Communicating Northwestern's values and expectations.
University Policies Overview
Our University Policies are meant to guide and enable our community members to uphold Northwestern’s values and expectations.
Below are guidelines to develop or update a University Policy.
For guidance on developing or updating a policy, please contact the Policy Review Committee at policy@northwestern.edu.
New policy needs may arise in a number of ways, including the need to ensure coordinated compliance with applicable laws and regulations, promoting operational efficiencies, enhancing the University's mission, or reducing institutional risk. The Responsible Office, which is accountable for the accuracy and implementation of the policy, typically takes the lead on new policy development. Before developing a policy, please contact the Policy Review Committee.
Administrative updates include minor changes to an existing University Policy that do not substantively change policy content. This includes formatting the policy to the Standard Policy Template, correcting a typo, updating contact information, updating titles, and updating URLs and sources. To make an administrative policy update, please contact the Policy Review Committee.
Substantive Revisions include edits to existing policy content that go beyond administrative updates and therefore must be reviewed and approved by the Policy Review Committee. The Responsible Office should notify the Policy Review Committee (PRC) when a policy needs substantive revisions.