Political science is deeply but reluctantly involved in learning outcomes assessment. A 2013 survey reveals that political science departments are using assessment data strategically to satisfy mandates and obtain resources. By applying criteria developed by Frickel and Gross, outcomes assessment in higher education can be understood as an example…

A considerable gap exists in understanding the educational and career trajectories of Latina students attending rural postsecondary institutions. Although the number of rural students entering college has increased, their experiences and the factors influencing their academic success and future careers have been largely overlooked. Research on…

There is a growing interest in understanding more precisely the contribution of HE to student learning outcomes. We present a systematic review of the literature published between 2000 and 2023 in the WoS and Scopus databases. We identified 49 research articles that analyse individual and institutional variables related to student's academic and…

This study reviews the implications of the 2014 reporting regulation for public higher education institutions (PHEIs) in South Africa. Guided by the monitoring and evaluation logical framework model and the theory of change, the research assesses the alignment between the regulation's outcomes and practical implementation. Employing a Document…

The George Mason University (Mason) offices responsible for institutional reporting and assessment were merged to strengthen and solidify their functions and expertise. The organizational structure creating the Office of Institutional Effectiveness and Planning (OIEP) was intended to engineer a new paradigm where assessment would inform the…

The term Assessment and Verification is an integral part of the student achievement and considered as a fundamental function of higher education. Assessment and verification confirm and assures the academic integrity and standard which has a vital impact on student behaviour, colleagues' involvements, the university reputation and finally the…

On their own, student learning and development outcomes assessment data have limited utility for improving programming. We believe outcomes data should not be collected until two fundamental questions can be answered: "Why should this programming result in the desired outcome?" (i.e., program theory) and "Was the intended…

Service-learning as a transformative pedagogy has been adopted within Hong Kong's tertiary education sector for over a decade; however, the lack of a standardized and validated measurement instrument to assess its student learning outcomes has been an obstacle to its further development. The current research study, collaboratively conducted by…

This research study is primarily conducted to tap the potential of academic leadership, experiential learning, and students' employability in enhancing higher education performance. The study uses a survey to collect responses of 400 respondents from Higher Educational Institutions (HEIs). PLS-SEM has been used to design the model. Academic…

Learning outcomes are used throughout assessment processes in higher education. In many countries their use is mandatory, with a frequent assumption that they bring many positive benefits to educational processes. Yet, there are tensions associated with them and their current mode of use has far less flexibility than they should provide. This…

Higher education institutions struggle to demonstrate learning improvement (Banta, Jones, & Black, 2009; Banta & Blaich, 2011; Jankowski, Timmer, Kinzie, & Kuh, 2018). We showcase how student learning outcomes assessment processes can benefit from strong program theory and implementation fidelity data. In our example, faculty…

Although most higher education programs include a capstone course to culminate the student experience, program directors disagree on what the experience should look like. Updating previous research, this study examined the main goals, teaching methods, and subject areas covered in journalism and mass communication capstone courses. It also…

This article uses the example of Germany to elaborate on the historical development, the current practice, and recent debates on employability. Employability as an outspoken aim of higher education was only established in recent decades due to the introduction of Polytechnics, the expansion of higher education, and the Bologna-Process. Despite the…

To facilitate familiarity and comfort with outcomes assessment, we map three sets of student affairs professional standards to the outcomes assessment cycle. Although the standards differ in focus (i.e., individual competencies versus program characteristics), the mapping showcases the immense similarity in expectations regarding the gathering of…

The world of higher education has been changing rapidly over the last 30 years with the move to mass education due to the needs of the knowledge economy for an appropriately skilled labour force and driven by continuous advances in technology. The purpose of this publication is to provide an overview of how quality assurance (QA) bodies are…