Graduate
Program Review
Ten-year review
Issues important to the review of a graduate program
Background/quality of program and faculty: How did the program begin? Has its focus changed since the last review? How is the department viewed nationally? What is the breadth of expertise of faculty in the program? What are marks of faculty accomplishment? What curricular changes have been instituted in the graduate program, and for what reasons?
Recruitment: What effort has the department/program made to enhance diversity and have those efforts been successful? How do you know? For instance, what are the characteristics of the applicant pool, and how diverse is the student population? What is the quality of the graduate applicants, as indicated by GPA, GRE, competitive awards, and other measures appropriate to the field? What are the admissions criteria and procedures? What percentage of students are on probation? How many applicants are admitted? Enrolled?
Funding: How are graduate students supported by the department (fellowships, TA’s, PA’s RA’s, traineeships, etc.)? What percentage are funded? How are those funding decisions made? What are the sources of this funding?
Advising/degree committees: How are advisers assigned? At what stage? What process do students employ to change advisers? How many advisees does each faculty member have? How often do students meet with advisers? Do students receive written feedback on their academic progress? How do students choose their degree committees? Are there written guidelines for the reading of theses and dissertations and the scheduling of defenses?
Satisfactory progress guidelines: How is satisfactory progress determined? Does actual practice coincide with published criteria? (The criteria for each program can be found in the Graduate School Catalog.) How do department criteria compare to those in similar programs?
Professional development opportunities for graduate students: Are there opportunities and funding available for graduate students to attend and present at professional meetings? Does the department/program provide/require education in the responsible conduct of research to its students, faculty, and staff (e.g., data management, mentor/trainee relationships, publication practices, peer review, collaborative science issues, human subjects, research involving animals, research misconduct, conflict of interest)? Are there resources and guidance for exploring academic and non-academic careers? Does the program have flexibility that allows students to experience teaching opportunities that advance their careers?
Department or program climate: Is there a climate of an institutional home (community) within the program? Does the program routinely survey its student population and its alumni? Is there a space for meeting? Is there a graduate student organization in the department/program? Are students aware of grievance procedures? Are there formal and informal opportunities for faculty/staff/student interaction? Does the program offer graduate students opportunities to participate on program governance committees? Is there active engagement of enough faculty to build/maintain the governance and administration of the program? Are students encouraged to collaborate with students and faculty in other programs? Are there joint activities with other programs and communities beyond the university?
Department information accessibility: How does the program communicate standards (student handbooks, web sites, notification of progress or lack of progress)? Does the department web site publish satisfactory progress criteria, guidelines for graduate study, admission criteria, faculty interests, curriculum? Is the information on the program's web site consistent with that published in the Graduate School Catalog? Are courses needed by the students readily available? How accessible is the director to students, staff and faculty? How involved is the executive committee?
Assessment of graduate student learning outcomes: Are common learning outcomes for all graduate students in the program clearly defined and known to both faculty and students? Does the program collect and analyze evidence to determine if learning by graduate students meets the program's expectations and if graduate students are prepared for work in the profession? Does the program use the results of its assessment activities for program improvement and continue to monitor the effects of the changes? Overall, is the program engaged in a coherent process of continuous curricular and program improvement?
Optional Questions for Interdisciplinary Programs: How is the program administered? What are the responsibilities of each department, unit, school or college? How are students learning to integrate more than one discipline to address complex research questions? Are students using instruments, techniques or theories from more than one discipline? How do you ensure students have the tools to pursue problem-based and other types of interdisciplinary research? Are interdisciplinary endeavors reflected in master’s theses and doctoral dissertations and how are they evaluated?