ALA Faculty Portal
Tools, resources, and guidance for new course development at the Harvard Chan Advanced Learning Academy
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Overview
The Harvard Chan Advanced Learning Academy (ALA) welcomes opportunities to work with faculty to develop new courses that will be valuable to current and prospective learners. Because course development is resource-intensive, and your time is valuable, we strongly encourage you to review the playbooks in this portal carefully before submitting a proposal so that you understand the process and requirements.
When submitting a Stage 1 Proposal, you will be asked to provide an agenda aligned with one of the 3 course formats below. Please review the playbooks to determine which format best suits your course idea before starting a proposal.
Frontiers Courses
Frontiers courses are fully online, asynchronous courses (2–4 hours of faculty time; 8-12 hours of learner time) highlighting cutting-edge research and innovation. These courses involve 4 modules of lecture videos and reinforcement exercise, plus a Mini Capstone at the end that will receive auto-feedback. Frontiers align with a 0.625 credit course.
Fundamentals Courses
Fundamentals courses are fully online, asynchronous courses (6–8 hours of faculty time; 16-24 hours of learner time) that award a Certificate of Fundamentals. These courses involve 8 modules, with module reflection exercises in modules 1-7, and a Mini Capstone at the end. Fundamentals align with a 1.25 credit course.
Full Courses
Full Courses, sometimes called “Completion Courses”, are 18–20 hours of faculty time, typically online with live or blended components (occasionally on campus), and award a Certificate of Completion. These courses involve 12 modules plus 4 live synchronous modules of 90 minutes each or alternatively 16 asynchronous modules if no live sessions are needed, aligning with 2.5 credits.
ALA Portfolio
Strong new course proposals should be clearly differentiated from existing offerings. If you are not familiar with ALA programs, we recommend you view our Program Finder.
We also value courses that build toward a broader learner journey. ALA offers multi-course certificate pathways: completing 3 full courses (or the equivalent) earns a Certificate of Specialization, and completing 2 additional full courses (or the equivalent) earns an Advanced Certificate of Specialization. Our Certificate Pathways page provides further details.
Initial Course Proposal
The process of developing a new ALA course begins with an Stage 1 Proposal: a short-form submission used for internal review and early market assessment. This includes:
- A working title and brief course description
- The need for the course and how it differs from existing ALA, Harvard, or external offerings
- High-level learning objectives and learner outcomes
- The target audience, including sectors, roles, geography, prerequisites, and expected cohort size
- Proposed modality and format
- A high-level agenda, including the following components for each module:
- Module Title
- Segment Title: Topic to be discussed in 10-minute increments
- Segment Activity: Reinforcement activities for each segment (e.g. self-study activity, self-study mini lesson for reinforcement, quiz, assignment, group discussion with cohort, capstone, etc
- Instructor Name (if known)
- Special Requirements: Platforms, Software
- Early success indicators, such as target participants, completion expectations, and intended real-world application
Proposal Evaluation
Each proposal is assessed against the following criteria:
A. HSPH mission alignment and specialization fit — 10%
B. Evidence of need and market potential — 20%
C. Target audience alignment with Harvard Chan segments — 10%
D. Strategic fit, including clear progression to a Certificate of Specialization — 20%
E. Innovativeness and course differentiation relative to competitors — 10%
F. Positive financial contribution at target enrollment — 20%
G. Instructor expertise and commitment — 10%
Total — 100%
An in-depth explanation on the decision criteria is found below.
If a program moves forward following the proposal evaluation, you will meet with the ALA team for feedback and to discuss the next step of completing a Stage 2 Proposal to finalize program details; this document will be shared with you during that meeting. This proposal asks more in-depth questions so that Instructional Design and Program Delivery can begin developing the course with you, and the ALA Marketing team can begin preparing initial promotional materials.
Frequently Asked Questions
Objectives describe what the course will cover and what learners will learn (often framed as “In this course, learners will be…”). Outcomes describe what learners will be able to do by the end of the course (framed as “By the end of this course, learners will be able to…”). Outcomes should be written in applied, performance-focused language.
A Full Course module is designed as approximately 2.5 hours of total learner time. Each module includes 6–8 segments which include 6–8 minutes of recorded content and 9-12 minutes of exercises each (so learners can complete a segment in about 15–20 minutes total).
The standard is 6–8 segments per module to support consistent pacing and production. Small deviations may be acceptable when pedagogically justified, but changes should be discussed early because they may affect workload, learner experience, and build complexity. If wanting to include fewer segments because you anticipate recorded content will run over 6-8 minutes in length, try to see if the planned recorded content can be split. Learners will generally want short and easily digestible content.
