If an institution delivers face-to-face instruction at a location geographically apart from an institution's main campus, and if a student is required to be at the location to receive instruction, then the location is an off-campus instructional site.

What is considered an Off-Campus Instructional Sites?

Examples of Off-Campus Instructional sites:

• The institution offers a face-to-face or hybrid credit-bearing course that occurs at a location where students are present.
• The institution offers a non-credit bearing workshop that awards continuing educational units (CEUs) at a location where students are present.

Non-Examples of Off-Campus Instructional sites:

• The institution offers instruction at a location, but students can only participate virtually/at a distance
• Clinical/Internship Locations (this is not traditional classroom instruction)
• Conference Locations (this is not instruction, unless it is formally part of an institutions continuing education program offerings and the institution is providing instruction)
• Exchange Program sites (instruction is not being provided by the USG institution but rather by the cooperating institution)

Types of Off-Campus Instructional Sites

An off-campus instructional site can be categorized as follows:

• an institutional site that is part of the institution's facilities inventory (e.g., if it is in space owned or leased for exclusive occupancy by the institution) or
• an external site in space not leased for exclusive occupancy (e.g., high school, hospital, military base, etc.)

For more information, please review 2.3.7 of the Academic Affairs Handbook, BOR Policy 3.3.2, Academic Approval for Off-Campus Instructional Sites, and BOR Policy 9.3, Facilities Approval for Off-Campus Instructional Sites.

Institutions seeking to deliver courses or programs at an institutional/external site must notify the USG Office of Academic Affairs at least 60 days prior to implementation. If at least 50% of a degree/major/certificate will be administered at the location, USG approval is required.

New Institutional Sites

Institutions seeking to add a new instructional site in space controlled and exclusively occupied by the institution should submit the Off-Campus Instructional Site form on the Academic Programs Submission Portal in Smartsheet and contact USO Real Estate and Facilities to request the associated lease/acquisition. If approved, the site's building and room data must be added to the institution's facilities inventory in Banner and will not appear in the external site database. For any course sections subsequently scheduled in space at the new site, the section location code should be listed on Banner>SSASECT>Session Code as A = "Section on campus in assigned space" and the building and room codes identified on the meeting locations tab.

Note that Board of Regents approval is required to establish a campus, center, or consortial site. If Academic Affairs and Facilities determine this falls into that category, the approval process will take longer.

Institutions may wish to use the below paper forms; request for approval to the USG must be submitted through Smartsheet

• Request for a Branch Campus, Center, or Consortium

External Sites

Both notification and approval requests for new external sites should be submitted via the Off-Campus Instructional Site form on the Academic Programs Submission Portal in Smartsheet to be issued an external site code and listed in the USG External Site Report. External site designation is typical for space not controlled and/or exclusively occupied by the institution (e.g., classrooms/spaces shared with the host entity pursuant to terms in an MOU). Once the external site code is issued, all building(s) and rooms where instruction may occur should be added to Banner>STVBLDG and cross-walked to the approved external site code via Banner>SOAXREF>RGTBLDG. Then, for any course section where instruction may occur at the site, the section location code should be listed on Banner>SSASECT>Session Code as either D = "Off Campus, in assigned space" or E = "At a specific off campus site with unassigned space." In either case, building information must be identified on the meeting locations tab; if "D" is used then room information must also be identified.

Study Abroad Locations

Most study abroad locations would not classify as an institutional site or an external site. If there is not a specified single classroom for the majority of the course (e.g., students meet in different locations), then it would not be considered an off-campus instructional site. Institutions seeking to establish a new study abroad location are encouraged to add the program/site to the Study Abroad directory at https://www.usg.edu/international_education/study_abroad/directory. For such study abroad courses in Banner, the section location code should be listed on Banner>SSASECT>Session Code as “B = Section with unassigned space.”

If you are unsure how to classify the new site, please contact the University System Office / Academic Affairs before proceeding.