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All academic programs listed in the Kentucky Council on Postsecondary Education (CPE) program inventory as well as administrative units included in the MSU Organizational Chart are expected to participate in assessment.

Short answer: We want to improve and do better!

To explain further: Continuous improvement of our programs and services is an important priority for educators who want to do everything possible to prepare students to perform well in society, the workplace, or graduate school. Assessment allows faculty and staff to report the specific learning and/or service outcomes they desire for their students and to collect solid evidence of how well those outcomes have been achieved.

Assessment is required to maintain institutional accreditation as well as specialized program accreditation. The Department of Education and institutional accreditors, such as the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools Commission on Colleges (SACSCOC), the regional accrediting body for MSU, place a heavy emphasis on assessment. Administrative and institutional effectiveness are two standard requirements within . In particular, Standard 7.3 mandates that the "institution identifies expected outcomes of its administrative support services and demonstrates the extent to which the outcomes are achieved." Additionally, Standard 8.2 requires that the "institution identifies expected outcomes, assesses the extent to which it achieves these outcomes, and provides evidence of seeking improvement based on analysis of the results" regarding student learning outcomes for each educational program and the academic and student services that support student success.

Assessment plans are submitted via by October 1 of each academic year while assessment reports are due on September 15 of the subsequent year.

The Office of Institutional Assessment (OIA) receives all assessment plans and reports via SPOL and checks for their completeness and accuracy. Then, OIA approves plans and reports in the system for the University Assessment Committee (UAC) to review and evaluate using the standardized  to help programs and units improve their planning and reporting submissions.

Please with OIA. We will review what exists, identify gaps, and help you build a realistic plan for getting back on track without overwhelming the process.

No. While all programs and units must conduct assessment every year, they do not need to assess all outcomes every year.

Yes. To help manage workload and avoid assessment fatigue, MSU established a three-year assessment cycle. The three-year assessment cycle basically means that programs and units have the flexibility to choose which outcome(s) to assess each year provided that all outcomes are assessed at least once by the end of the three-year cycle. Assessment cycle varies from program to program and from unit to unit. Some programs or units assess each of their outcome every year, some rotate. The key is that nothing gets left behind across the full three-year cycle.

To know the assessment cycle and status of your outcomes, please log in to your SPOL account and check the Status section within the All Assessment by Program or Service Area. You can also contact us at msu.assessment@murraystate.edu and ask about the details of your program or unit assessment cycle.

Yes. Credit-bearing certificates are recognized by SACSCOC as program credentials and must identify expected outcomes, assess the extent to which outcomes are achieved, and provide evidence of seeking improvement based on analysis of the results. 

For more information about assessment of certificate programs, please refer to Section II of MSU鈥檚 .

Tracks, concentrations, and specializations (as part of the overall program) should be assessed not separately, but as subsets of the major or parent program using one of two approaches: combined or nested.

The expectation is that the Program Learning Outcomes (PLOs) capture the essential knowledge and skills students are expected to acquire through the full curriculum. If it makes more sense to assess tracks only in capstone or mastery-level courses, that is acceptable for those tracks, concentrations, or specializations that share their PLO(s) with the parent program. When a track鈥檚, concentration鈥檚, or specialization鈥檚 curriculum is designed to teach distinct knowledge or skills beyond the parent program, faculty should identify at least one specific learning outcome for that track, concentration, or specialization which remains a subset of the parent degree program鈥檚 assessment plan.

For more information about assessment of tracks, concentrations, and specializations in degree programs, please refer to Section III of MSU鈥檚 .

Each outcome must be assessed using multiple measures, with at least one being a direct measure.

Academic programs are encouraged to refer to their Curriculum Alignment Matrix (CAM) to identify the courses in which assessments will take place (i.e., where evidence of student learning will be collected and evaluated), ensuring that at least one assessment measure occurs in a course where the PLO is addressed at the mastery level. If the designated mastery-level course is not offered during a given assessment cycle (e.g., due to low enrollment or rotating course schedules, as is common in some certificate programs), a summative measure administered outside of coursework may be used to fulfill this requirement for that cycle.

To learn more about assessment measures, please refer to our .

It depends. If a single assessment tool (measure) genuinely captures evidence of more than one outcome (e.g., a capstone project that demonstrates both critical thinking and written communication); then yes, it can serve as a measure for both, as long as you are scoring and reporting results separately for each outcome. Using the same measure does not mean submitting the same findings twice. Each outcome still needs its own data, analysis, and use of results.

Both activities are used to measure the degrees to which students have learned certain concepts. However, grading is measured upon individual students whereas assessment focuses on the performance and gains of an entire cohort of students. Also, grades do not provide meaningful information on exactly what a student has learned. Assessments, however, address precisely the areas of strengths and weakness that students are having within the curriculum. A grade of a 鈥淏鈥� does not accurately detail which elements of the curriculum were mastered and which were not.

Start by framing the conversation around program/unit health rather than compliance. People respond better when they understand the 鈥渨hy.鈥� If repeated non-response is putting the cycle at risk, escalate to your department chair or unit leader. OIA can advise on documentation and help you find a workable path forward for the current cycle.

