The Office of Assessment

 

 

The Office of Assessment at Bridgewater State University (BSU) aims at supporting continuous improvement of programs and services of the University and aligning the assessment process with the University's Strategic Plan, program review, institutional effectiveness and requirements for national and regional accreditation.

 

Specifically, the Office of Assessment:

 

(i)      Supports the development and assessment of learning outcomes for academic programs as well as core competencies reflected in the core university's curriculum.

(ii)     Assists in providing guidelines for program review and accreditation processes at both regional and national levels.

(iii)    Coordinates the development and/or administration of institutional surveys such as the Campus Climate, the National Survey of Student Engagement (NSSE) and   Cooperative Institutional Research Program (CIRP).

(iv)    Develops and conducts focus groups of students, faculty, staff, alumni, employers, and community members when those studies address division-level or University-level concerns.

 

The principle purpose of assessment at BSU is tied to the improvement of student learning outcomes through ongoing refinement of academic programs areas identified by faculty.  

 

 

Specific Goals of the Office of Assessment

 

Degree Programs:  To assist academic programs in developing measurable student learning outcomes, identifying appropriate measures and setting appropriate performance targets or benchmarks, analyzing assessment data and helping faculty to use assessment results for program improvement.

Core Curriculum:  To assist in development and refinement of measurable competencies for the core curriculum, mapping appropriate assessments to each competency, recommending appropriate achievement targets or benchmarks, analyzing assessment data and providing recommendations for improvement.

Program Reviews:  To support the academic program review process and provide assistance on specific aspects of the review process including helping faculty develop goals, learning outcomes and quality measures that are appropriate for informing the continuous improvement of each program. 

Regional and National Accreditation:  To assist academic programs in development of assessment aspects of accreditation reports in light of accreditation standards specified by national and regional accreditation agencies.

Surveys:  To develop and/or coordinate administration of surveys of students, faculty, staff, alumni, employers, and community members when those studies address division-level or University-level concerns. Ongoing surveys being administered by the Office of Assessment include: National Survey of Student Engagement (NSSE) and Campus Climate.

Focus Groups:  To assist academic and administrative departments in conducting focus groups of students, faculty, staff, alumni, employers, and community members when those studies address division-level or University-level concerns.

 

 

Homepage │ Institutional Research │ Consultation, Collaboration, and Support

Last Modified: March 5, 2012