Reinforcement exercises check comprehension and consolidate new concepts (for example knowledge checks, guided reading comprehension questions, structured calculations). Application exercises require learners to use the concept in a realistic context. In practice, learners will not be told if an exercise is specifically reinforcement or application, and many exercises will have crossover. The two descriptions are there to guide instructors in the manner in which they design the exercises.
All exercises in asynchronous courses should be in auto-feedback format. For exercises with correct answers (i.e. knowledge checks, as opposed to discussions which may not have a single correct answer), the instructor will include feedback for each correct and incorrect answer option in advance, which will be revealed to the learner on completion of the question. For reflections and discussion, set clear completion expectations and use light oversight, focusing on cohort-level patterns rather than line-by-line feedback.
It may be necessary to include some exercises in a hybrid course that will require instructor review and feedback. If included, these should be kept to a minimum (for example, only being used as an alternative Capstone).
If learners must meet a minimum score to progress through an exercise, they need a reattempt opportunity with a new set of questions. That means preparing at least one additional question set per exercise (an ‘exercise bank’) and ensuring each item has clear auto-feedback that will explain why each answer is correct or incorrect. Ideally, three full question sets should be made.
Yes, and it is encouraged for advanced learners. Learners should be instructed to anonymize sensitive information and avoid including confidential details. If a learner cannot use their context, the course should provide an alternative case scenario.
Non-standard exercises should be used only when necessary to achieve a learning objective that cannot be met using standard formats. Discuss new exercise designs with the online transformation team early, as development time can range from hours to days depending on complexity.
If a segment depends on a complex model, process, or system relationship that would be difficult to understand without visuals, flag this early in module planning. Animation typically requires additional lead time, costs, and coordination with external design support.
The first milestone is a draft syllabus, which should be reviewed by the ALA team. The second milestone is the finalization of module and segment breakdowns (including timings) and selected exercise types for each segment. Finally, the instructor will move on the course content – developing the PowerPoint presentations, transcripts, exercises (within the exercise planner), content organizer document, and module reference materials, before moving on to content recording.
Design and Pedagogy Principles
The design and development process is based on three complimentary sets of principles/processes: the ADDIE process,1 adult learning principles,2,3 and Merrill’s First Principles of Instruction.4,5
The ADDIE process provides an overall structure for course design. It outlines 5 key phases (which spell out ‘ADDIE’): Analysis, Design, Development, Implementation, and Evaluation. In ALA’s adaptation, the analysis phase is captured in the initial course proposal, where the developer clarifies the need, target audience, and context. The design phase is where the overall course structure, learning objectives, module plan, and an overview of module activities are shaped. The development phase is where detailed materials are created: scripts, slides, activities, assessments, and supporting resources. Implementation and evaluation occur later, when content is recorded, the course is delivered, and evidence of learning and impact is collected.
Adult learning principles emphasize that learning should be relevant and problem‑focused, should respect and draw on learners’ prior experience, and should allow for a degree of self‑direction. In practice this means that each ALA course is organized around real‑world challenges rather than abstract topics, that learners are frequently asked to analyze their own contexts, and that the course highlights what is required and what is optional.
Merrill’s First Principles of Instruction state that learning is most effective it is problem-centered and if students are involved in four specific phases of learning (Figure 1): “(a) activation of prior experience, (b) demonstration of skills, (c) application of skills and (d) integration of these skills into real-world activities.” 3 This framework should relate to five design principles:
- Learning is problem‑centered: instruction is built around authentic tasks and projects, not just exposition of content.
- Instruction activates prior knowledge: at the start and end of each module, learners recall and analyze what they already know and do, using this to build new knowledge and skills upon.
- Knowledge is demonstrated: concepts are illustrated through cases, worked examples, visualizations, and stories.
- Learners apply what they are learning: they complete practice activities, assignments, and mini‑capstones where they perform the skills being taught.
- New learning is integrated into the learner’s own world: through reflection, peer discussion, and capstone work, participants connect course concepts to their organization, role, activities, and goals.
Figure 1: “Phases for Effective Instruction” 4
Working With ALA
For new courses, Harvard Chan ALA assumes responsibility for core administrative and design functions, including customer service, enrollment, export control, program delivery, finance, marketing, and post-event CRM. ALA will also support the instructional design of new courses and coordinate production to ensure consistency and quality. Departments and faculty remain responsible for course content, allowing faculty to focus on what they do best: teaching.