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Measuring quality report American Council on Education
Center for Policy Analysis
Choosing Among
Surveys and Other
Assessments of
College Quality
Victor M.H. Borden
with
Jody L. Zak Owens
Quality:
Measuring
Association for Institutional Research
for Management Research,
Policy Analysis, and Planning
Victor M. H. Borden is associate vice
chancellor for information management
and institutional research, and associate
professor at Indiana University Purdue
University Indianapolis.
Jody L. Zak Owens is a research assistant
and graduate student in higher education
and student affairs at Indiana University. Copyright © 2001
American Council on Education
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Association for Institutional Research
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Association for Institutional Research
for Management Research,
Policy Analysis, and Planning American Council on Education/Association for Institutional Research iii
Table of
Contents
Introduction ....................................................................................................1
General Issues..................................................................................................3
National Assessments of Institutional Quality ..................................................5
Using Assessment Results Effectively ..............................................................11
Conclusion ....................................................................................................17
Table 1. Instrument, Administrator, Purpose, Use of Data,
History, and Information Collected ....................................................18
Table 2. Target Institutions and Samples, Participation, Format,
Administration Procedure, and Timeline............................................26
Table 3. Reporting, Data Availability, Local Items, Costs, and
Contact Information..........................................................................34 American Council on Education/Association for Institutional Research 1
Introduction
Does this ctional solicitation sound familiar? In recent years, a proliferation of
national assessments of institutional quality has emerged in response to increasing
demands for accountability and consumer information. Many of these assessments
rely on survey responses from current and former students. They operate on a coop-
erative system in which campuses pay to participate in the survey and, in return,
receive one or more reports of the results and, sometimes, the raw data for further
local analysis. Other assessments use data already collected from students when they
take college entrance examinations. Standardized tests of college-level critical
thinking and subject area achievement also are available, allowing faculty and
Dear College President:
As the public and political leaders have come to perceive higher education as both
more important and more expensive than ever, demand has grown for account-
ability data and consumer information on the relative quality of individual col-
leges. The Survey of College and University Quality (SCUQ) was developed by
leaders in the eld of higher education assessment to help postsecondary institu-
tions meet the demands of governing boards, accrediting agencies, and other
stakeholders. Participating institutions have found this to be a rich source of data
for marketing and recruitment as well. Perhaps most importantly, college and
university faculty have embraced the results of the SCUQ as the most credible and
useful evidence of student learning in college.
We invite you to join the hundreds of leading colleges and universities that
participate in this survey . . . 2
Measuring Quality: Choosing Among Surveys and Other Assessments of College Quality
administrators to compare the perfor-
mance of students progressing through
their programs with that of students at
other colleges and universities. College
presidents and provosts often decide to
participate in these efforts, but they may
do so with little information on how best
to evaluate these assessments and how
to determine which assessment will pro-
vide the most useful information for
their campus.
The purpose of this guide is to articu-
late a set of questions and issues that
campus leaders can review when decid-
ing whether to participate in a given
survey or use a specic assessment
instrument. The guide also describes
some of the major national surveys and
assessments. Although the guide does
not rate or recommend these services, it
suggests the criteria that campus leaders
should employ to determine the use and
usefulness of any such instrument or ser-
vice, based on specic campus needs,
capabilities, and goals.
This guide is divided into three major
sections. The rst section poses some
general questions that are important to
consider before deciding whether to par-
ticipate (or continue to participate) in a
national assessment. The second section
provides common descriptive informa-
tion for some of the national assessments
that were popular when the guide was
written. The third section reviews more
specic questions and issues regarding
the choice of a specic instrument or ser-
vice and how to optimize participation.
The appendix provides a tabular com-
parison of the major instruments and
services reviewed in the guide. New
products and services likely will become
available and existing ones transformed
or even discontinued after publication
of this guide. The Association for
Institutional Research will maintain an
updated version of the appendix tables on
its web site at http://www.airweb.org.
The next section of this guide poses
some general questions to consider
before engaging in any of these assess-
ment efforts. American Council on Education/Association for Institutional Research 3
General
Issues
Do these assessments live up to their promises?
As with all assessment efforts, the value of a national assessment survey or service
depends on whether faculty, administrators, and staff members can use the results
to support their ongoing processes and activities. Even if they see the questions and
results as interesting and informative, they may not nd the information useful.
This guides descriptive information regarding specic instruments and services
may help an institution determine whether a particular instrument is relevant to its
needs. However, the guide cannot answer questions regarding an institutions capa-
bility for most effectively using any particular type of assessment information.
The assessments described in this guide can be considered information tools
for both accountability and improvement. Their usefulness depends on three
general criteria:
The appropriateness of the tool for the specic job at hand.
The skills and experiences of users.
The availability of sufcient nancial, personal, and material resources.
How do we determine which survey is best suited to our purposes?
If you can ask this question effectively, you are halfway to choosing an appropriate
instrument. The key to determining which instruments and assessment will work
best for your institution is articulating a shared purpose among those most likely to
use the results. For example, nding out about entering students expectations and
attitudes can help only if that information can be used by academic and student
support service managers to develop, rene, and evaluate support programs; by 4
Measuring Quality: Choosing Among Surveys and Other Assessments of College Quality
marketers and recruiters to improve
strategies for attracting students; or by
external affairs staff to develop print and
electronic publications.
Who at my institution needs to be
involved?
In addition to involving the faculty, staff,
and admini