Guide: Preparing for the Guide Editing Window (2027 Publication)
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Context
In lieu of live training sessions, the following information may help you prepare for the 2027 Guide publication editing window. Making edits to your Guide page has specific workflow processes. Refer to the following documents for information:
- Editing your Guide Page (this document differentiates between governed and non-governed content and its workflow approval process)
- Editing your Guide Page (Governed Content Tabs) (this document provides guidance and best practices on how information should be formatted on governed tabs)
- Editing your Guide Page (Non-Governed Content Tabs) (this document provides guidance on how information should be formatted on non-governed content tabs)
The Provost's Office manages its own KnowledgeBase with instructions on how to use the Lumen Programs proposal system. Refer to the following documents for information:
Planning Changes
The edits to your Guide page require a multi-step approval process. To help you plan, keep the timeline below in mind. This timeline refers to governed content edits.
- Edits by Program (August to October): Start discussions with pertinent faculty or staff and work with your academic planner on Lumen Program proposal to start approval process.
- Department and School/College Governance Deadline (October to December): Approvals from the department and school/college occur; contact academic planner for specific deadlines.
- Provost's Office Deadline (March): Central campus (DAPIR and Graduate School) reviews proposals; offices may have recommendations or questions on proposals as they review.
If you are making changes to your Guide page's non-governed content tabs, contact your school/college Guide coordinator.
General Guidance
To help you plan for edits to your Guide page, consider the following recommendations.
Conduct a Yearly Review
Guide page(s) should be reviewed every year for accuracy. You should consider:
- Are there broken hyperlinks?
- Was the program's website or handbook updated, but not the Guide page?
- Are there deactivated (redbox) courses listed on the requirements tab that should be deleted?
- Is the information on the Guide page relatively static?
Follow Templates
The admissions, requirements and policies tabs have predefined tables or sections that must follow templates. The templates and descriptions of how these should be formatted are explained in the following links:
Consider your Audience
Guide pages should be written with an external audience in mind. The information should be written so that any reader can understand the content. Common questions to ask yourself to help with this include:
- Is the information in the admissions, requirements, and policies sections clearly written?
- Can readers decipher the materials required of an applicant?
- Can readers explain, at minimum, the structure of required courses, if not the exact courses?
- Are the minimum credits required accounted for in a course table?
- Does the writer use plain language (simple, concise, minimal jargon)?
Additional Recommendations
- Be sure all information on a program's Guide page reflects the information in the student handbook. They should not have contradictory statements.
- All programs must have details underneath the admissions table. Programs cannot simply provide a link to their website for more information.
- All programs need to have requirements. There can be a range of specificity for each program, but one must be able to articulate the programmatic structure and courses required of the degree.
- Check your curricular requirements table and policies section. Do they reflect each other? Do your policies reflect what the faculty do in practice?
- For example, programs cannot have a residence requirement of 24/30 credits, but also allow for 12 transfer credits in the policy section.