The Department Review Process at Rensselaer
Program review is often confused with assessment. This is not an assessment of a specific program in your department.
Department review is a review of a unit (what we call a department will be identified as a unit from hereafter in this document). This process is a self-evaluation of the unit according to CAS Standards to identify and prove the work we do and its outcomes, as well as ensure we are meeting standards and developing plans to help a unit meet standards which may not be met in the initial program review. Program review also helps units to identify areas for improvement.
At Rensselaer department review is a two year process, and not all units within a portfolio complete this process at the same time. Units will begin the department review process every 2-4 years, depending on the number of units within each portfolio. The first year of the process is the actual program review according to CAS Standards. The second year of the process is the development and implementation of an action plan based on the completed program review. By lengthening this process into two years, rather than condensing it into one year, there is a greater opportunity to have a full cycle of Assessment, Evaluation, and Research occur for each unit.
It must be recognized that units also have staff who are involved in committees for the three pillars and the CLASS Cohorts. There will be parts of the CAS Standards which let the unit point to work being done in the CLASS Cohorts, rather that requiring the unit to provide duplicate information.
The Division of Student Life is undertaking the program review process as a response to the Middle States Team Report from 2016. The full report may be found online at and requires an RCS account to access. The Evaluation Overview, which begins on Page 4 or the report, indicates that additional assessment across the Institute is needed. Our Division can fulfill this need through the program review process, as well as the other good work we are doing. This also helps build a culture of assessment in our Division and normalizes the process of program review.
