Charter

The Graduate Curriculum Committee reviews and approves proposals for new courses and programs, and for changes to existing courses and programs. It also oversees the multidisciplinary PhD and recommends general policy changes related to courses and curriculum to the Graduate Faculty Committee.

1. Membership. The committee is composed of the following members:
   1. Seven faculty elected from among the Graduate Faculty from the Divisions of Arts and Humanities, Natural Sciences, Professions, and Social Sciences. At least one faculty member shall serve from each of these four Divisions, and not more than one shall serve from any one department or non-departmentalized school or college. No member may serve more than two consecutive terms or portions thereof. Elected members of the committee should reflect the range of disciplinary competencies in the University and represent the colleges insofar as the size of the committee allows.
   2. one graduate student member appointed annually by the Student Association. The student member must be a currently enrolled graduate student.
   3. the Dean of the Graduate School or designee, ex-officio and non-voting.
      
      The Graduate Curriculum Committee has the authority to declare vacant the seat of those committee members who fail to attend three (3) regular meetings in an academic year.
2. Chair.
   The Chair of the Graduate Curriculum Committee also serves on the Graduate Faculty Committee.
   
   The Graduate Curriculum Committee elects its Chair for the following year from among its Faculty membership at its March meeting.
3. Functions.
   1. Review and approve proposals for new graduate credit courses and for modifications to existing courses.
   2. Review and approve proposals for new graduate programs and for modifications to existing graduate programs.
   3. Within the provisions of the University’s regulations and practices, establish procedures for reviewing courses and programs, and communicate those procedures clearly through the Graduate School’s website.
   4. Make recommendations to Graduate Faculty Committee for general policy changes related to courses and curriculum that would affect all programs. The committee may make such recommendations on its own initiative, at the request of the Graduate Faculty Committee, or at the request of UWM Administration of the Graduate School.
   5. Oversee the Multidisciplinary Committee-Directed Ph.D. program. The Graduate Curriculum Committee reviews and approves applications for the Multidisciplinary Committee-Directed Ph.D. programs, using its best judgment on the academic merit of the proposed multidisciplinary program. The committee and the Dean of the Graduate School must satisfy themselves that the proposed program cannot be carried out within an established doctoral program. The committee must further approve the membership of the student’s supervisory committee, guided by considerations of the committee members’ expertise in proposed areas of study and their commitment to the student’s program.