Overview of the online course development process

New online courses at the University of Nevada, Reno will follow a standard development process. All new online courses will be required to meet the University Standards for Digital Instruction.

Course development process. First Course proposal is submitted and approved. Then Course development team is assigned. Then Faculty member completes online training, develops and builds course in WebCampus. Then Course is reviewed using the University Standards for Digital Instruction. Finally Course is finalized and approved to be offered online.

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Online course proposal and approval process

Before an online course can be developed, it must first be proposed and approved by multiple stakeholders. To submit a course for proposal, faculty members or department representatives complete and submit the Online Course Approval Request Form in Curriculog.

The deadlines for submitting online course proposals are below:

Upcoming academic semesters are listed with corresponding proposal submittal dates.
Course to be offered for the first time: Proposal must be submitted no later than...
Spring semester June 15
Summer semester October 15
Fall semester November 15

Interested in developing a course sooner? Contact the Office of Digital Learning for more information and to discuss timelines.

Getting approval

The course proposal will need to be approved by the department head, the college dean, the Office of Digital Learnin, the Provost’s Office, and the Vice Provost of Online Education. The following will be among the details taken into consideration in approving proposals:

  • Projected enrollment: Will this course serve a large number of students?
  • Bottleneck status: Will creating online offerings of this course help to alleviate bottlenecks where students are unable to progress in their programs until they complete this course?
  • Resources available: Are there adequate Office of Digital Learning staff and resources available to assist with this course development for the target semester proposed?

Please contact the Office of Digital Learning for more information on this form.

Online course development process

The new online course development process will consist of three main steps:

  1. Course planning and designing
  2. Course development and building
  3. Quality assurance course review

Course Planning and Designing includes Faculty Course Developer (FCD) completes online course design training. Then the FCD begins planning the course. Course Development and Building includes FCD develops course materials, including lecture content, activities, assignments, and exams. Then the FCD builds course in WebCampus. Quality Assurance Review includes the Digital Learning Quality Assurance Officer completing the official course reviewFaculty Course Developers may choose to develop their course on their own, or with the assistance of a development team from ODL’s Instructional Design & Educational Technology (IDET) team.

In addition to benefiting from the guidance and expertise of experienced online course design professionals, FCDs who develop their asynchronous online course with an IDET development team may be eligible for a development stipend of up to $1000 per credit.

Learn more about the IDET Asynchronous Online Course Development Process.

Questions?

If you’d like to know more about the new online course development process, or have questions, please contact the Office of Digital Learning.