Understanding course co-ops

Definition

Co-opting is a curricular practice in Tulane University’s School of Liberal Arts (SLA).

A co-op is a cooperative agreement between two or more departments or academic programs – the department/program that owns the subject code (ie Art History (ARHS) courses live in the Art dept.), and the department that wants to allow their students credit in their program by using the owning department or program’s course (ie Africana Studies lists the ARHS course as part of their curriculum, degree audit, in the catalog, and on the Africana Studies schedule of classes with permission of the Art department).

The practice of co-opting not only demonstrates the true interdisciplinary nature of a program by listing various subjects/disciplines but also allows all subject areas that count in an interdisciplinary program of study to be made available on the schedule of classes for students to see and register for them.

Cross listing over the same subject code for 4/6 or 3/7 - UG/GR splits or across other schools is permitted. Additionally, within the School of Liberal Arts, two courses may be cross-listed when the course is approved to carry variable credit hours (3 to 4 credit hours) and the SLA Tier-2 Writing Attribute is approved to be added to the 4-credit version of the course.

Proposing a co-op on a standard course* with the Curriculum Inventory Management System (CIM)

Note: Typically, Co-Ops are agreed upon prior to submission into the CIM system via email between the two co-oping departments or academic programs. Syllabi are required for co-op requests in the CIM system and if you are not the “owner” of the course, you must obtain a syllabus for the course via email prior to submitting the CIM request.

  1. Go to the CIM Course Admin form website: https://nextcatalog.tulane.edu/courseadmin/ and log in with your Tulane single-sign-on credentials.

    1. Note: If you do not have access to the CIM Course Admin website, submit a Registrar Support Form Ticket.

    2. If you are not the “owner' of the course, you may wish to request the co-op via email with the course owner first prior to submitting the proposal via CIM to ensure that the “owner” is agreeable to the cross-list.

  2. Navigate to the course that will be co-opted by entering the course ID in the search field.

  3. Click on the “Edit Course” button.

    1. Complete the required fields in the form including:

      1. Proposer Name

      2. Proposer Email

      3. Rationale for Change

      4. Effective Term

      5. Faculty Name & Email Address (if unknown, you may enter TBD for co-op requests.)

      6. Co-Op (at the bottom of the form just above the Undergraduate Core/School Requirements or above the Learning Outcomes section.

        1. Select “yes”

        2. Select the co-opting department(s) or program(s)

        3. Answer the required question: “Where should this course be listed in another department's inventory (i.e. –In the electives, in the major, in a particular track, etc. Please be specific.”

          1. Note: It is important to specifically list what are of the academic program or programs in this area of the form. For example, a 2000-level course in sociology that is requesting a co-op with environmental studies might indicate that the course should count in the EVST major and minor, in the 2000-level elective area.

      7. Enter the Course Learning Outcomes (one objective per box, click the green plus sign to add additional objectives).

      8. Attach a current syllabus for the course.

      9. Click the green “Start Workflow” button

        1. The workflow will include both the chair/director of the home department/program and the chair/director of the co-opting department/program who will need to approve the proposal before it moves to the Curriculum Committee step in the workflow.

        2. If the chair of the courses' home department/program is not amenable to the co-op, they should click “edit” on the form and remove the co-op and also enter a comment on the proposal so that it is clear that the course is not approved for the co-op.

      10. Once fully approved in the CIM workflow and processed by the Registrar, the co-opted course should appear on the Schedule of Classes in the co-opted department/program course list: Tulane University Schedule of Classes, and be captured by the Degree Audit for the program(s).

        1. The Registrar CIM staff member will complete the following manual steps to finalize the co-op in the Banner system:

          1. Add the co-opting department in the supplemental data “more information” tab in SCACRSE; this step ensures that the course appears in the Schedule of Classes under the co-oping department.

          2. Add the co-op attribute in SCADETL’s Attribute tab: this step helps ensure that the course will pull into the degree audit for the co-oping department.

          3. Testing the co-opting department’s degree audit(s) to ensure they are appropriately programmed with the SCADETL attribute and will accept co-opted courses as expected.

            1. Staff members from the Registrar’s office Degree Audit team may follow-up with the co-oping department if there are questions about the co-op vis-a-vis the academic program requirements.

      11. Once approved, permanent co-ops typically must also be added to the CIM Program form so that the co-opted course appears in the “requirements” section of the academic program that the course is co-opted with. Always remember to submit the edits to the CIM program form to the workflow in a timely manner so that the program is updated in time for catalog publication. If a co-op is approved to satisfy a requirement in a major and a minor within the same department/academic program, BOTH CIM Program forms must be updated and submitted to workflow. Example: Environmental Studies

        1. Exceptions apply: If your academic program does not list elective options in the catalog and instead refers students to the list available on the Schedule of Classes, there is no need to update the CIM program form for the academic program.

      12. Consult with the School of Liberal Arts Dean’s office if you have any questions about Co-Ops.

      13. Contact the Registrar by submitting a Registrar Support Form Ticket if you have questions about the CIM process for requesting co-ops.

*Standard courses are courses that are fixed-title courses in the curriculum. Variable title/Special Topics courses' co-ops are proposed through CourseLeaf CLSS, not CIM. See below.

Proposing a co-op on a Variable Title (Topics or Special Topics) course through CourseLeaf CLSS

Note: Typically, Special Topics co-ops are agreed upon prior to submission into the CourseLeaf CLSS system via email between the two co-oping departments or academic programs.

  1. The department/academic program scheduler for the course selects the appropriate co-op department or program code in the “Section Attributes” area of the form.

 

 

Selecting a Co Op Section Attributes in CourseLeaf CLSS

 

  1. Submit the section to workflow

  2. Once approved by the Department Chair and School, the Registrar’s office will take complete the following steps to finalize the section-level co-op:

    1. Add the co-opting department in the supplemental data “more information” tab in SSASECT; this step ensures that the section appears in the Schedule of Classes under the co-oping department.

    2. Approving the section and submitting it to Banner automatically adds the co-op attribute in SSADETL’s Attribute tab: this step ensures that the section will pull into the degree audit(s) for the co-oping department.

    3. Testing the co-opting department’s degree audit(s) to ensure they are appropriately programmed with the SSADETL attribute and will accept co-opted courses as expected.

      1. Staff members from the Registrar’s office Degree Audit team may follow-up with the co-oping department if there are questions about the co-op vis-a-vis the academic program requirements.

Reference document link (Registrar’s office staff only)

Co-Op Attribute list (Registrar office staff only)