Academic Master Plan 2024-2028

NJCU introduced the institution’s first Academic Master Plan in February 2024 as the next phase in the university’s commitment to its mission and refocus of its efforts around student success and ÃÛÌÒtv services.

seated commencement students

The 36-page Academic Master Plan (AMP) was designed by the Division of Academic Affairs and authored by the Office of the Provost with collaborative input provided by hundreds of members of the university community coming together during the Fall 2023 semester to articulate guidelines for NJCU’s academic portfolio. 

The shared governance process included four steps. The goals of the AMP were identified according to the results of the Mission Refresh Survey conducted in the Spring 2023 semester. The university community was then invited to complete a survey responding to the degree of priority for each of the goals as well as an opportunity to provide an open-ended response to each goal. Ninety participants completed the survey, and most of those responding ranked all goals as either highest or high priority. 

The survey was followed by an asynchronous town hall. The third step included a Gallery Walk to identify key organizational actions (KOAs) and key performance indicators (KPIs). The participants then identified strategies to achieve the KOAs and KPIs and the individuals responsible for the outcomes and financial implications of the plan. Finally, a university-wide Academic Master Plan workshop was held where the work conducted during the first three steps was focused on to finalize the AMP.

The plan addresses more than the formal curriculum for NJCU’s academic portfolio which currently features 143 for-credit programs: 59 undergraduate, 31 graduate, two doctoral, 27 minors, 23 certificates, and one specialized program. Rather, it includes goals that address the shared lived experiences of the university community.

Notably, the AMP is driven by four strategic pillars: Student Success and Retention, Community Engagement, Culture of Continuous Improvement, and Financial Stewardship and Responsibility.

Furthermore, three guiding principles of strategic planning drove the development of the plan’s goals: mission, market, and margins. The AMP emphasizes the need to prepare NJCU’s students for successful careers upon graduation while also emphasizing the need to invest in resources to ÃÛÌÒtv student success for retention and program completion.

marketing department graduates

The three guiding principles of the AMP helped spearhead the 10 goals which will ultimately drive the implementation. These 10 essential components are:

I. Prioritize academic programs that provide jobs where students can use their degrees;

II. Emphasize civic and community engagement within all academic disciplines;

III. Ensure a community of care for all NJCU students, including faculty and staff involvement in student success;

IV. Ensure that principles of justice, equity, and inclusion are taught and applied across all curricular and co-curricular programs and services;

V. Ensure that every student can be mentored through research, internships, or other educational experiences;

VI. Ensure that environmental conditions are optimized for teaching and learning;

VII. Ensure that curricular content and degree offerings are responsive to the needs of the labor market;

VIII. Strengthen and develop academic programming that demonstrably provides opportunities for students to attain economic ÃÛÌÒtv;

IX. Invest in academic programming that yields persistent and high levels of enrollment, retention, student learning, applicable licensing scores, and career placement;

X. Ensure long-term financial sustainability of the academic portfolio.