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Academic Program Review (APR)

Program review and assessment is a requirement of the Idaho State Board of Education and the Northwest Commission on Colleges and Universities accreditation standards.  Academic programs complete regular self-studies and external reviews as part of an external accreditation or using the program review process which exists programs without external accreditation. Non-academic units complete program reviews in a format similar to academic programs which do not have external accreditation.  All academic and non-academic units complete a brief annual report due November 1 of each year.

All academic and professional-technical certificate and degree programs must have meaningful, assessable outcome measures. All courses must have measurable learning outcomes. Assessment is an integral part of accreditation and program review. Programs should “start where they are” with assessment.  Programs with detailed assessment plans can review and revise them.  Programs with developing assessment plans can add detail to strengthen them.  The Office of Assessment is available to review your assessment plan and process to help you formulate and implement a plan that yields meaningful data that can help programs “close the loop” or make changes to enhance how they support student success and learning.

Accreditation reports and program reviews are an opportunity to focus on program strengths and identify areas to improve.  External reviews conducted as part of an accreditation or program review can help programs discover ideas and insights. Finding something that can improve is not a problem, but an opportunity to make meaningful adjustments to a program.

Programs With External Accreditation

Programs Without External Accreditation

Non-Academic Unit Review