Five-Year Program Review
Purpose, Requirements, & Procedures
A 5-year program review is an opportunity to reflect on a program's effectiveness, its curricular offerings, faculty expertise, student learning and program outcomes, and the strengths and challenges facing the program. Further, it demonstrates the extent to which the program is fulfilling the mission and strategic goals of the institution.Academic programs are required to complete a self-study as part of the 5-year program review process. The outline of required content for the self-study specifies what must be included in the report.
Departments scheduled for 5-year reviews should have the self-study completed by October 15 of the academic year when it is due. The report should be submitted to the Vice President for Institutional Effectiveness/Dean of Academic Assessment for review by the Academic Assessment Committee. The process concludes when the departmental faculty meets with the Provost and school dean to discuss the self-study's findings and the program's goals.
Program Review Procedures
- The department is notified a year in advance by the Vice President of Institutional Effectiveness/Dean of Assessment to discuss requirements and expectations related to the program review.
- The self-study report is submitted by October 15 of the review year.
- Following the report's submission, the department meets with the Academic Assessment Committee to discuss the contents of the self-study.
- The committee writes a response to the report which is shared with the department.
- The department reviews the committee's response and informs the Academic Assessment Committee of any errors of fact.
- If warranted, the committee corrects any factual errors and submits its response, the department's self-study, and the scored rubric to the Provost.
- The department meets with the Provost to establish goals and action plans. The school dean will attend this meeting and document what the University and/or the Provost agrees to support based on the evidence in the self-study report.
Effective starting 2023: A $3,000 grant will be awarded to departments that, through the program review process, identify a specific need to fund an improvement that is well supported by clear evidence in the self-study report. For example, if a department indicates that it has been unsuccessful retaining students of color, the $3,000 grant might be used for faculty to attend a conference or webinar on retention strategies for underrepresented student populations. This grant funding is not automatically awarded.
For programs that have specialized accreditors, the accreditation report typically replaces the self-study. However, the University may require the program to engage in additional analyses of data, particularly with respect to enrollment trends and economic forecasts. Copies of the program’s accreditation report(s) and annual updates should be submitted to the Office of Institutional Effectiveness. Program faculty are expected to meet with the Provost to discuss the accreditation report, visiting team's report, program goals, and resource needs.
Sample Program Reviews
The following are links to self-study reports that programs might review to get a better sense of what constitutes an effective program review:
Post-Professional Transitional Doctor of Physical Therapy
Philosophy
Psychology-Child Life
Therapeutic Recreation
Biology
Political Science
Assessment of Program Review Process (April 2022)