Dear Graduate Coordinators and Program Directors,
This memo outlines essential Spring 2026 requirements for instructor assignments, updated course instructor roles, variable credit course management, and mandatory Credit Expectations Agreements for graduate research courses, with all tasks to be completed by August 29, 2025.
Credit Expectation Agreement
To comply with Academic Regulation 27, all graduate research (700-800) courses must use a Credit Expectations Agreement for each enrollment term. In other words, this agreement does not carry over between semesters and establishes clear expectations between the faculty member assigning the grade and each graduate student regarding the work required. Key requirements include:
- A new Credit Expectations Agreement must be completed for each term a student enrolls, cover that term only, and be finalized no later than the end of the second week of classes.
- The provided template serves as a baseline and may be adapted to meet program-specific and individual student needs while maintaining term-specific applicability.
- Separate Agreements are required for each student enrolled in research credits.
- Faculty should provide timely feedback throughout the term. If a student is not meeting the academic expectations outlined in this agreement, feedback should be documented and accompanied by a clear plan for improvement. This may occur before, at, or after the mid-semester evaluation, as the mid-semester review alone may not be sufficient to support student progress.
Instructor Assignment Requirements:
Prior to January 23, 2026, ensure instructor assignments are validated and Credit Expectations Agreements are completed as outlined above. If you have questions or need assistance with instructor assignments, please contact the Office of the Registrar. If you need assistance with the Credit Expectations Agreement, please contact the Graduate School.
- Assign Instructors in the Maintain Schedule of Classes. Instructors must be assigned to these courses using the Maintain Schedule of Classes feature in myWSU.
- The Office of the Registrar provides detailed instructions for department and campus schedulers to add instructors to Maintain Schedule of Classes.
- If instructors are assigned prior to students registering (and students select the correct instructor), no additional steps are necessary.
- Use a myWSU Enrollment Request. If instructors are not assigned before students register or if the student makes an error, submit a myWSU Enrollment Request to associate enrolled students with instructors.
- Instructions for this process can be found here: Enrollment Request Instructions.
- Complete Data Validation: To ensure all assignments are accurate, use one of the following validation tools:
- myWSU Class Roster: Navigate to Main Menu > Curriculum Management > Class Roster > Class Roster.
- OBIEE Dashboards: Navigate to Dashboards > WSU Data Validation > Teacher Assignment and go to the tab called Individually Taught Classes. Alternatively, you may use this direct link instead (authentication required).
With either method, each enrolled student should appear on a separate row with an assigned instructor. If the “Instructor” field is blank, follow the instructions for submitting an Enrollment Request.
Updated Course Instructor Roles
Instructors should be assigned roles consistent with workload responsibility and evaluation requirements. For reference, full role definitions and guidance are available in the Scheduler Policy on Teaching Effort Reporting.
- Primary Instructor (PI): Always used for the individual with primary responsibility for the course. Graduate students teaching full sections independently are also assigned PI.
- Supervising Instructor (SI): Used when a faculty member oversees multiple sections or instructors. This role does not generate course evaluations.
- Teaching Assistant (TA): Reserved only for assistants who do not carry responsibility for course grades or overall course management.
Variable Credit Courses
Variable credit graduate courses (e.g., V 1–3) must have credit fixed for each section in a given term using the Notes field in myWSU. If there are compelling reasons to allow multiple credit options within the same course, programs should create an additional section of the course with a different credit value and corresponding meeting time. This ensures credit reporting is accurate and consistent across the WSU system.
Adherence to these policies is critical supporting graduate students’ academic success.
Sincerely,
