University Council on Graduate Study Minutes
Tuesday, May 13, 2025
The April meeting minutes were approved with 12 in favor, 3 abstentions. Three members arrived after the minutes were approved.
The first presentation was a report on the English Language Institute (ELI) English Placement Test (EPT) pilot from Vice Provost Godley and the Director of the ELI, Dr. Dawn McCormick. Initial results of the pilot were positive, with first year GPAs for international graduate and undergraduate students (both those who did and did not enroll in English language support classes) comparable or higher than prior years. There were no concerns with continuing the pilot for another year while the related university policy (AC07) is in the decommissioning process so that it can be updated.
Academic Policy Review
Credential Overlap Regulation
The Credential Overlap Regulation was presented by VP Godley for discussion. The policy addresses limitations of the prior policy on newer kinds of graduate programs, such as stackable credentials and accelerated undergraduate to graduate programs Council members raised questions about the sequential pathways language and how the three different undergraduate to graduate scenarios might be better clarified in the policy. Council members also asked for clarification about how the revised advanced standing policy relates to the revised credential overlap, and how schools might incorporate the two policies most efficiently for their unique needs. The proposal was recommended for approval pending clarification of the language around undergraduate to graduate credit overlap, 14 in favor, 2 abstain.
Academic Program Proposals
The School of Education presented a modification to eight EdD programs to reduce required credits from 18 to 10 and to update the curriculum. The programs impacted are Education Leadership, EdD Education Policy and Social Change, EdD; Health and Physical Activity, EdD; Higher Education, EdD; Out-of-School Learning, EdD; Special Education, EdD; Science, Technology, Engineering & Mathematics (STEM), EdD; and Urban Education, EdD. The reduced number of overall credits (from 60 to 52) is more in line with typical practice across other programs in the SOE and would align faculty teaching hours with the requirements outlined in the Faculty Union CBA. The credits will be removed from summer dissertation advising, which was previously uncompensated time for faculty and inconsistent across majors. The program modifications will reduce tuition costs for students and add professional development opportunities to better support students as they prepare to graduate.
Council members asked for clarification about the academic terms in which credits would be reduced, and about the research opportunities for students with this modification. The proposal was recommended for approval with 16 in favor, 2 abstain.
The School of Public and International Affairs presented a modification to their Masters in International Development program to reduce the required credits from 48 to 36 and to reduce the time to degree from four to three terms. The modification will bring the highly ranked program into closer alignment with peer institutions and will allow for faculty resources to be better focused on strengths and research interests. The hope is that the modification will help to reverse a 10-year decline in enrollment by bringing down costs and making the program timeline more attainable for new students. Council members did not have any questions or concerns about the proposal. The proposal was recommended for approval with 17 in favor, 1 abstention.
The School of Medicine presented a proposal to develop a cooperative degree in Precision Regenerative Medicine with the Royal College of Surgeons in Ireland (RCSI). The program will offer a PhD and will admit a select group of 10 students each year. Each cohort will spend their first year taking classes at Pitt and then transition between Dublin and Pittsburgh for research and elective courses in subsequent years. Funding will be covered by the SOM in year one, and then by the institution in which the student is completing their research in years 2-5. Students will be heavily engaged with SOM and Bioengineering research in SSOE. This program will be the first of its kind for Pitt and presents an opportunity for future international partnerships. Council members were interested in ways that their own schools might partner with this program and raised questions about the transfer process between the two schools and whether there was a structure in place to ensure that students move between the schools as intended. Council members also inquired about the funding model and whether SOM felt that it was a viable plan in the current funding environment. The proposal was recommended for approval with 14 in favor, 1 abstain.
Announcements
There will be a June meeting, Tuesday 6/10 from 3 to 5 pm on Teams.
The meeting adjourned at 4:45 pm.
Attendance
- Dietrich School of Arts and Sciences - Grad Faculty - Peng Liu
- Dietrich School of Arts and Sciences - Grad Faculty - Jonathan Woon
- Office of the Provost - Chair - Amanda Godley
- Office of the Provost - Staff - Courtney Syskowski
- Office of the Registrar, Observer - Staff - Jonathan Helm
- School of Dental Medicine - Grad Faculty - Dobrawa Napierala
- School of Education - Grad Student - Gerard Dorve-Lewis
- School of Education - Grad Faculty - Michael Gunzenhauser
- School of Health and Rehabilitation Sciences - Grad Student - Abdulmohsen Alroumi
- School of Health and Rehabilitation Sciences - Grad Faculty - Mark DeRuiter
- School of Health and Rehabilitation Sciences - Grad Faculty - Michael Dickey
- School of Medicine - Grad Student - Brooke Dresden
- School of Medicine - Grad Faculty - Arjumand Ghazi
- School of Medicine - Grad Faculty - Saleem Khan
- School of Nursing - Grad Student - Myeong-ga Cho
- School of Nursing - Grad Faculty - Elizabeth Schlenk
- School of Pharmacy - Grad Student - Christina Kazarov
- School of Pharmacy - Faculty - Kerry Empey
- Swanson School of Engineering - Grad Faculty - Bryan Brown
Additional attendees: Stephanie Hoogendoorn, OTP; Dawn McCormick, ELP; Rachel Robertson, SOE; Lisa Alfredson, SPIA; Carissa Slotterback, SPIA