| Samuel Merritt University Evaluation Cycles and Data Collection Tools/Processes |
| Data Collection Tool/Process | Purpose of Evaluation | Frequency | Implementation Time Frame | Results and Report Availability |
| Institutional |
| Dashboard of Institutional Performance | A visual display conveying at a glance a summary of the most important information about SMU's performance | Monthly | Monthly | Mid month |
| Course and Faculty Evaluations | Student evaluation of a course and the instructor | Semester | September-January (Fall), January-April (Spring), May-August (Summer) | End of semester, mid semester |
| Alumni Survey | Employment conditions of SMU graduates
Professional competencies
Satisfaction with SMU experience | Annual | May-August | October |
| Employer Survey | Employer satisfaction with Alumni performance
Employer ratings of SMU graduates' professional competencies | Annual | May-August | October |
| Faculty and Staff Climate Survey | Measure employee satisfaction with -
Campus atmosphere
Offices and Services
Leadership
Provide data for dashboard indicators of divisional performance
Provide qualitative data to support satisfaction measures
Provide data for self evaluation, improvement and strategic planning at institutional, program, department level | Every two years | January-February | March |
| Student Climate Survey | Measure student satisfaction with -
Academic experience
University atmosphere
Offices and Services
Learning achievement
Provide data for dashboard indicators of divisional performance
Provide qualitative data to support satisfaction measures
Provide data for self evaluation, improvement and strategic planning at institutional, program, department level | Annual | February-March | April |
| Fact Book | Report Comprehensive University Facts - Internal audience | Annual | Annually | December |
| Fact Sheet | Report Summarized University Facts - External audience | Annual | Annually | July |
| Enrollment Census Data | | Semester | Fall, Spring and Summer | |
| EOW (Experience of Work) Survey | Assess work conditions, build employee engagement, identify priorities for improvement, benchmark and track progress over time
| Annual | November | January |
| Departmental |
| Survey of Admitted Applicants who did not enroll | Reasons for not enrolling | Weekly Ongoing | January-December | January |
| Survey of Applicants who Declined Interview | Reasons for not coming to interview | Weekly Ongoing | January-December | Immediate real time results as responses come in |
| Entering Students Survey | Assess admission and registration experience
Improve SMU services to students
Determine which sources of information are most useful to students' decisions to apply to SMU
Main reasons for choosing SMU | Fall - All Programs, Spring - ABSN, BSN and MSN-EL (Sacramento), Summer - ABSN | Fall, Spring and Summer | Fall - October
Spring - February
Summer - June |
| Orientation Evaluation Survey | Improve the new student orientation program
| Fall - All Programs, Spring - ABSN, BSN and MSN-EL (Sacramento), Summer - ABSN | Fall, Spring and Summer | Fall - November
Spring - March Summer - July |
| Program exit surveys | Survey preparedness of exiting students | Annual | As required | As required |
| Regulatory |
| Integrated Postsecondary Education Data System (IPEDS) surveys for National Center for Educational Statistics (NCES) | Mandatory reporting of University Facts | Annual | September-October (Fall), December-January (Winter), March-April (Spring) | IPEDS Feedback Report available in June |
| WASC Annual Report | Mandatory reporting of University Facts | Annual | | |
| External (please contact IR for complete list of external surveys) |