Elements of a Course Record

A course at Stanford University is a class that is taught and graded, and that contributes to a student's major and general education requirements. Stanford offers a wide variety of courses, including lecture courses, discussion sections, seminars, practicums, and colloquiums.

The two required courses below provide essential knowledge for staff new to managing curriculum at Stanford:

Intro to Curriculum Management (CMS-0100) [pre-requisite for CMS-0101]
Intro to Coursedog (CMS-0101)

Course Catalog Description

The most important part of the Course Catalog is the collection of course descriptions. They guide students to the courses they need to enroll in, but they also serve as an archive for data-mining, credit transfer, and accreditation.

A course description is a short, content-filled statement which informs a student about the subject matter, approach, breadth, and applicability of the course. A description should be about 100 words maximum, providing students with what they need to know for planning their programs. The description is not a marketing piece, nor a syllabus.

A course description appears in the Stanford Bulletin Explore Courses, Axess, and MedCatalog. Students also need to be able to tell prospective Universities and employers what the course was about in a short, content-filled way. This also dovetails with the University’s plans for an online transcript that will be linked to the course description for the rest of a student's life.

For more information on how to write a course description, consult the Office of the University Registrar's, Bulletin Style and Rules.

Terms/Quarters Offered

AUT	Autumn
WIN	Winter
SPR	Spring
SUM	Summer
NOTTHIS	Not given this year
NOTTHISALT	Not given this year, alternate years
*NOTNEXT	Not given next year
*NOTNEXTALT	Not given next year, alternate years
OCCASIONAL	Offered occasionally

*If a course will not be offered in the next year, it must also be coded with the quarter(s) it will be offered in the current year, or it will not be scheduled.

Unit of Credit

The unit field shows minimum and maximum units, which are most often the same. If the number of units is variable, for example 3-4, the course description and syllabus must differentiate the work required for each of the unit values. For example: 3 units lecture only; 4 units includes project. Courses must be offered for a minimum of 1 unit.

Stanford University defines unit values as follows:

Every unit for which credit is given is understood to represent approximately three hours of actual work per week for the average student. Thus in lecture or discussion work, for 1 unit of credit, one hour per week may be allotted to the lecture or discussion and two hours for preparation or subsequent reading and study. Where the time is wholly occupied with studio, field, or laboratory work or in the classroom work of conversation classes, three full hours per week through one quarter are expected of the student for each unit of credit; but, where such work is supplemented by systematic outside reading or experiment under the direction of the instructor, a reduction may be made in the actual studio, field, laboratory, or classroom time as seems just to the department.

Repeatable for Credit

When it is stated that a course can be repeated for credit, it means that a student may enroll in the course up to the "Total Completions Allowed" and for the "Total Units Allowed" as entered in Course Catalog in PeopleSoft. For example, if a 5-unit course can be taken 3 times, 3 is entered in “Total Completions Allowed: and 15 in “Total Units Allowed.” The default values are 99 total completions allowed and 999 total units allowed. Courses in which content varies from quarter to quarter or year to year are typically repeatable for credit, as are many activity and service learning courses.

Grading Basis

The grading basis is the data element of a course that controls both what type of grading students can choose and what types of grades instructors can enter. The grading basis is designated by the Course Director, taking into account the student population(s) for which the course is intended. Graduate level class offered by the School of Medicine must select one of the following options:

MED - Medical School MD grades (+/-) only
MOP - Medical Option (+/- for MD students, option of Letter or CR/NC for graduate and undergraduate students)
MED S/NC - Medical School MD grades (+/-) for MD students, Satisfactory/No Credit for graduate and undergraduate students.
The following grading basis are for undergraduate courses ONLY. MD or Grad courses must select from the above MED options.
- RLT - Letter grade only
- ROP - Letter grade or S/NC
- RSN - S/NC only

Component Types

Component Type

Abbreviation

Definition

Evaluated Online

Activity

ACT

A course of study devoted to participation in or performance of some form of physical activity. Knowledge associated with the proper performance of the activity is presented and discussed. Examples include physical fitness courses. May be used for graduate lecture series courses where students do little or no work. Maximum 8 ACT units count to an undergraduate degree.

Clerkship

CLK

Medical School clinical rotations

Colloquium

COL

A usually academic meeting at which specialists deliver addresses on a topic or on related topics and then answer questions relating to them.

Yes

Discussion

DIS

Section of a larger course, designed solely for group discussion. Discussions are typically non-credit bearing, linked to a credit bearing course, and not stand-alone courses (see seminar). Discussion sections generally contain fewer students than the course to which they are linked.

Yes

Seminar

SEM

A more interactive and typically smaller course forum than a lecture. Content may include student presentations and discussions based on literature, theory, problems, or research. Enrollment is generally limited to allow for greater focus on students’ critical reflection and exchange of ideas. Lecture is not the dominant pedagogical activity of the course, as in a LEC component course.

Yes

Research Seminar

RES

A group of advanced students studying under a professor with each student doing original research and all exchanging results through reports and discussions.

Yes

Individual Study

INS

Courses of an independent individual nature. Students complete individualized and often self-paced plans of study. The instructor and the student negotiate the details of the plan of study.

Lab Section

LBS

A course of study related to a laboratory (LAB) which is typically a non-credit supplement to instruction in a traditional classroom section (similar to discussions). As such, lab sections generally contain fewer students than the course to which they are linked.

Laboratory

LAB

Courses meet in a defined physical setting (i.e., laboratory) for the purpose of the application of methods and principles of a discipline.

Yes

Lecture

LEC

A course of study where instruction occurs in a traditional classroom setting. Lectures almost always have larger class sizes than seminar. Lecture courses may include a variety of pedagogies (discussion, class presentation) but are predominantly lecture oriented. If a course is more discussion or non-lecture dominated, then seminar (SEM) may be a more applicable course component.

Yes

Practicum

PRC

A course of study designed especially for the preparation of teachers and clinicians that involves the supervised practical application of previously studied theory.

Yes

Foreign Language

LNG

Courses typically offered by the language center with a focus on teaching a foreign language, or English as a foreign language.

Yes

SU Intro Dialogue – Sophomore

IDS

Introductory courses offered to second-year undergraduates allowing them to work with faculty members in intimate and focused settings.

Yes

SU Intro Seminar – Freshman

ISF

Introductory courses offered to first-year undergraduates allowing them to work with faculty members in intimate and focused settings.

Yes

SU Intro Seminar – Sophomore

ISS

Introductory courses offered to second-year undergraduates allowing them to work with faculty members in intimate and focused settings.

Yes

Sophomore College Seminar

SCS

Introductory courses offered to second-year undergraduates allowing them to work with faculty members in intimate and focused settings, introducing them to a variety and richness of academic topics, methods, and issues which lie at the core of particular disciplines. Offered prior to the beginning of Autumn Quarter.

Thesis/Dissertation

T/D

Coursework related directly to dissertation or thesis.

Workshop

WKS

A usually brief intensive educational program for a relatively small group of people that focuses on techniques and skills in a particular field. This course of study provides a creative forum for a collaborative and interactive learning experience between faculty and all enrolled students.

Curriculum Management

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Elements of a Course Record