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GC Guidance on 299 Course Syllabi

Graduate Council Guidance on Developing Syllabi for 299 Courses_112823

In August 2023, the UC Academic Council and Coordinating Committee on Graduate Affairs released guidance concerning faculty oversight of graduate-level independent study and thesis research courses (aka, 299 courses). This was followed by guidance from the Joint Senate-Administration Workgroup on the Future of UC Doctoral Programs. The link at the top of the page provides additional guidance from Graduate Council, specific to the UC Santa Cruz campus, as to practices that programs and faculty can apply to help clarify goals and the basis for evaluation of independent study and thesis research courses.

Graduate Council welcomes examples of syllabi that have been used successfully for 299 courses, so that these can be shared, modified, and adapted across campus. Developing these documents should help to improve mentoring, and also can avoid confusion as to how academic progress is defined and assessed. While we don't suggest a single document that can be used with all situations, there are common principles that help mentors to guide graduate students as they work towards completing their degrees. Please send examples to: gc@ucsc.edu with the subject line: “Example 299 syllabus.”

299 Syllabus Examples