Welcome to Help Topics.
Using this page:
Common user inquiries are collected into the help topics below.
If a topic is not presented please submit a help request:
Using this page:
Common user inquiries are collected into the help topics below.
If a topic is not presented please submit a help request:
The AAPAR Boot Camp is a series of short online trainings designed to empower all faculty members and administrators with the knowledge and skills needed to complete assessment reports and utilize AAPAR effectively.
About the AAPAR Service:
The Annual Academic Program Assessment database is available to faculty and staff who have assigned accounts. Contact your department chair or program assessment coordinator to be given editing capabilities in the service.
The reports are living documents and are intended to provide a record of ongoing academic program assessment for university accreditation compliance, professional program accreditation, UB comprehensive program review, and act as a resource for institutional, program and academic strategic planning. We recommend program committees regularly update assessment reports as part of their regular work to keep their report up-to-date and reduce the need to organize a specialized review prior to the annual reporting deadline.
Annual assessment report deadline and requirements:
Each year, the program coordinator must submit a report detailing the assessment activities for the year, including results and identified improvements. Assessment reports are due annually by the last day of October.
In order to ensure compliance with the Middle States Commission on Higher Education's accrediting standards, all academic programs should assess at least one learning outcome per year, with the entire set of program learning outcomes being scheduled for assessment in a five year cycle. A five year cycle of assessment helps ensure that programs are in compliance with either external program accreditation and or Comprehensive Program Review (CPR).
Program Reporting Work Reduction:
Regular review and update of program assessment reports will reduce the work load required to complete reports by the annual September due date. The recommended practice is to include review of program assessment reports at regular department chair and program coordination meetings.
Program Learning Outcome
A learning outcome is a statement that defines what knowledge and skills students will be assessed for when they complete a study - what students will know and be able to do because they have completed a program. While a student learning outcome (SLO) can be measured at many levels: course (CLO), program (PLO), and institutional (ILO); for the purposes of the AAPAR student learning outcomes are measured at the program level.
Systematic and periodic course and program assessment with thoughtful review of results helps ensure that the university is meeting its goals for academic excellence and a transformative student experience. The Office of Curriculum, Assessment and Teaching Transformation provides leadership and oversight for assessment of student learning at UB.
Editing A Program Learning Outcome
Edits to program learning outcomes must be submitted through the "UB Degree & Course Catalog" website.
To view or report on a program learning outcome select the icon on the outcome. The outcome reporting section will open where you will be able to view or edit reporting for the outcome.
Assessment Method
How the outcome will be measured. Who will be assessed, when, and how often: Student learning outcomes have been written for this program. However, they are not written in terms of what students will know or be able to do as a result of successfully completing the program or they are not clearly measurable. Measurable PLOs have been written in terms of what students will know or be able to do as a result of completing the program. The statement of PLOs is publicly available. The PLOs are measurable and also transparently consistent with the sponsoring department’s/school’s mission and goals. The statement of PLOs is publicly available and incorporated into program-specific publications, including web-based and hard copy, for students.
Statement of PLOs
Publishing PLOs (while part of the MSCHE requirements) is a recommended activity but is not yet tracked in the UB AAPAR. This requirement will become part of AAPAR reporting during the 2021-22 reporting cycle.
Success Criteria
The level of performance which represents mastery and what proportion of students should be achieving mastery: Assessment of student learning outcomes takes place on an established schedule, and all PLOs are assessed. Most of the outcomes incorporate the use of direct measures of learning and some may include indirect measures. Direct measures of learning are used to assess each PLO and these are consistently supplemented by indirect measures, as appropriate. All PLOs are assessed on an established schedule.
Direct and Indirect Measures
Direct assessments collect evidence of student learning or achievement directly from students and the works that they submit such as:
Indirect assessments are analysis of reported perceptions, provided by students, faculty, third parties or other vehicles or proxies such as:
Assessment Findings
The assessment results and what they show about student learning: Assessment results are collected and recorded in a place accessible by program faculty and administrators, but there is no evidence that faculty are considering the results for the purpose of program modification and improvement. Assessment results are accessible and consistently considered by program faculty. In addition, conclusions and recommendations based on consideration of assessment results are regularly shared with administrators and/or in public forums.
Faculty Consideration
Public statement of PLOs and consistent consideration of assessment results by program faculty (while part of the MSCHE requirements) is not yet required in the UB AAPAR. This requirement will become part of AAPAR reporting during the 2021-22 reporting cycle. These activities could be reported in the PLO actions based on findings report field or in the planning section of the program assessment report.
Actions Based On Findings
A brief description of actions that will be taken to improve the program or courses in the program baseed on the assessment findings: Assessment data are examined when considering program improvements. Program modification is not guided by the goal to improve learning assessment results. Assessment results are regularly examined and there is evidence the results have served as the basis of program modifications designed to improve learning assessment results.
UB ILO Mapping
A list of institutional learning outcomes (ILO) that map to this learning outcome: All program PLOs are linked to university ILOs and a clear and specific depiction of how the PLOs contribute to the fulfillment of ILOs exists. Appropriate detail about the ILOs linked to a PLO should be included in the methods and criteria sections for that PLO.
Course Mapping
A list of courses from this program that directly address this learning outcome: A comprehensive curriculum map has been created showing clear linkages between all PLOs and programmatic requirements. The curriculum map also shows progressions, as appropriate to the program, from introduction to mastery of PLOs and ties these progressions to successive course requirements. Appropriate detail about the courses linked to a PLO should be included in the methods and criteria sections for that PLO.
