ϡȱÁÔÆæÍø

New academic degree program proposals must be approved by the ϡȱÁÔÆæÍø Board of Regents (BOR) and the ϡȱÁÔÆæÍø Higher Education Commission (MHEC). Proposals can go to ϡȱÁÔÆæÍø prior to MHEC, but they may not go to MHEC before ϡȱÁÔÆæÍø.

Originally, the window for program proposal submissions was defined as the period of time in which an academic degree program proposal should be submitted to MHEC so that its transmittal from MHEC to segments would permit the proposal 1) to be out for comment for 30 days prior to the meeting of the Board of Regents (BOR) Committee on Education Policy and Student Life [and Safety] (EPSLS) and 2) not to exceed the MHEC 60-day review period prior to its formal approval at the next meeting of the full Board. The process sometimes resulted in very short windows for ϡȱÁÔÆæÍø institutions to submit new program proposals. To ease the scheduling difficulties for institutions, the BOR EPSLS Committee decided it will review proposals while they are still out for comment through MHEC.

The EPSLS Committee will make its recommendation based on the merits of each proposal and the criteria stipulated in regulation and policy. If objections or comments from MHEC or other institutions are received during the comment period but after the EPSLS Committee meets, the Board can consider those comments and decide whether to defer final action on the Committee recommendation while any outstanding issues are addressed.

As of December 2021, MHEC accepts proposals only on the 1^st and 15^th of the month. ϡȱÁÔÆæÍø follows the “Windows for Electronic Submission of New Academic Degree Program Proposals” as noted in the table below. The submission windows adhere to the meeting schedules of the EPSLS and the full Board of Regents.

Revised 07/16/2026