Welcome

Mission

Goal: To be a trusted provider of timely, relevant, and unbiased information and services.

The mission of the Office of Institutional Research and Assessment is to provide institutional information to external reporting groups as well as University decision-makers in support of planning, policy formulation, resource allocation, and the advancement of University operations. This is accomplished by managing and stewarding official University data, conducting data analysis, performing assessment research, and creating both static and dynamic visualization reports.

Core Functions

Mandated regulatory reporting to external groups [National Center for Education Statistics (NCES), Alabama Commission on Higher Education (ACHE), Southern Association for Colleges and Schools Commission on Colleges (SACSCOC), and University of Alabama System (UAS), as well as media and ranking agencies that have bearing on the University image and reputation]. Decision-support information for University units' (leadership administration, colleges or schools, departments, programs, or committees) administrative and operational support. Responsible for creating, managing, and stewardship of official University data and information. Assessment-related research to evaluate and illuminate issues associated with the University units' operations and functions. Create and distribute static and dynamic information visualization reports to advance the University units' operations and enhance the information flow within the University.

This office has access to a great deal of confidential data regarding the campus, personnel, and students. It is critical for the office to maintain the trust of the campus in its handling of these data. Therefore, this office adheres to the accepted “Code of Ethics” for our profession.

Definitions of Institutional Research

“Institutional research has to do with what decisions makers need to know about an institution, its educational objectives, goals and purposes, environmental factors, process, and structures to more wisely use its resources, more successfully attain its objectives and goals, and to demonstrate integrity and accountability in so doing.”

Dressel, P. L. The shaping of institutional research and planning. Research in Higher Education, 51 (2).

"Institutional research is the sum total of all activities directed at empirically describing the full spectrum of functions (educational, administrative, and support) at a college or university. Institutional research activities examine those functions in their broadest definitions and, in the context of both internal and external environments, embrace data collection and analytical strategies in support of decision making at the institution."

Middaugh, M.F. (1990). "The Nature and Scope of Institutional Research," Organizing Effective Institutional Research Offices. New Directions for Institutional Research, no. 66. San Francisco, Jossey-Bass.