Off-campus collegiate instruction has expanded rapidly in our State in recent decades, extending access to college and university education to non-traditional populations, students at a distance from the main campus, and others who find it difficult to enroll in courses at residential campuses. New York State has standards governing off-campus instruction that are intended to assure that all off-campus instruction meets the quality standards required of all college credit-bearing instruction in the State and that all instruction is fully integrated into our system of comprehensive, statewide planning for higher education.
All courses which an institution offers for credit at an off-campus location must be part of a registered degree program offered by the institution and are subject to the same quality standards required of all registered curricula by statute, Regents Rules, and Commissioner’s Regulations.
Section 50.1 of Commissioner’s Regulations defines extension sites, extension centers, and branches. Part 54 classifies all instruction offered at a location other than the institution’s principal center into the following four categories. The following is a summary of the categories of off-campus instruction, their definitions, and the approvals required.
Categories of Off-Campus Instruction |
Definitions
|
Approval Required
|
EXTENSION SITE or INSTERINSTITUTIONAL SITE |
No complete programs AND 15 or fewer courses for credit AND 350 or fewer course registrations* for credit in any academic year [CR 50.1 (t)] |
No separate approval required. |
EXTENSION CENTER or INTERINSTITUTIONAL CENTER |
No complete programs AND more than 15 courses for credit OR more than 350 course registrations in any academic year [CR 50.1 (s)] |
Commissioner’s approval required. [CR 54.1 ( c ) and (d) |
BRANCH CAMPUS or INTERINSTITUTIONAL PROGRAM |
One or more programs leading to a certificate or degree (any number of courses and course registrations per academic year [CR 50.1 (r)] |
Regents approval required. (Master plan amendment, charter amendment, as appropriate.) [CR 54.1 (a) and (b)] |
EXCEPTIONS |
[CR 54.2] |
No separate approval required. |
* Course registration means the number of students registered in each course at each location, not the headcount enrollment at the location.
Applications for extension center should be sent to the Office of College and University Evaluation in the same manner as applications to register a new program. Colleges within the State University and City University should use the appropriate SUNY/CUNY extension center application forms and submit their application to their respective central administrations.
A description of the information to be submitted with an application to establish an extension center follows. The required information falls into three categories:
The Department will review carefully the information submitted with each application. It may, in some circumstances, request additional information. There is also the expectation that a visit to the prospective center will be a part of the State Education Department’s review. In every case, the Department will canvass other institutions in the region of the proposed center to determine their assessment of the center’s likely impact upon existing programs and institutions.
APPLICATION FORM FOR APPROVAL OF EXTENSION CENTERS
AND INTERINSTITUTIONAL CENTERS
Please provide the following information for the proposed extension center or interinstitutional center. (For this purpose, an academic year is defined as a period from September 1 of one year to August 31 of the following year.)
I. General Information
1. Address of center ________________________________________
2. Days and hours of operation ______________________________
3. Road mileage from center to the principal campus of the institution _____________
4. List the number of credit-bearing courses (Do not count multiple sections of a single course as separate courses.):
a. Offered during the last academic year_________________
b. Offered and projected for the current academic year______
c. Projected for the next academic year _________________
(For this purpose an academic year is defined as the period from September 1 of one year to August 31 of the following year.)
5. List the number registrations in credit-bearing courses at the center. (Please note that this is not a headcount of students enrolled at the center but a cumulative total of enrollments in all courses at the proposed center during the academic year.)
a. In the last academic year_________________________
b. In the current academic year ______________________
c. Projected for the next academic year________________
6 Please describe how the institution will assure that no complete programs will be offered at the center on any schedule
____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
7 Date when courses began or will begin to be offered at this location
________________________________________________________________________________________________________
A. Resources
1. Describe the facility, overall, including the number, condition, and accessibility of classrooms, faculty offices, and administrative offices at the center.
2. If science, computer, or other courses normally requiring laboratories, studios, and /or special equipment are offered, describe the facilities provided at the center. If no such courses will be offered, please state this.
