Academic Program Review

September 3, 2024 - Final Self Study Report (SSR) Template and Data Briefing Books are distributed to units via email.  

September (various dates) - Meetings & Training with Academic Affairs & AIRE (one per School/College)

December 5, 2024 - Deadline for units to submit completed SSRs, including draft goals, to their Dean's Office.

February 14, 2025 - Deadline for Deans to submit completed SSRs to Academic Affairs.  Two weeks prior to the deadline, Academic Affairs will provide a link to upload all completed SSRs.

March - April 2025 - Academic Program Review Committee conducts their review, including individual meetings with unit leadership.  

May 2, 2025 - Academic Program Review Committee completes their review. Feedback shared with Deans and units.  

Resources

Self-Study Report Template (coming early September) - This template is the form to be completed and submitted by each unit undergoing Academic Program Review.  The deadline for submission of the SSR to your Dean is 

Guidance on Goal Setting (coming early September) - This document provides detailed guidance to units on setting realistic, appropriate goals.  

Data/SSR Crosswalk (coming early September) - As a supplement to the Data Briefing Books, this document cross-references SSR questions to specific metrics.  It also provides a link to the live data dashboards where unit leaders can explore specific metrics more in-depth and seek out relevant comparisons for the purposes of benchmarking.

Data Briefing Books-  Each unit is provided with a custom data briefing book.  These will be shared directly to units via email in early September. 

Data Sources

OAC and Tableau

Academic Analytics & Faculty Insights

Alumni Outcomes (Lightcast)

Graduate Program Profiles

Kansas Higher Ed Stats

Kansas Degree Stats

Qualtrics - Survey Tool

Other Useful Links

KU's Strategic Plan - Jayhawks Rising

Institutional Learning Goals

Degree-Level Assessment Information

Contacts

If you have questions relating to institutional data, assistance is available at aire-help@ku.edu. 

If you have questions about the SSR or the APR process in general, please contact Kristine Latta at klatta@ku.edu.  

The Academic Program Review (APR) process is intended to ensure continuous improvement of our academic programs and departments.  APR is one component of KU’s university assessment plan.  APR is conducted on a four-year cycle and every unit undergoes APR once during each cycle.  Academic Program Review is required by the Kansas Board of Regents (KBOR) and our accreditors, the Higher Learning Commission (HLC). 

The APR process begins with the creation of a Self-Study Report (SSR) by each academic unit during the Fall semester. The SSR describes how the unit’s degree programs serve the mission of the institution, analyzes faculty productivity and achievements, provides an assessment of the curriculum and its effectiveness, and documents the service that the unit provides to the KU community, the State of Kansas, and the wider community and discipline.  The SSR also includes a goal setting exercise where units identify 3-5 unit goals, which are then monitored annually by the respective School/College and outcomes reported during the next APR review.  Each department/area is provided with a data briefing book compiled by the office of Analytics, Institutional Research & Effectiveness (AIRE).

In the Spring, the Dean’s Office conducts a review of their units' SSRs for that given year and provides an endorsement of each unit’s goals.  The SSRs and Dean’s review is then submitted to a campus-wide Academic Program Review Committee (APRC), which conducts a final review on behalf of the Office of the Provost.  The committee review, while shared with the Office of the Provost, is primarily intended to provide the Dean and the unit with substantive input and constructive feedback on the report and unit goals.  A report on unit goals will be the starting point of the unit's next SSR.  

Please review the Academic Program Review policy (pending final approval) for more information about the process and the composition and work of the APRC. 

KBOR requires all Regent's institutions to establish and document clear policies and procedures relating to Academic Program Review.  At minimum, the university's academic program review must include an analysis of:

• Market demand for the program
• Student demand, student accessibility, and student return on investment;
• Centrality of the program to fulfilling the mission and the role of the institution
• Quality of the program as assessed by its curriculum and impact on students
• Service the program provides to the discipline, the university, and beyond
• Program’s cost‐effectiveness

Each Regent's university must report on the outcomes of Academic Program Review every four years.  This includes an overview of our program review policy and procedures, a discussion of key program metrics, and a report by the Provost on the APR process.  This report includes examples of how the process is utilized to support continuous improvement.   

Please review the KBOR Program Review Framework for more information.