Faculty Qualifications Policy

Qualification to teach a given course is usually based on the faculty member’s highest earned degree in the teaching discipline, with exceptions for areas where terminal degree is awarded at the Masters level and faculty possesses a doctorate in a related field.  Degrees earned are only acceptable if awarded by an institution that is accredited by the regional accreditors[1]. 

Guidance regarding these criteria is contained in the Higher Learning Commission document entitled "Determining Qualified Faculty Through HLC’s Criteria for Accreditation and Assumed Practices"

     a.    For undergraduate courses (enrolling only baccalaureate students), faculty may be deemed academically qualified if they have earned:
            i.    a master’s degree or higher in the teaching field;
            ii.    a master’s degree or higher in a closely related field, as defined by program/ academic department and accrediting body; or
            iii.    a master’s degree or higher in any discipline with at least eighteen (18) graduate credit hours in the teaching field or a closely related field, as defined by the program/academic department.

     b.    For general education courses at the undergraduate level: doctorate or master’s degree in the teaching discipline or master’s degree with a concentration in the teaching discipline (a minimum of 18 graduate semester hours in the teaching discipline).

     c.    For Kinesiology activities classes (KINE) need only possess a bachelor’s degree in an appropriate field, with exceptions based on experience (e.g., license, certification or extensive experience).

     d.    For graduate courses and for mixed undergraduate/ graduate courses (e.g., COE Courses in Special Education Core and Clinical Experiences), faculty may be deemed academically qualified if they have earned:

            i.    a terminal degree (Ph.D., Ed.D., MFA, etc. as determined by the academic department) in the teaching field;
            ii.    a terminal degree in a closely related field, as defined by the program/academic department and accrediting body; or
            iii.    a terminal degree in any discipline with at least eighteen (18) graduate credit hours in the teaching field or a closely related field.

If the academic qualifications articulated above are not present, qualification to teach in a particular field may be based on other credentials, EXCEPT IN GENERAL EDUCATION COURSES(see "b" under Academic Qualifications above). A department may justify a faculty member’s assignment to teach a given course based on a combination of academic, experiential, and additional credentials.

     a.    Licensure or Certification
          i.    A faculty member holds an MBA and is a Certified Professional Accountant and thus is qualified to teach undergraduate accounting courses.
          ii.    A faculty member holds a bachelor’s degree in nursing, is licensed as an RN in Michigan, and meets the experiential criteria to teach nursing established by the Michigan and thus is qualified to teach in an undergraduate clinical nursing course.

     b.    Honors and Awards

          i.    A faculty member holds a bachelor’s degree in English and has received several prestigious regional and national awards for published work and thus is qualified to teach creative writing courses.

          ii.    A faculty member holds a master's degree in health education and has won numerous regional and national awards for their work in nutrition in schools and thus qualified to teach nutrition courses.

     c.    Professional Experience
          i.    A faculty member holds a bachelor’s degree in art and has over ten years’ experience as a professional artist including international refereed shows at top galleries and thus is qualified to teach undergraduate art courses.
          ii.    A faculty member holds a bachelors in Engineering and an MBA and has worked for 15 years in various leadership positions within the auto industry, and thus is qualified to teach undergraduate engineering courses.

     d.    Distinguished Publications
          i.    A faculty member holds a master’s degree in educational psychology and has published extensively in top-tier refereed journals on subjects related to adolescent learning and psychometrics and thus is qualified to teach psychology courses.
          ii.    A faculty member holds a doctorate in Computer Science but has published two monographs and several refereed journal articles in the physics of circuits and in electromagnetic theory and thus is qualified to teach those subjects in physics.

Faculty who are qualified based on other than academic credentials are approved by the dean of the faculty member’s college and the Provost or designee on a case-by-case basis and are the exception rather than the rule.

III.    Documentation

In all cases, copies of all credentials will be collected by the Office of the Provost and Human Resources at the time of hiring.  These credentials include an original transcript of relevant graduate work, a copy of any relevant certification or licensure, and a current CV. If the academic credentials include credits awarded by a non-U.S. institution, the foreign credentials evaluation report must also be obtained.  If a department anticipates hiring a particular Adjunct Faculty member in a future semester, credentials can be certified ahead of the hiring period.

IV.    Responsibilities

The basic responsibility for the verification and validation of all faculty credential requirements is the responsibility of the academic instructional units offering the courses in which the faculty member will teach. Verification and validations must be completed prior to the faculty member beginning instruction in the course and must be conducted for each separate course taught.

It is the responsibility of all instructors of record to provide the university with the documentation needed to verify their credentials (e.g., transcripts, licenses and certifications). The academic instructional units are responsible for gathering, reviewing and verifying the teaching qualifications for instructors of record, and adjunct faculty during the interview process and at the time of hire. This process will occur prior to any instructor's appointment with the University, regardless of the mode of delivery or course location. The department chair will assist the Dean in the acquisition of the documents required for the credentialing process.

The determination of adequacy of credentials is the responsibility of the college Dean or, if appropriate, department chair and/or program director. In the event that the Dean, Chair, or Program Director cannot render a determination, it is the responsibility of the Provost or their designee. For the purposes of this policy, the university accepts the common collegiate practice in recognizing an academic discipline, concentration or field of study. The university uses four-digit Classification of Instructional Program (CIP codes) to determine whether or not an instructor's educational background is in the same discipline as the courses being taught.  CIP codes for SVSU Programs can be obtained from the Office of Institutional Research. Additionally, the appropriate graduate faculty status is required for faculty teaching graduate courses or serving on graduate committees.

For faculty teaching interdisciplinary courses, documentation must be provided that the faculty member's qualifications are relevant to the disciplines that are components of the course. The Office of the Provost must approve exceptions.