{"id":1149,"date":"2026-01-16T13:36:52","date_gmt":"2026-01-16T19:36:52","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/uwm.edu\/policy\/?post_type=library&#038;p=1149"},"modified":"2026-03-18T15:18:55","modified_gmt":"2026-03-18T20:18:55","slug":"academic-approval-matrix","status":"publish","type":"library","link":"https:\/\/uwm.edu\/policy\/library\/academic-approval-matrix\/","title":{"rendered":"Academic Approval Matrix"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<div class=\"uwm-l-row uwm-l-row--4\">\n<div class=\"uwm-l-col uwm-l-col--3\">\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\" id=\"h-authority\">Authority<\/h2>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n<div class=\"uwm-l-col\">\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.wisconsin.edu\/regents\/policies\/academic-program-planning-review-and-approval-in-the-university-of-wisconsin-system\/\">Academic Program Planning, Review, and Approval (BOR Policy 4-12)<\/a><\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>UW System Policy Statement on Academic Planning, Review and Approval (Approved August 2012)<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.wisconsin.edu\/uw-policies\/uw-system-administrative-policies\/policy-on-university-of-wisconsin-system-array-management-program-planning-delivery-review-and-reporting-2\/\">UW System Administrative Policy 102<\/a><\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>51ÁÔÆæ Faculty Document 2237<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/uwm.edu\/policy\/library\/centers-institutes\/\">51ÁÔÆæ SAAP 01-06: Centers\/Institutes<\/a><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n<hr class=\"has-alpha-channel-opacity\" \/>\n\n\n\n<div class=\"uwm-l-row uwm-l-row--4\">\n<div class=\"uwm-l-col uwm-l-col--3\">\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\" id=\"h-purpose\">Purpose<\/h2>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n<div class=\"uwm-l-col\">\n<p>The purpose of this policy is to articulate the approvals needed for various academic program and administrative actions at 51ÁÔÆæ and UW System levels. This policy only applies to situations that would not result in faculty layoff or termination.&nbsp;<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n<hr class=\"has-alpha-channel-opacity\" \/>\n\n\n\n<div class=\"uwm-l-row uwm-l-row--4\">\n<div class=\"uwm-l-col uwm-l-col--3\">\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\" id=\"h-policy\">Policy<\/h2>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n<div class=\"uwm-l-col\">\n<p>Academic program actions at the course, subprogram, and program levels are governed by policies established by the Board of Regents and the faculty senate. As such, these actions require review and approval by appropriate faculty bodies as well as by the 51ÁÔÆæ administration. Approval of actions related to academic administrative structures are also governed by various policies of the Regents and faculty senate. This policy sets forth the reviews and approvals required at 51ÁÔÆæ and UW System for certain academic program and administrative actions.&nbsp;<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n<hr class=\"has-alpha-channel-opacity\" \/>\n\n\n\n<div class=\"uwm-l-row uwm-l-row--4\">\n<div class=\"uwm-l-col uwm-l-col--3\">\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\" id=\"h-definitions\">Definitions<\/h2>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n<div class=\"uwm-l-col\">\n<p><strong>Degree:<\/strong> Award conferred on a student upon successful completion of a prescribed set of requirements including a course of study. Examples: Bachelor of Arts, Bachelor of Science, Master of Business Administration, Master of Architecture, Doctor of Philosophy.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>Major:<\/strong> Academic discipline in which the student\u2019s course of study is focused\/specialized. Typically, the major is housed in an academic department or equivalent. Examples: Africology, English, Mechanical Engineering, Nursing. When more than one department or equivalent is involved in offering the major, it is usually referred to as an interdisciplinary major. Examples: Religious Studies, Women\u2019s &amp; Gender Studies.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>Sub-major:<\/strong> A prescribed set of courses that a student pursuing a degree in a major can take that complements a major or emphasizes a specialty within a major. 51ÁÔÆæ definition of sub-major includes terms such as minor, area of interest, specialization, area, concentration, emphasis, field, focus, option, sequence, and track.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>Curricular area:<\/strong> Subject area of a course offering.&nbsp;<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n<hr class=\"has-alpha-channel-opacity\" \/>\n\n\n\n<div class=\"uwm-l-row uwm-l-row--4\">\n<div class=\"uwm-l-col uwm-l-col--3\">\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\" id=\"h-procedures\">Procedures<\/h2>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n<div class=\"uwm-l-col\">\n<p>The necessary approvals for various actions in the <a href=\"#h-academic-actions\">Academic Actions links<\/a> below.