Since 2004, U.S. states have collected information from former students with disabilities about their employment and further education activities in the first year after leaving high school. About one year after they leave school, young adults who had Individualized Education Programs (IEPs) are asked some very important questions: Are they…

The purpose of "Branding your Post-School Outcomes Data Collection Process" is to help state education agencies create brand recognition with youths, families, and school personnel for the post-school outcomes survey. Recognition--paired with information about the survey purpose, who is conducting the interview, and how the information…

The practical goal of graduate education is placement of graduates. But what does "placement" mean? Academics use the word without thinking much about it. "Placement" is a great keyword for the graduate-school enterprise. For one thing, its meaning certainly gives a purpose to graduate education. Furthermore, the word is a portal into the way of…

This Eurydice report contains more than 30 detailed structural indicators, up-to-date figures, definitions, country notes and a short analysis of recent key policy developments and reforms in five areas: early childhood education and care, achievement in basic skills, early leaving from education and training, higher education and graduate…

The major emphasis of the National Longitudinal Study of the High School Class of 1972 (NLS) has been directed toward individuals in the 1972 high school graduating class. Consequently, sampling parameters were established to ensure student representation, and the bulk of data collected were individual-level data. School-level data exist on a…

The data presented in this report show trends in doctorate awards by science and engineering fields and recipient characteristics, institutions awarding doctorates, and postgraduation plans of recipients for the years 1987-1996. The source of the data is the Survey of Earned Doctorates (SED). The SED is conducted annually for the National Research…

Schools are under great public pressure to improve student performance and report to the public. Under the No Child Left Behind Act, schools need ways to get timely, useful and important post-graduation information for planning and reporting purposes. Tracking high school graduates can be a time-consuming and frustrating job, especially when it…

An alumni survey is an unbeatable tool for realizing and tapping the potential of alumni. It can also help win recognition of the importance of alumni constituency. A comprehensive survey creates an effective database on each alumnus. (MLW)

Various procedures, technologies, and products were developed by the Massachusetts Board of Regents and the Massachusetts Community Colleges in implementing the student followup component of the Vocational Education Data System (VEDS). The Board of Regents took the lead in coordinating the VEDS followup study among the 15 state-supported community…

TRACE is a system for conducting followup surveys of high school graduates using a stratified random sampling model. Developed and tested in the State of California, the system has been approved as an alternate method that districts may use to obtain data for State-required vocational education reports. Intended for administrators at the school or…

Launching an alumni survey requires consultation with many campus constituencies, thoughtful decisions about intent and content, careful planning of all operational procedures and proper promotion. Census surveys, telephone versus mail surveys, decisions on data entry, timelines, costs, publicizing, etc. are discussed. (MLW)

Sophisticated computers and statistical software offer expanded opportunities for elaborate data analysis but also require careful preparation of data and thoughtful selection of analytical techniques. Data preparation, organization of data analysis, and dissemination of the results are discussed. (MLW)

Techniques used by large and small institutions to trace and keep track of alumni are outlined, based on data from a national survey. Additionally, two articles on recordkeeping are presented. For 19 of the 27 institutions surveyed, information is provided on: institutional data regarding alumni population, staff assigned to tracing lost alumni,…

The purpose of this manual is to suggest adaptable procedures and materials that can be used by Alaska vocational educators to evaluate their automotive mechanic programs systematically. Section 1 is an introduction to the manual and to the evaluation process. The remaining six sections represent major tasks or activities that should be…

Accreditation, budget, and accountability pressures at the institution and program levels lead to the involvement of faculty in assessment-based activities. Increasingly, programs are being expected to document student learning beyond traditional course grades. The use of outcomes as a tool to improve learning relies heavily on the active…