Q. What does our department need to do?
A. Each academic department is asked to develop and submit a new plan to assess the program-level student learning outcomes (PSLOs) for each academic program it oversees. The new plan must be completed using the new plan template.
Q. How do we submit our new plan?
A. New plans will be submitted as word documents (along with any appendices) through SharePoint. Each program will have its own permission-based folder, with access restricted to the appropriate department/college faculty/staff. A link to the SharePoint site will be provided by March 1, 2020.
Q. When is the new plan due?
A. All plans should be submitted through SharePoint to the Office of Strategic Planning & Institutional Effectiveness (OSPIE) no later than April 15, 2020.
Q. Which programs need to submit plans?
A. All programs, including new and existing, degree and certificate, online and face-to-face need to provide a new PSLO assessment plan.
Q. When will the first report be due?
A. The first report (year 1) will be due on July 1, 2021. The report will be based on the new four-year cycle (see Quick Start Guide), which means the year 1 report should contain the results for about one-half of the PSLOs. No interpretation of results or evidence of action focused on improvement is expected until years 3 and 4.
Q. Will we receive feedback?
A. It depends. The program has the option to receive feedback on its PSLO plan. If feedback is desired, the program must select “Yes, we would like to receive feedback” on p. 12 of the plan template.
Q. If we ask for feedback, what kind of feedback will we receive?
A. Programs that elect to receive feedback will receive formative feedback in the shape of qualitative comments and suggestions. Face-to-face meetings can be scheduled after feedback is received to clarify comments and share ideas for further improvement.
Q. Who should I contact for help?
A. For general questions about the template, submission process, or deadlines, please email OSPIE@uky.edu.