3. Describe how students at the center will have access to traditional and electronic library resources and describe the nature of the resources. If there is an on-site library, describe staffing for the library (number of staff and their credentials) and the library’s days and hours of operation
B. Curriculum
1. Provide:
a. A marked current catalog that indicates all credit courses that have been offered or are projected to be offered at the center.
b. Course descriptions of any credit-bearing courses that are unique to this location.
c. A list of any credit courses that are not accepted toward the completion of any degree offered by the institution.
2. Indicate the maximum percent of a degree or certificate program a student may complete at the center.
C. Faculty
D. Administration
A. Financial Implications
| Year 1 | Year 2 | Year 3 | Year 4 | Year 5 | |
| Faculty Salaries | |||||
| Administrative Costs | |||||
| Facilities & Equip. Costs | |||||
| Library | |||||
| Other (specify) |
| Year 1 | Year 2 | Year 3 | Year 4 | Year 5 | |
| Tuition Income | |||||
| Public Funding | |||||
| Federal | |||||
| State | |||||
| Local | |||||
| Foundation Support | |||||
| Other |
Note:
1) If any outside funding (e.g., foundation support) is anticipated, please indicate how the costs of the center will be covered should such funds not be available.
2) Please detail any financial agreements with other institutions for joint operation of any center(s).
B. Need Implications
1. Justify, briefly but convincingly, the need for the proposed center:
- Population to be served
- Why need is not now being met by other institutions
- How will need be met by establishment of the center?
i. methodology used in collecting and analyzing data related to need
ii. potential employers of students to be enrolled at the proposed center ( if appropriate)
iii. numbers of students, or special groups of students, who may have requested establishment of the center.
C. Abstract for an Extension Center
Prepare a one- or two-page abstract summarizing the application for the extension center. The abstract should summarize information from all of the sections of the application.
The Department sends the abstract to other New York to other colleges and universities in the region of the proposed extension center as a basis for their comments and advice on the need and demand for the proposed center and its potential effect on other institutions and programs.
BRANCH CAMPUSES
Protocol for review of Branch Campuses
Each program of study at a branch campus or institutional program (a branch on the campus of an other college) requires registration. For each program to be offered at a branch, the information requested in the “Application for Registration of a New Program” section of the Program Registration Procedures document should be submitted for to the Office of College and University Evaluation (OCUE) for review. Branch campus and institutional programs also require Regents review and approval of an amendment of the institution’s master plan. See the section of the Program Registration Procedures document entitled Amendment of the Institution’s Master Plan for information on submitting a request for a master plan amendment). The master plan amendment information should be submitted to OCUE along with application(s) for registration of a new program(s). For an independent institution, concurrent amendment of its charter may also be needed. See the appendix of the Program Registration Procedures document entitled “Law Pamphlet 9 - Education Corporations” for information on submitting a petition for charter amendment). Please note the petition for charter amendment should be submitted with the required fee to the Department’s Office of Counsel. After that Office has reviewed the petition for legal sufficiency, it will be forwarded to OCUE and will become a part of the larger proposal for a branch campus.
In addition to the review of the proposal submitted, OCUE will conduct a site visit to the proposed branch campus with a team of peer reviewers.
The basic standards are: (1) that all educational activities offered as part of a registered curriculum meet the requirements established by statute, Regents Rules and Part 52 of Regulations, including that whenever and wherever an institution offers courses as part of a registered curriculum it provides adequate academic support services; and (2) that the need or demand for the extension center and for the courses offered there for credit from the points of view of students or special groups of students, including military personnel and persons in sparsely populated areas, potential employers of the students completing those courses, the institution and the public be demonstrated (see section 54.1 (c)(ii).
The Department would take into account the following: the proposed scope of course offerings, disciplines, and degree levels; the demographic characteristics and academic experiences and skills of the student body to be served; student access to faculty and other resources necessary for strong student achievement; and the evidence of need provided by the institution.
Yes, there are different definitions. The definitions of an extension site, extension center, and branch campus for the required State registration purposes are contained in section
50.1 of Commissioner’s Regulations. The definitions of “additional location” and “branch campus” for the voluntary Regents institutional accreditation purposes are contained in Section 4-1.2 of Rules of the Board of Regents. The definitions used for voluntary accreditation conform to the requirements of the U.S. Department of Education.