\u00a0 It is expected that schools and colleges will follow their established internal processes prior to forwarding the proposed actions to the appropriate campus level body. It is to be noted that some of the actions may also require approval of the Higher Learning Commission (HLC), which is 51ÁÔÆæ\u2019s regional accrediting body, per prevailing HLC policies.\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Additionally, the procedures for approvals by the UW System and the Board of Regents are subject to System and Regent policies in effect. Individuals, programs, and departments should consult with the Provost\u2019s office for the current System, Regent, and HLC requirements for approvals.&nbsp;<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n<hr class=\"has-alpha-channel-opacity\" \/>\n\n\n\n<div class=\"uwm-l-row uwm-l-row--4\">\n<div class=\"uwm-l-col uwm-l-col--3\">\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\" id=\"h-academic-actions\">Academic Actions<\/h2>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n<div class=\"uwm-l-col\">\n<p id=\"h-academic-actions\"><a href=\"https:\/\/uwm.edu\/policy\/library\/academic-approval-matrix\/undergraduate-post-baccalaureate-level\/\">Undergraduate\/Post-baccalaureate Level<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/uwm.edu\/policy\/library\/academic-approval-matrix\/graduate-level\/\">Graduate Level<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/uwm.edu\/policy\/library\/academic-approval-matrix\/university-level\/\">University Level<\/a><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n<p><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1287,"parent":0,"menu_order":0,"template":"","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":"","uwm_wg_additional_authors":[]},"categories":[37,49],"topic":[22],"class_list":["post-1149","library","type-library","status-publish","hentry","category-administrative-policies-procedures","category-selected-academic-and-administrative-policies","topic-academics"],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO Premium plugin v27.3 (Yoast SEO v27.3) - https:\/\/yoast.com\/product\/yoast-seo-premium-wordpress\/ -->\n<title>Academic Approval Matrix - Policy Library<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/uwm.edu\/policy\/library\/academic-approval-matrix\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Academic Approval Matrix\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/uwm.edu\/policy\/library\/academic-approval-matrix\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"Policy Library\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:modified_time\" content=\"2026-03-18T20:18:55+00:00\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Est. reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"2 minutes\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\\\/\\\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/uwm.edu\\\/policy\\\/library\\\/academic-approval-matrix\\\/\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/uwm.edu\\\/policy\\\/library\\\/academic-approval-matrix\\\/\",\"name\":\"Academic Approval Matrix - Policy Library\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/uwm.edu\\\/policy\\\/#website\"},\"datePublished\":\"2026-01-16T19:36:52+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2026-03-18T20:18:55+00:00\",\"breadcrumb\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/uwm.edu\\\/policy\\\/library\\\/academic-approval-matrix\\\/#breadcrumb\"},\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"ReadAction\",\"target\":[\"https:\\\/\\\/uwm.edu\\\/policy\\\/library\\\/academic-approval-matrix\\\/\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"BreadcrumbList\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/uwm.edu\\\/policy\\\/library\\\/academic-approval-matrix\\\/#breadcrumb\",\"itemListElement\":[{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":1,\"name\":\"Home\",\"item\":\"https:\\\/\\\/uwm.edu\\\/policy\\\/\"},{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":2,\"name\":\"Academic Approval Matrix\"}]},{\"@type\":\"WebSite\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/uwm.edu\\\/policy\\\/#website\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/uwm.edu\\\/policy\\\/\",\"name\":\"Policy Library\",\"description\":\"\",\"publisher\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/uwm.edu\\\/policy\\\/#organization\"},\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"SearchAction\",\"target\":{\"@type\":\"EntryPoint\",\"urlTemplate\":\"https:\\\/\\\/uwm.edu\\\/policy\\\/?s={search_term_string}\"},\"query-input\":{\"@type\":\"PropertyValueSpecification\",\"valueRequired\":true,\"valueName\":\"search_term_string\"}}],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\"},{\"@type\":\"Organization\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/uwm.edu\\\/policy\\\/#organization\",\"name\":\"University