Assessment at Millersville University

At Millersville University, student learning is the primary focus. Systematic learning outcomes assessment occurs at the program- and the University-level with the intent to determine the effectiveness of the programs and provides opportunities to continuously improve student learning.

The University recently updated its General Education curriculum and assesses the following fundamental competencies: critical reasoning, oral and written communication, mathematical reasoning, scientific reasoning, information literacy, and technology literacy.

Millersville is regionally accredited through the Middle States Commission for Higher Education; and 86% of academic programs that can seek accreditation in their field are accredited. Most MU students successfully pass licensure exams when part of the preparation for their professional career. During 2007-08 in the School of Education , 98.9% of Millersville students passed their Praxis exam.

Intended Student Outcomes and Administrative Objectives

The key to effective outcomes assessment is clearly specifying intended student outcomes or administrative objectives. Intended student outcomes are the knowledge and skills that faculty members intend students to get from a course of study. Administrative objectives are the intended results of service delivery or support to the institution. Outcomes are simply what we intend to accomplish through our work. They provide an ideal platform for the identification of measurable, or ascertainable, criteria – which can also be referred to as “targets.”

Measurable Criteria or Targets

Measurable criteria “operationalize” the intended student outcomes and administrative objectives. These are indicators that suggest to us if we accomplished what we intended to via instructional or service delivery. It's important to note that measurable criteria do not have to be “measurable,” per se. Qualitative indicators – usually consensus driven – are just as viable as quantitative indicators. While they tend to be more time-consuming and interpretive, they usually provide a rich source of data.

Millersville University is currently piloting a new and innovative approach to instructional assessment called degree specification. It features a simple design that uniquely address several assessment criteria of the Middle States Commission on Higher Education, including program level outcomes, general education outcomes and degree coherence. Click on the link to learn more about degree specification.

Please use the link provided for Institutional Research for important facts and reports about Millersville University. For information regarding the newly-formed University Planning Council and University division strategic plans, use the link provided for Strategic Planning. For information regarding outcomes assessment for academic and non-academic departments, use the link for Comprehensive Assessment Summaries.

Millersville Self-Study

Middle States Standards by Working Groups

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