Frequently Asked Questions

How are regular program assessment, program review self-study, and the HLC reaccreditation process related?

Regular program-level assessment is typically focused on student learning and effective teaching occurs on an annual basis until programs have demonstrated that they have sufficient assessment systems in place to move to a biennial reporting cycle. For those on a biennial reporting cycling, an interim report is submitted that provides a progress report on course and curricular changes that were suggested by the previous year’s assessment report findings. Program review self-study occurs every five-years and includes program-level, but is also designed for units to go beyond the assessment of student learning and effective teaching. A program review self-study should involve a broader and deeper self-evaluative study of the entire program (e.g., enrollment trends, degree/major completion trends, faculty hire, research/scholarship trends and so on) with an eye toward identifying overall areas of strengths, weaknesses, and opportunities for improvement. The HLC reaccreditation process currently occurs every ten years if full institutional reaccreditation was recommended after the last comprehensive institutional site visit. However, the HLC and other regional accrediting bodies maintain the right to alter reaccreditation criteria and processes over time, including the duration and content and number of criteria for the reaffirmation of accreditation. A fundamental part of institutional reaccreditation involves a self-study of the entire institutional. Therefore, the annual and biennial assessment reports and the regular cycle of program review self-study are key components that help to sustain institutional reaccreditation.

What is accreditation?

The Higher Learning Commission is the branch of the North Central Association of Colleges and Schools responsible for accreditation, including the University of Denver. While the University's efforts at self-improvement are ongoing, the next comprehensive site visit for the reaffirmation of our institutional accreditation is scheduled for November 8-10, 2010.

Accreditation is voluntary and the institutional equivalent of peer review in scholarship: through a process of mutual evaluation, post-secondary education institutions can offer assurance to the public about the quality of education provided by member institutions. Further, accreditation provides institutions with essential feedback for the pursuit of continuous improvement.

I'd like to administer a survey. Can the Office of Academic Assessment help?

Possibly - the answer depends on if the purpose of your survey is related to academic assessment, such as senior exit surveys or other surveys created to collect information about student learning.

Are course grades sufficient for the assessment of student learning?

Grades can also serve as a form of the evaluation of student learning when they are based on explicit criteria, applied systematically and shared publically. However, grades are typically insufficient by themselves as a primary measure of student learning because grading practices and policies can vary so widely. Grades can be used in conjunction with other direct measures of student learning. Please consult members of the Office of Academic Assessment to plan how grades and other artifacts of student learning can be combined for effective assessment.

What is the difference among "learning objective", "learning outcome", and "learning goal"?

A learning objective is a statement of the specific and measurable knowledge, skills, attributes, and habits that students are expected to achieve and demonstrate as a result of their educational experience in a program or course. Example: "Upon completion of this course, students will be able to describe the value of cultural diversity in today’s workforce."

A learning outcome is a DEMONSTRATION of the actual attainment of the knowledge, skills, attributes, and habits expected as a result of the educational experiences in a course, program, or upon graduation. Example: A student’s actual description of the value of cultural diversity in today’s workforce.

A learning goal is a statement of what an instructor, course, academic program or the institution strives to achieve of “why we do what we do” in our classes, programs, or as an institution. Example: "Upon completion of this course, students will gain an appreciation of the value of cultural diversity in today’s workforce."