of Wisconsin - Milwaukee\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/uwm.edu\\\/policy\\\/\",\"logo\":{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/uwm.edu\\\/policy\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/logo\\\/image\\\/\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/uwm.edu\\\/0template-webid2\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/sites\\\/541\\\/2020\\\/11\\\/uwm-seo-logo.jpg\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/uwm.edu\\\/0template-webid2\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/sites\\\/541\\\/2020\\\/11\\\/uwm-seo-logo.jpg\",\"width\":225,\"height\":224,\"caption\":\"University of Wisconsin - Milwaukee\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/uwm.edu\\\/policy\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/logo\\\/image\\\/\"}}]}<\/script>\n<!-- \/ Yoast SEO Premium plugin. -->","yoast_head_json":{"title":"Academic Approval Matrix - Policy Library","robots":{"index":"index","follow":"follow","max-snippet":"max-snippet:-1","max-image-preview":"max-image-preview:large","max-video-preview":"max-video-preview:-1"},"canonical":"https:\/\/uwm.edu\/policy\/library\/academic-approval-matrix\/","og_locale":"en_US","og_type":"article","og_title":"Academic Approval Matrix","og_url":"https:\/\/uwm.edu\/policy\/library\/academic-approval-matrix\/","og_site_name":"Policy Library","article_modified_time":"2026-03-18T20:18:55+00:00","twitter_card":"summary_large_image","twitter_misc":{"Est. reading time":"2 minutes"},"schema":{"@context":"https:\/\/schema.org","@graph":[{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https:\/\/uwm.edu\/policy\/library\/academic-approval-matrix\/","url":"https:\/\/uwm.edu\/policy\/library\/academic-approval-matrix\/","name":"Academic Approval Matrix - Policy Library","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/uwm.edu\/policy\/#website"},"datePublished":"2026-01-16T19:36:52+00:00","dateModified":"2026-03-18T20:18:55+00:00","breadcrumb":{"@id":"https:\/\/uwm.edu\/policy\/library\/academic-approval-matrix\/#breadcrumb"},"inLanguage":"en-US","potentialAction":[{"@type":"ReadAction","target":["https:\/\/uwm.edu\/policy\/library\/academic-approval-matrix\/"]}]},{"@type":"BreadcrumbList","@id":"https:\/\/uwm.edu\/policy\/library\/academic-approval-matrix\/#breadcrumb","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"name":"Home","item":"https:\/\/uwm.edu\/policy\/"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"name":"Academic Approval Matrix"}]},{"@type":"WebSite","@id":"https:\/\/uwm.edu\/policy\/#website","url":"https:\/\/uwm.edu\/policy\/","name":"Policy Library","description":"","publisher":{"@id":"https:\/\/uwm.edu\/policy\/#organization"},"potentialAction":[{"@type":"SearchAction","target":{"@type":"EntryPoint","urlTemplate":"https:\/\/uwm.edu\/policy\/?s={search_term_string}"},"query-input":{"@type":"PropertyValueSpecification","valueRequired":true,"valueName":"search_term_string"}}],"inLanguage":"en-US"},{"@type":"Organization","@id":"https:\/\/uwm.edu\/policy\/#organization","name":"University of Wisconsin - Milwaukee","url":"https:\/\/uwm.edu\/policy\/","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/uwm.edu\/policy\/#\/schema\/logo\/image\/","url":"https:\/\/uwm.edu\/0template-webid2\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/541\/2020\/11\/uwm-seo-logo.jpg","contentUrl":"https:\/\/uwm.edu\/0template-webid2\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/541\/2020\/11\/uwm-seo-logo.jpg","width":225,"height":224,"caption":"University of Wisconsin - Milwaukee"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/uwm.edu\/policy\/#\/schema\/logo\/image\/"}}]}},"acf":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/uwm.edu\/policy\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/library\/1149","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/uwm.edu\/policy\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/library"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/uwm.edu\/policy\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/library"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/uwm.edu\/policy\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1287"}],"version-history":[{"count":30,"href":"https:\/\/uwm.edu\/policy\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/library\/1149\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":5501,"href":"https:\/\/uwm.edu\/policy\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/library\/1149\/revisions\/5501"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/uwm.edu\/policy\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=1149"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/uwm.edu\/policy\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=1149"},{"taxonomy":"topic","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/uwm.edu\/policy\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/topic?post=1149"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}