Program Assessments

The main purpose of program assessment, as outlined in Collected Rules and Regulations 20.035, is to improve the teaching and learning, research and creative activity, and service of individual units. In addition, MU’s program assessment serves an important function in the University’s accreditation through the Higher Learning Commission (HLC) of the North Central Association. Program assessment is typically done every five years, with some variation depending on discipline-specific accreditation schedules.

Assessment reports (approximately 15-20 pages and engagement with the Educational Assessment App) consist of two primary parts (see template below). Part One consists of a review of the academic unit’s activities in research and creative activity, teaching and learning, service, economic development, and inclusive excellence. This assessment should be based on criteria and methods appropriate to the specific discipline as well as data provided by Institutional Research. Because of requirements related to MU’s accreditation with the HLC, all units that offer degree programs must include learning objectives and methods of assessing such objectives for each degree program in the teaching and learning component of this report.

Based on the findings in Part One, Part Two describes the unit’s plans for the next review cycle. This section should identify the specific issues, problems, or concerns that this plan seeks to address, as well as identify specific goals and proposed strategies. At least one of these goals must focus on improving student learning.

The final assessment report will be read by the provost, the associate provost for academic programs, the dean of the appropriate school or college, the dean of the Graduate School (if involving any graduate degree programs), the vice provost for undergraduate studies (if involving any undergraduate degree programs) and the MU director of educational assessment. These individuals will then meet with the chair or director of the academic unit for the program review. To conclude the process, a short executive summary is provided to the University of Missouri System, with copies given to the academic unit.

Because the plans for the next review cycle constitute an essential part of MU’s program assessment, units will provide brief annual updates on their progress and any changes to the goals and strategies taken.

Program Assessments for the 2024-2025 review cycle are due to Brian Houston, Associate Provost for Academic Programs, by March 3, 2025.

Please use the template below to organize your assessment report.

Units may include additional sections to the report if they have other areas they want to address that are not encompassed in the template. Also, please attach a copy of your departmental workload policy and post-tenure review policy as appendices to the report.

Part 1: Review of Current Status of Academic Unit

1.1 Introduction

  • Overall mission of the academic unit
  • Summary of significant changes since the last program assessment
  • Key challenges currently facing the academic unit
  • Contributions to relevant aspects of MU’s Strategic Plan

1.2 Assessment of Research and Creative Activity

  • Assessment of quantity and quality of research and/or creative activity, using traditional measures as appropriate to the discipline. These may include publications, quality of publication venues, impact factors, grants, exhibitions or performances, and awards, etc.
  • Comparison of research activity to units at peer institutions, using appropriate databases (e.g., the Academic Analytics comparative data).

1.3 Assessment of Instruction

  • Assessment of quality of instruction, using, for example, student feedback on teaching data, teaching and pedagogy awards, student surveys, and exit interviews
  • Summary of trends regarding instruction, including student credit hours, number of majors, degrees awarded, retention rates, DFW rates, and faculty use of Early Alert
    • When assessing instruction in graduate programs, please reference the following data: number of students, degrees awarded annually, average time to degree, number of students with assistantships and internal or external fellowships, and career outcomes
  • Description of involvement in campus-wide teaching and high-impact student engagement activities, such as Honors, FIGS, undergraduate research, study abroad, service learning, WI courses, etc.
  • Description of recent teaching-related innovations or initiatives, including faculty use of resources such as The Teaching for Learning Center, the libraries, the Campus Writing Program, the Career Center, and other units that support instruction

1.4 Assessment of Student Learning

Note: Degree programs should use the MU Educational Assessment App to capture degree program outcomes, assessments of student learning per program outcome, course objectives, and curriculum mapping. The results of these efforts should be included in this section of the program review document, including screenshots and descriptions, as needed (See Template).

Please include the following information for each degree program:

  • Brief description of the degree program, including, for example, distinctive features, available emphasis areas, what students typically do after graduation, and key student experiences (e.g., field work, internships, clinical experiences, etc.)
  • Description of what assessments are used/planned to directly determine student learning of program outcomes.
    • Some examples of the ways programs might directly assess student learning include:
      • Using results from a capstone project that is aligned to one or more program outcomes
      • Using embedded assessments aligned to program outcomes
  • Description and analysis of student learning of at least one program outcome.
  • A depth of coverage curriculum map of required courses and heavily consumed elective courses showing alignment of course objectives to program outcomes.
    • Course mapping and curriculum maps are included in the MU Educational Assessment App using a click-and-map interface and then viewing the “Results” section.
  • Description of how the above data (i.e., assessment of student learning and curriculum maps) are subsequently used to inform changes to the curriculum.

Please note that degree programs should plan to assess student learning of at least one program outcome per year on a rotating cycle, with all program outcomes within a 5-year period ensuring a comprehensive and ongoing assessment process.

1.5 Assessment of Service

  • Description of the nature and impact of service provided by faculty in the unit. As appropriate, include information about service to the college, campus, community, state, nation and profession.
  • myVita is the best resource for data about faculty service

1.6 Assessment of Outreach and Engagement

  • Assessment of unit’s role in outreach and engagement, involving efforts to improve the well-being of Missourians. This includes, for example, collaborating with Extension on programs, engaging with agricultural and rural/urban students and communities, and supporting economic and workforce development across the state.

1.7 Assessment of Civic Involvement

  • Assessment of unit’s efforts to provide opportunities for civic involvement in a diverse, multicultural society and globally connected world. This includes, for example, community engaged learning, inclusive excellence activities, and events that emphasize global awareness.

Part 2: Goals and Strategies

  • Identify any specific issues, problems, or concerns that the program would like to address
  • List 3-5 goals for addressing these areas for potential improvement
  • List a few strategies for accomplishing each of these goals in the next review cycle

Data Links:

  1. MU Educational Assessment App
  2. MU Enrollment Lifecycle Metrics and Outcomes (ELMO)
  3. MU Faculty Comprehensive
  4. MU Key Metrics
  5. Academic Analytics

Additional Sources of Data: Campus Data Hub

Contacts