UMass Boston

Syllabus Guidelines

The following document is a guide to help ensure that your syllabus includes all the information required by university and system policies. As such, it includes information about various elements of a syllabus, including both required, recommended, and optional components. This guide is designed to help ensure that proposals move swiftly through governance and is not intended as a proscriptive document; the actual content, organization, design, and style of the syllabus remain the purview of the faculty member. Faculty can also add more elements to their syllabus if desired. 

 Course Number and Title (required)

 Semester, Time, Location (required)

Instructor’s Name (required)

 Contact Info (required): office location, email etc. You must use your UMB email for your syllabus, although you can link this to your personal email if you prefer.

 Office Hours (required): You must list at least three hours for every course you teach.

 Course description (required): In order to meet accreditation standards and to help students with transfer credits or graduate applications, the course description must provide a relatively detailed overview of the content of the course. The first paragraph of the description must exactly match the WISER description for the course. However, faculty can expand upon the WISER description on the syllabus.   

 Prerequisites and Gen Ed Status Statement (required where applicable)

 Course Objectives/Outcomes (recommended)

 Required Texts and Materials (required): make it clear whether materials must be purchased/rented or if they are made available for free and where they may be found (library reserves, Canvas etc.). For books, include full bibliographic entries and, if applicable, specify which edition is required. If no materials are required, the syllabus should state this. 

 Recommended Texts (optional)

 Grading Scheme (required): a clear listing of the percentage/point value (or equivalent) of each assessed element of the course.

 Grading Scale (optional): a listing of the percentage/point values (or equivalent) of each of the possible letter grades for the course.

 Course Requirements (required): a description of the expectations of the course, including types of assignments (papers, presentations, group projects, quizzes, exams etc.).  Each of these should have sufficient explanation for the student to know what is expected and how it will be assessed. If participation is graded, an explanation of how it will be assessed should be included.

 Class Schedule (required): meeting dates for the class with topics, assigned reading, due dates for assigned work and exam dates. This information can take any form—list, table, narrative—provided that expectations are clear.

 Late Work/Missed Work Statement (required)

 Attendance Policy (required): a clear and specific statement of how attendance affects the course grade, with delineation of what constitutes an excused absence and whether documentation will be required. More information about attendance is available here (https://www.umb.edu/registrar/policies/attendance/).

 Other Classroom Policies (recommended): regarding use of technology, respectful discussion, etc.

 Accommodations Statement (required):

The following statement may be copied and pasted directly from this document:

UMass Boston is committed to creating learning environments that are inclusive and accessible. If you have a personal circumstance that will impact your learning and performance in this class, please let me know as soon as possible, so we can discuss the best ways to meet your needs and the requirements of the course. If you have a documented disability, or would like guidance about navigating support services, contact the Ross Center for Disability Services by email (ross.center@umb.edu), phone (617-287-7430), or in person (Campus Center, UL Room 211). To receive accommodations, students must be registered with the Ross Center and must request accommodations each semester that they are in attendance at UMass Boston. For more information visit the Ross Center website (rosscenter.umb.edu). Please note that the Ross Center will provide a letter for your instructor with information about your accommodations only and not about your specific disability.

 Academic Integrity Statement (required):

This academic integrity statement may be copied directly or modified to suit the nature of the course. However, it must include a reference and link to the University Code of Conduct:

Education at UMass Boston is sustained by academic integrity. Academic integrity requires that all members of the campus community are honest, trustworthy, responsible, respectful, and fair in academic work at the university. As part of being educated here, students learn, exercise, increase, and uphold academic integrity. Academic integrity is essential within all classrooms, in the many spaces where academic work is carried out by all members of the UMass Boston community, and in our local and global communities where the value of this education fulfills its role as a public good. Students are expected to adhere to the Student Code of Conduct, including policies about academic integrity (https://www.umb.edu/life_on_campus/dean_of_students/student_conduct).

AI Statement (recommended)

At its October 2023 meeting, the Faculty Council recommended that all syllabi include one of two statements concerning the use or restriction of Artificial Intelligence (AI) tools in courses. The two possible statements suggested by the Faculty Council (Minutes for Monday, October 02, 2023, pp. 6-7) are:

  1. AI is prohibited: In this class, all work submitted by students must be generated by the students themselves, whether working individually or in groups. Students should not have another person or entity do the writing of any portion of an assignment; this includes hiring a person or a company to write assignments and using AI tools like ChatGPT. All work submitted must contain citations for any material that has been quoted or referenced. If students are unsure about whether or not a source is appropriate to use in the assignment, they should contact the instructor.
  2. AI is allowed with attribution: Use of AI tools, including ChatGPT, is permitted in this course on certain assignments [either detail assignments or types of assignments here, or clarify how they will know which]. To adhere to our scholarly values and to the Student Code of Conduct, students must cite any AI-generated material that informed their work; citations should include not only in-text citations and listing in the references, but also the full text of cited ChatGPT (or other Large Language Model (LLM) generator) as an appendix to the assignment. Using an AI tool to generate content without proper attribution qualifies as academic dishonesty. Students are also responsible for making sure that any AI generated text does not contain false or erroneous information. If students are unsure about whether or not a source is appropriate to use in the assignment, they should contact the instructor.

 Student Support (recommended)

The following statements may be copied and pasted directly from this document:

 WRITING CENTER: The University of Massachusetts Boston Writing Center provides free writing support to undergraduate and graduate students. The Writing Center believes that every writer benefits from supportive and generous interaction with a knowledgeable peer, both online and in-person, on their writing. As such, it works one-on-one with writers on all writing projects – whether personal, academic, or professional – at any stage. During individual writing sessions, trained undergraduate and graduate student consultants collaborate with writers on their goals and take into account academic and social contexts. The Writing Center also provides a variety of programming, including workshops and writing groups. To learn more about the Writing Center and its services or schedule an appointment visit the Writing Center Website (https://www.umb.edu/writingcenter).

SUBJECT TUTORING: Subject tutoring is available through Academic Support and the Center for Academic Excellence (www.academicsupport.umb.edu).

Health, Wellbeing, and Success (recommended)

The following statement may be copied and pasted directly from this document. Please note that university requirements may change based on public health advisories:

UMass Boston is a vibrant, multi-cultural, and inclusive institution committed to ensuring that all members of our diverse campus community are able to thrive and succeed. The university provides a wide variety of resources to support students’ overall success. As we continue to deal with the evolving impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic, these resources are more important than ever.

Unable to attend class on a specific date or participate in an exam or class requirement due to a religious observance? Contact the Dean of Students Office (www.umb.edu/deanofstudents).