No. MSU is evaluated by SACSCOC not on the number of outcomes we meet, but on the quality of evidence. Closing the loop, the process where faculty or staff take time to reflect on assessment results, document the changes and improvements made, examine whether implemented changes have been successful or unsuccessful, and finally discuss the next steps are the major goals of assessment. Closing the loop is also one way to provide evidence that assessment information is shared and discussed with appropriate constituents to provide meaningful information about the effectiveness of our programs, services, and operations.

No. That is the process working. Document the findings honestly, propose a specific action, and follow up in the next cycle. Improvement starts with honest data.

Yes. Document what you have and note the limitations in your Planning Process or Reporting Process narrative. Partial data is better than none.

Revisions after the deadline are only accepted in the case of a Level 1 or 2 ratings, which triggers a formal two-week revision window. Outside of that process, late or unsolicited revisions are strongly discouraged as they can affect the quality and coherence of your submission. However, OIA recognizes that legitimate circumstances may arise; and if this happens, contact OIA at msu.assessment@murraystate.edu as soon as possible so we can help you document a coherent and well-aligned submission.

All program and unit assessment plans and reports are evaluated by the University Assessment Committee using the standardized . The rubrics contain multiple criteria that correspond to the elements of the assessment plan and assessment report, with each criterion evaluated independently using a three-level achievement scale. The goal is to achieve a Level 3 (Exceeds) rating for every criterion. 

For complete scoring criteria and expectations, please refer to the .

A Level 1 rating means a submission needs revision before it can be finalized. OIA will share the graded rubric through SPOL and notify the program or unit of a two-week revision deadline. The rubric will identify the specific criteria that need to be addressed. Within those 14 days, program or unit may either revise its submission or provide additional information or clarification. If there are questions about the feedback, please contact OIA at msu.assessment@murraystate.edu before the deadline passes.

Once resubmitted, the original reviewer or UAC Chair will conduct a follow-up review focused specifically on whether the Level 1 criteria have been adequately addressed. The Assessment Coordinator will be notified of the outcome.

Yes. If the program or unit believes the rubric was applied incorrectly, that important context was overlooked, or that there was a procedural error in the review, they may request reconsideration. Please submit a written appeal to OIA at msu.assessment@murraystate.edu within five days of receiving the feedback. The appeal should include a specific rationale and any supporting documentation. The UAC Chair and one additional UAC member will review the appeal and communicate a decision within 14 days. The UAC Chair鈥檚 decision is final.

Please note that the following are not grounds for reconsideration: disagreement with rubric standards, dissatisfaction with a score without substantive justification, or appeals submitted after the five-day window.

The assessment information collected (e.g., measures and findings) out of individual assessment plan and report are used to complete our . These data help create narratives that talk about the institutional goal and strategic initiatives plan achievements as well as program/service changes and improvements. In addition, these data provide evidentiary documents needed for MSU鈥檚 fifth-year and decennial reports that we submit to SACSCOC to maintain our accreditation status.

Yes. Although most professional accrediting bodies require evidence that programs or departments are measuring student learning, some still do not. More importantly, we are still accountable to our institutional accreditation body (SACSCOC) for the assessment of student learning and success.

Assessment information may need to be revised or developed as programs or units evolve so that they remain current and relevant in the discipline or department. Any changes or modifications to program or unit assessment profile will need to submit a proposal using the . 

For questions about assessment information changes, please contact OIA at msu.assessment@murraystate.edu.

Student learning and success are the major components for determining institutional effectiveness. Moreover, it is important for programs and units to assess their outcomes with the mission and goals of the college/school, department, and institution in mind. Having this core principle established and integrated into the assessment activities of academic programs and administrative units, the best data will be available for assessing MSU鈥檚 mission as well as strategic attributes and initiatives.

Remember: We are not 鈥済raded鈥� on the number of outcomes we meet. Instead, we are evaluated on our efforts to collect meaningful information about administrative effectiveness and student learning, and on how we use that information to continuously improve!

Students benefit from good assessment practices because:

• Assessment expectations help students to understand where they should focus their time and energies;
• Assessment feedback helps students understand their strengths and weaknesses;
• Assessment information gives students documentation of what they have learned that they can use to apply for jobs, awards, and programs of advanced study.

Faculty benefit from good assessment practices because:

• Assessment activities bring faculty together to discuss important issues such as what they teach, how they teach, and what their standards and expectations are;
• Assessment activities help faculty see how their courses link together to form coherent programs and how the courses contribute to student success in subsequent pursuits;
• Assessment results can be used as compelling evidence of the quality of their teaching when they apply for tenure and promotion.

Administrators benefit from assessment because:

• Assessment information documenting the success of a program or institution can be used to convince employers, donors, legislators, and other constituents of its quality and worth;
• Assessment can help ensure that institutional resources are being spent in the most effective ways possible鈥搘here they鈥檒l have the greatest impact on student learning;
• Assessment can help administrators make informed decisions about such matters as resource allocations and faculty hires.

Absolutely! Assessment is a collaborative effort. OIA is here to support all your assessment needs, but you are still the experts of your own field and we would love to hear all your ideas. Please reach out any time and send us assessment-related information at msu.assessment@murraystate.edu.