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In 2024, ��ƷSM����ӰƬ identified the need for an intensive cross-campus focus on creating and assessing program learning outcomes to support student success, guide academic planning and meet the standards of the university accreditation agency, the��. While the focus began with undergraduate degree program assessment, graduate degree programs subsequently joined the effort.

The university has built a strong foundation for assessment with centralized support and a growing collection of plans and reports. ��ƷSM����ӰƬ has also worked to build assessment into academic program reviews, ensuring data-driven improvements.��

The following interview with Katherine Eggert, vice chancellor for academic planning and assessment, and Aaron Zimmerman, assessment analyst, addresses the need for assessing program learning outcomes and the cross-campus effort to get them in place.��

Katherine Eggert

Aaron Zimmerman

What motivates the process of program learning assessment?��

The core questions that motivate the program learning assessment process are the following:��

• “What do we, the faculty of this program, expect our students to learn?”
• “What evidence do we have that our students are achieving these program learning outcomes?”
• “Based on the evidence that we have collected, what changes can we make to our curriculum to continue to increase student learning and student achievement?”��

In this sense, student success is the core motivation. The faculty of each program work together to answer these questions, and our team supports them and keeps records of their assessments.��

What is involved in the program learning assessment cycle?��

At ��ƷSM����ӰƬ, we have implemented a four-year cycle for program learning assessment to ensure continuous improvement and accountability. The cycle begins with a planning year, with faculty working together to develop program learning outcomes that capture what students should know and be able to do by the time they have completed their studies within the given degree program. Faculty then identify meaningful sources of evidence of student learning (for example, papers, projects or exams) that assess students’ mastery of these program learning outcomes.��

During the following three years, the program collects data and submits an assessment report at the end of each year. The program then re-enters the cycle with a new planning year, which is an opportunity for the program to analyze the data that has been collected as well as to revisit and revise the previous cycle’s assessment plan.��

What are the benefits of the program learning assessment process for students?��

When a program shares its program learning outcomes with students, students have a clear sense of what they will be learning, i.e., “By the end of my study in this program, I will be able to...” Furthermore, when students have a curriculum map of their degree, they also can see what they are learning in a given course, how that learning prepares them for future courses and how the program’s curriculum fits together.��

Finally, when students seek guidance from their academic advisors or Career Services on possible employment options, they can collaboratively reference the program’s learning outcomes for a concrete sense of the skills and knowledge students have practiced and mastered during their studies.

What are the opportunities that program learning assessment creates?��

Assessment structures a unique opportunity for the program's faculty to have meaningful conversations around student learning. Faculty members can engage collaboratively in their analysis of student work: “Based on the evidence that we have collected, what are the strengths and the areas for growth that our students are currently demonstrating?”��

Another important opportunity is for the program to consider how it shares the meaningful teaching and learning taking place within the program with the public. A program might share its learning outcomes and some data about student learning on its website, for example, demonstrating to prospective students and the public at large that the program not only has ambitious educational aims but also direct evidence of their students achieving these ambitious learning goals. This is all the more critical during a time when the value of higher education is being questioned.��

What advice would you give to programs regarding the learning assessment process?��

The first piece of advice would be to create time and space for these discussions to take place. The more these discussions become a routine part of a department’s business, the more learning assessment—and learning improvement—becomes an integral component of the program’s culture.��

The second piece of advice is to frame program learning assessment as an opportunity for curiosity and authentic inquiry. A program’s assessment plan should be centered, first and foremost, on questions that matter deeply to the faculty. Questions like, “How well are our students able to apply what they are learning (in our coursework) to the field?” and, “How well are our students doing at designing and conducting independent research?” go to the heart of what faculty care about when it comes to teaching and learning.

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