Submission of NYSED 8 is sufficient in the case of an extension site. A separate proposal must be submitted for an extension center and a branch campus. To request approval to operate an extension center, use the “Approval of Extension Centers and Interinstitutional Centers” application form. For a branch campus, please refer to the “Program Registration Procedures” document. Please note, public colleges should use the appropriate SUNY or CUNY forms and submit the proposal to the central administration of SUNY or CUNY.
No, it is not a headcount but a cumulative total of enrollments in all courses at the proposed center during the academic year. Thus, a person enrolled in two classes would be counted as two course registrations.
No. All courses which an institution offers for credit at an extension site or at an extension center must be part of a registered program at an institution’s principal center or branch campus and are subject to the standards of all registered curricula (section 54.3 of regulations).
No. No complete programs may be offered at a site or center on any schedule. The institution needs to be able to identify a course or courses that will never be offered at the center for the location to be categorized as a center. Offering a whole program at an off-campus location constitutes establishment of a branch campus. Establishment of a branch campus requires master plan amendment and registration of programs and, potentially, Governor’s approval for a public institution, charter amendment for an independent college, or Commissioner’s consent to a proprietary college’s certificate of incorporation with the Department of State. However, see questions 12 and 13, below, for possible waivers of master plan amendment approval.
No. Coursework offered by distance education from the main campus is judged as available at the extension location and, therefore, cannot be counted as physically taken at the home campus. If a complete program is available at the extension location, it is a branch campus.
No. Advertisements must clearly specify the course or courses for each program offered in part at a site or center that must be taken at the main campus or at a branch campus that offers the registered program.
Yes. For each student studying at an extension site or center, the institution must be able to document that the student has taken some course work toward his or her degree at the main campus or a branch campus that offers the registered program. Failure to do so can result in a TAP disallowance.
Yes. The reason for a proposed change of address can range from a routine matter such as 911 renumbering to a substantial relocation potentially requiring Commissioner’s approval, master plan amendment, and/or charter amendment. For an independent college, the President or the President’s designee for program registration matters of an independent college or proprietary should send a letter to the Office of College and University Evaluation (OCUE) prior to the address change, requesting approval of a new address/location for the extension center or branch. Public colleges should send the request to the appropriate central administration of SUNY/CUNY. SUNY/CUNY will forward the request to OCUE following its own review. OCUE will notify the institution if additional information is needed in support of the request or if a canvass or site visit will be necessary.
Yes. The institution should notify the Department so that it can be deleted from the Inventory of Registered Programs. In the case of closure of a branch campus, the institution should contact OCUE well in advance of the closure to discuss matters such as accommodation of enrolled students and retention of student academic and financial aid records.
An institutional decision to cease operation of a branch campus does not terminate the institution’s master plan approval to operate that branch unless the Board of Regents votes to rescind such approval. A subsequent institutional decision to reopen the same branch campus would not require Regents action to approve a master plan amendment if the programs to be offered were at the levels and the disciplinary areas already authorized. Reopening the branch would require registration review.
No. An institution may propose a branch campus at a location at which it has never offered courses.
The Department will consider waivers of the requirement for a branch campus if a certificate will enroll and train only the employees of a specific business or industry and the institution can demonstrate that the business or industry has identified a need for the certificate program.
The Department will routinely waive the requirement for a branch campus if the off-campus certificate program consists of fewer than 24 credits.
No. State law requires an out-of-State institution that wishes to establish a limited and temporary location in New York State by offering credit-bearing coursework, but less than a complete degree program, to obtain permission of the Regents prior to commencing operation in the State. An institution seeking Regents permission to operate would need to submit a proposal which describes the home institution and contains the information requested in the following section of the “Program Registration Procedures” document: Proposal Cover Page, Application for Registration of a New Program, and the general planning information, abstract, and financial tables of the Amendment of the Institution’s Master Plan section.
An out-of-state institution that wishes to offer one or more complete degree programs or complete non-credit program leading to licensure in a field licensed by the State Education Department (for example, nursing, massage, acupuncture) would need prior approval to establish a new campus in New York State. The institution would be subject to the procedures described in “Opening a College in New York State” section of this website.
No. One or more complete residential courses must be taken at a main campus or branch campus for an off-campus location to be classified as a site or center.
No. They must take the rest of the program at a main campus or branch campus.