Your institution is always evolving.
Substantive Change
HLC’s substantive change process ensures that our members continue to offer high-quality education as they evolve and grow. To do so, institutions apply for approval or notify us when they make certain changes to their academic offerings or operations.
Track submitted change requests in Canopy.* Accreditation Liaison Officers and chief executive officers can track their institution’s submitted change applications in Canopy. After logging in, go to “In-Process and Upcoming Reviews” to see the status of your pending applications.
*Certificate program applications and screening form entries are not listed in Canopy. Contact [email protected] with questions about these submissions.
When to Apply for Approval or Notify HLC
HLC cannot approve changes retroactively. If your institution has made a change without the necessary approval from HLC, submit a change request as soon as possible.
Institutions on sanction, Show-Cause Order or provisional certification status are subject to additional substantive change requirements.
Educational Programs
New Educational Programs
Offering a new degree or certificate program.
New: Reduced-credit bachelor’s degree program application and guidelines
Changes to Existing Programs
Changing clock or credit hours, term length, program content, method of delivery, customized pathways or suspension of a program.
Programs Offered Through Contractual Arrangements
Initiating, modifying or renewing contractual arrangements.
Pell-Eligible Prison Education Programs
Offering a new Pell-eligible prison education program (PEP) or changing the modality of an approved PEP.
Locations and Campuses
Additional Locations
Opening, closing, relocating or reclassifying an additional location. Joining or expanding access to HLC’s Notification Program for Additional Locations.
Branch Campuses
Opening, closing, relocating or reclassifying a branch campus.
Modalities
Distance or Correspondence Education
Initiating or expanding courses and/or programs offered through distance education or correspondence education.
Competency-Based Education
Offering academic programs through competency-based education (CBE), including direct assessment, hybrid or credit-based CBE.
Mission or Structure
Mission or Student Body
Changing the institution’s mission, educational objectives or the character or nature of its student body.
Control, Structure or Organization
Undergoing a transaction, such as a merger or acquisition, or other change that may affect the institution’s corporate control, structure or organization.
Provisional Plans and Teach Outs
In certain situations — closing a campus or additional location, ending a program, ceasing operations, or other scenarios — an institution is required to obtain prior HLC approval of their plans for ensuring students can complete their education. See Provisional Plans and Teach Outs for more information.
Consortial Arrangements
HLC does not review consortial arrangements, but institutions may need to notify HLC or obtain prior approval for other substantive changes that are related to a consortial arrangement. For example, this may include offering a new educational program or providing instruction at a new additional location.
Forms and Resources
Screening Forms
- Contractual Arrangement Screening Form
- New Certificate Program Screening Form
- New Degree Program Screening Form
- Pell-Eligible Prison Education Program Screening Form
- Screening Form for Changes to Existing Programs
Applications
Educational Programs
- Change in Length of Term Affecting Allocation of Credit
- Change in Program Content
- Clock/Credit Hour Conversion or Substantial Increase or Decrease in Clock or Credit Hours Required for a Program
- New Certificate Program
- New Educational Program
- Pell-Eligible Prison Education Program
- Programs Offered Through Contractual Arrangements
- Reduced-Credit Bachelor’s Degree Program
Locations and Campuses
Modalities
- Competency-Based Education (CBE) Program
- Correspondence Education
- Distance-Delivered Courses
- Distance Education
Mission or Structure
How to Properly Declare Program Activity
- New degree programs: Complete the New Degree Program Screening Form.
- New certificate programs: Complete the Certificate Program Screening Form.
- New or renewed contractual arrangements: Complete the Contractual Arrangement Screening Form.
- Certain changes to existing degree or certificate programs: Complete the Screening Form for Changes to Existing Academic Programs.
- Official HLC letter in support of the information the institution has declared: Complete the Official Letter Request Form.
Procedures and Guidelines
- Additional Location Confirmation Visit
- Campus Evaluation Visit
- Change of Control, Structure or Organization
- Change Visit
- Evaluating Reduced-Credit Bachelor’s Degree Programs
- On-site Visit
- Personally Identifiable Information Submitted to HLC
- Provisional Plans and Teach Outs
Training Resources
The institution should carefully consider whether documents containing personally identifiable information (PII) must be included in a substantive change application. If the documents must be included for evaluative purposes, the institution must redact the PII where possible. If redaction of the PII will interfere with the evaluative value of the document, the institution is expected to clearly identify the document as containing PII (for example, through a cover page or prominent notation on the document). Institutions are not expected to redact or identify information or documents where the only PII included is employee or Board member names and work contact information.
PII is any information about an individual that allows the individual to be specifically identified. This includes, but is not limited to: name, address, telephone number, birthday, email, social security number, bank information, etc. A document does not include PII if personal information is de-identified (for example, student financial receivables without student names or bank routing information) or is provided in the aggregate (for example, data on faculty qualifications). See HLC’s PII Guidelines for more information.
Review Processes
Substantive change reviews are conducted by HLC staff or peer reviewers in one of four processes, depending on the type and complexity of the change:
- Desk Review
- Change Panel
- Change Visit
- Change of Control Evaluation
Generally, an institution may withdraw a substantive change application at any time before a Desk Review, Change Panel, or Change Visit occurs. See Substantive Change Review Processes for details about withdrawing an application.
Following the review, an HLC decision-making body, or in some cases HLC staff, will take final action to approve or deny the request. Approved additional locations and branch campuses, and approved applications for Change of Control, Structure or Organization, may also require a follow-up review after approval.
Review Fees
HLC charges institutions a fee for reviewing substantive change applications. The fee varies depending on the type of review an application requires.
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