
| Staff qualifications, size and seniority |
|
|
|
| Teaching and learning strategy for programme |
|
|
|
| Hybrid learning strategy for programme |
|
|
|
| Academic support |
|
|
|
| Student feedback |
|
|
|
| Assessment strategy for programme |
|
|
|
| Assessment plan for the programme |
|
|
|
| Internal and external moderation |
|
|
|
| Integrity of assessment practices |
|
|
|
| Teaching and learning facilities |
|
|
|
| IT infrastructure and library resources |
|
|
|
| Administrative support |
|
|
|
| Programme leader |
|
|
|
| Learner analytics |
|
|
|
| Integrity of processes leading to certification |
|
|
|
| Approval of research proposals |
|
|
|
| Appointment of supervisors and examiners |
|
|
|
| Workload models |
|
|
|
| Monitoring quality supervision |
|
|
|
| Academic support of postgraduate students |
|
|
|
| Postgraduate assessment |
|
|
|
| Research staff development |
|
|
|
| Enrolment targets |
|
|
|
| Programme comparison |
|
|
|
| Student fees |
|
|
|
| Direct expenses |
|
|
|
| Impact on human resources |
|
|
|
Funding
|
|
|
|
