New Timeframe for Undergraduate Program Assessment Reporting

Based on thorough discussion with the Liaison Council for Undergraduate Assessment, Vice Provost for Academic Engagement and Student Achievement Mary Wack, and the Office of Assessment of Teaching and Learning, annual undergraduate program assessment reporting will be shifting to a calendar year cycle.

This change impacts the 2020 reports that undergraduate programs will be submitting, with an additional semester to transition to the new reporting timeframe. Programs will not submit a 2020 report this June; instead 2020 reports will be submitted during the new reporting window, Jan – Feb 2021, as described below.

New Reporting Timeframe. Under the new annual reporting timeframe, undergraduate programs will:

• Prepare an annual report about assessment conducted during Jan 1 – Dec 31, 2020 (calendar year): anytime in Nov 2020 – Feb 2021. Programs can use ATL’s report planning sheet and meet with ATL to discuss questions.
• Submit the annual report to ATL in Qualtrics: anytime in Jan – Feb 2021.

Please see the Writing Your Annual Program Assessment Report page for more details.

Benefits of New Timeframe. This reporting timeframe better aligns with nine-month faculty appointments, faculty committee availability, and other service responsibilities by faculty.  Benefits include:

• Annual reporting occurs within the bounds of the academic year, as part of the department’s regular work of teaching, and curricular oversight and improvement. This underscores the need to factor assessment work (of which preparing the annual report is a small part) into workload and to recognize it in annual review, as provided in the faculty manual.
• Reporting aligns with the flow in many departments where faculty conduct assessment in spring and then in fall meet to interpret data and use in making decisions in the new AY.

Support for Program Assessment Reporting. ATL is available to work with individual programs to transition smoothly and address concerns.

ATL extends appreciation to all faculty and chairs for your past and continuing efforts to support student learning and quality undergraduate offerings informed by assessment of student learning in the majors.  Annual program reports also provide important evidence to support university accreditation.

For more information about undergraduate program assessment reporting, including past annual summaries, see Program Assessment Reporting.