In institution research, surveys of students or faculty can be a helpful tool to gather data. Surveying a sample of students or faculty and computing weights to be able to make inferences to your student or faculty population are important. In this chapter, we introduce the connected topics of sampling and weighting. We begin with a discussion on…

As we become increasingly acquainted with the rich opportunities that analytics systems can provide, there is a commensurate need to consider the extent to which analytics tools are effectively integrated, with proper training, into the day-to-day functioning of higher education professionals. This chapter explores the extent to which predictive…

This chapter provides institutional researchers a foundation to understand workforce data and how they can be accessed and used within an institutional research operating culture. Specific wage methodologies, earnings reporting, and future directions for using wage data are provided.

The sophisticated analytical techniques available to institutional researchers give them an array of procedures to estimate a causal effect using observational data. But as many quantitative researchers have discovered, access to a wider selection of statistical tools does not necessarily ensure construction of a better analytical model. Moreover,…

In this article, the authors offer a brief discussion of the challenges posed by traditional approaches and the need for race- and culture-specific methods in the study of Asian American administrators. The authors discuss a research project, conducted by the first author, that focused on exploring the experiences of Asian American senior…

This article describes a mixed-methods approach to integrating the methodological tools of social network analysis and qualitative research to explore intersectionality as it pertains to faculty experiences in institutional contexts. These research strategies, employed at the individual and aggregate levels, can be useful tools as institutions aim…

This article familiarizes readers with how to analyze personnel selection decisions in employment discrimination litigation. First, the authors outline some of the basic legal principles that serve as the basis for analyses related to claims of discriminatory employment practices. Second, they describe how to conduct a scientific investigation of…

The author introduces her critical and feminist perspective, elaborates on her critical approach, and discusses how this influenced the development of her research questions, methodology, data analysis, interpretation, and presentation of findings.

The vast amount of research conducted on student persistence over the past thirty years is indicative of the continuing and evolving interest in retention of students. Framed through multiple perspectives, this retention research is driven by the fact that more students leave institutions without graduating, year after year. Much more than an…

This case study documents a successful application of data-mining techniques in enrollment management through a partnership between the admissions office, a business administration master's-degree program, and the institutional research office at Willamette University (Salem, Oregon). (Contains 1 table and 3 figures.)

In Carleton College's attempts to find a technique for measuring prospective students' perceptions of college price and educational quality, it discovered that student attitudes about educational value were reflected in the relationship between those two dimensions. (MSE)

What is faith development? Can it be assessed? Which environments and experiences are most conducive to growth in faith? These are a few of the questions that the Faithful Change research project attempts to address. (Contains 1 table.)

Findings from a universitywide values research project connects students' attitudes and behaviors about institutional mission and values to their perceived impact. (Contains 3 figures.)

A pilot study of undergraduate institutions that tests the value of the reputational rating approach, which uses subjective questionnaires, is described. It is suggested that there is no substantial evidence that quantification of subjective opinions is inferior to quantification of objective indicators when national assessments are conducted.…

Focusing on student retention and time to degree completion, this study illustrates how institutional researchers may benefit from the power of predictive analyses associated with data-mining tools. The following are appended: (1) Predictors; and (2) Variable Definitions. (Contains 5 figures.)