Office of Academic Assessment

Creating a Departmental Assessment Report

• An assessment report should be a utilitarian document.
  • All other suggestions are an elaboration of this central point.
• Provide ONLY the requested information. That is, do not use this assessment report as a venue to talk about issues apart from your examination of student outcomes. If you think additional context will help, refer to Appendices or other supporting documents.
• Think about conveying information in the most concise language possible. Where possible use tables or bullet lists to convey information. Embedding the specifics of your assessment plan and results in lengthy prose makes discerning the relevant information more difficult than when the information is presented in complete but sparse language.
• The "use of results" section of an assessment report is the only area where expanded explanations may be needed. This section can be aided by the providing of additional context in which decisions are made. Remember that any additional information should relate to the assessment results and their use in decision-making. Do not let additional information displace your central description of how outcomes assessment information affects decision-making.