As specified in the NSHE Handbook See Board of Regents Handbook, Title 4, Section 3.42.4 (a1) and required by the Northwest Commission of Colleges and Universities, UNLV is mandated to develop written standards for the minimum criteria required for part-time instructors. Further, under NSHE Title 4, Section 3.42.4 (a2), units are charged with putting in place written procedures for selecting part-time instructors that reflect the system and institution’s commitment to equal employment opportunity.

As such, academic units must develop, within one calendar year of this policy’s adoption, field-specific, written standards and procedures that indicate a) the minimum degree or credentials required for an instructor, and b) procedures by which instructors who lack those minimum requirements can demonstrate related competencies and achievements equivalent to a formal degree or credential. These written standards and procedures, must be approved by the Dean, and kept on file in the Dean’s Office. Similarly, all proof of credentials and/or supporting documentation must be filed in the Dean’s Office.

When mandating the level of degree or credentials necessary to teach a course, units will specify that the field must be directly relevant to the course. For instance, whereas someone with a Bachelor’s degree in Biology may be qualified to lead a lower-division biology laboratory section, this individual would not be an appropriate instructor for courses unrelated to life sciences, barring the demonstration of non-credential equivalencies. Graduate level instruction must follow the standards and guidelines set by the Graduate College for Graduate Faculty Status.

Units wishing to hire a part-time or contingent instructor without the minimum required degree or credentials must submit a signed Instructor Equivalency Appointment Request (IEAR) to the Dean, specifying the equivalencies that demonstrate the individual’s fitness to instruct the course(s).These IEARs must remain on file in the Dean’s Office.