Academic Experience Mapping
A mapping of academic experiences, real-world-practical knowledge students engaged in during a curricular or extra-curricular activity, that can be show to impact the learning outcomes for this program. Appropriate detail about the experiences linked to a PLO should be included in the methods and criteria sections for that PLO.
Experience mapping is an optional new feature, is not included in completion statistics or dashboard reporting, and is not required for curriculum mapping.
Menu of Academic Experiences:
Curriculum Mapping and Degrees of Learning
Thinking About Curriculum Mapping
Mapped institutional outcomes, courses, and academic experiences should be selected based on curriculum design and at least one course, and where appropriate learning experience, should be mapped to each PLO. In some cases mapping all courses or academic experiences in a curriculum may not be desirable – instead mapping a representational set of courses and experiences that align with PLO assessment methods and criteria is recommended. Please contact your Assessment Council Representative and Educational Effectiveness Liaison to discuss your course mapping questions.
Primary Assessed Program:
The primary program sets the learning outcomes that all associated programs are assessed against.
The programs and advanced certificates listed in the AAPAR service have been approved through the appropriate undergraduate or graduate new and revised program approval process. Program and degree listings within AAPAR are informed by results of the program approval process.
Program Title and Degree Listing:
It is the policy of AAPAR to list programs and degrees using the official program title and degree abbreviation provided through SUNY SED.
Request A Change to Title or Degree:
If you find that a primary program or associated program has a title or degree that is listed incorrectly please use the edit icon next to that listing to submit a change request. All change requests will be confirmed with the appropriate resource and a staff member will respond with details.
Associated Programs:
Programs that are assessed using the learning outcomes of a primary program.
Types of associated programs listed in this tool are:
Not all programs listed will have associated programs. When associated programs are listed the listing is displayed in the following manner: Program Title - Degree Abbreviation - Additional Program Area and Type. If you find that a program listed as an associated program should be elevated to a primary program with its own set of learning outcomes, or you note that a program is missing from the associated listing, or should be demoted from a primary program to an associated program, please use the an associated program edit icon to request a change.
Reporting on Residencies, Fellowships, Internships, and Preceptorship
These kinds of activities, even if they are assessed specifically for professional accreditation, are really methods of assessment for a larger program. If a residency/fellowship/preceptorship/internship was a program it would have an SED associated with it and grant a degree or certificate of advanced study. The following are methods for including a a residency/fellowship/proprietorship/internship into your program assessment report:
The AAPAR is provided as a place to report on program learning assessment activities and to manage clarifying updates to program learning outcomes and the dimensions by which they are measured. Substantial alterations that alter the learning outcomes of the program such that the program is no longer targeting or assessing the same learning should first go through the appropriate undergraduate or graduate program change processes. Please contact your University Assessment Council(UAC) Representative and Educational Effectiveness Liaison if you have questions about program or learning outcome alterations.
Required UB Affiliation
You must be a UB faculty or staff member to access the AAPAR web application. If you are not UB faculty or staff but feel you should have access to the AAPAR web application, contact the Program Chair or administrative support person, department Institutional Assessment Council representative (IAC), or Program Assessment Coordinator (PAC) who wishes you to have access and have them contact their CATT Assessment Liaison (see link beow).
Registering With AAPAR
Any faculty or staff who tries to login to AAPAR will be directed to a register page if they do not have and active account. A person must register with AAPAR before they can be given department or program report editing privileges. Once a registration is completed the user will be redirected to their user dashboard. A registration provides access to the AAPAR service, it does not assign department or program access.
Access to AAPAR Department and Program Reports
Once registered with AAPAR a user can be assigned editor roles, at the department or program level, by any user that has editing rights for that department or program report. Contact the program chair, department administrative support person, Institutional Assessment Council (IAC)representative, or Program Assessment Coordinator to be given editor status for that department or program report.
The AAPAR web application is optimized for viewing and editing on desktop and tablet web browsers. The service can be viewed and operated on smart-phone and other web-capable devices; however, for your best viewing and editing experience we recommend use of desktop and tablet web browsers.
Data Fields in the interface
Each field in the AAPAR data has been configured to hold as concise a piece of data as possible so display of data in the user interface can be consistent and provide users with a common set of display and editing expectations.
The About Page
General details and information about the service are displayed here.
Program Report User Dashboard
The dashboard provides a set of user tools for accessing the AAPAR service. Listed on the dashboard are:
Service Access Details
Submitted Requests
This section will display and provide updates on any help requests that have submitted through the interface. If no help requests have been submitted then this section will not display.
Units and Departments You have Access To
When the service is available this section displays units and departments which the user has been assigned program reports in. If a user does not see a department that should be assigned to them, then contact the department chair or program assessment coordinator to have the user added.
Program Report Department Homepage
The department homepage displays general department details and a listing of the programs within the department the user has been been assigned to. If a user does not see a program that should be assigned to them, then contact the department chair or program assessment coordinator to have the user added.
Program Report
Assessment reporting is completed using the program report page. Each of the report areas and the fields within them are individually editable.
The following icons are tools that allow you to interact with page items in AAPAR reports.
Optimized For Tablet and Desktop
The AAPAR web application is optimized for viewing and editing on desktop and tablet web browsers. The service can be viewed and operated on smart-phone and other web-capable devices; however, for your best viewing and editing experience we recommend use of desktop and tablet web browsers.
When composing new content or completing large updates:
When making short edits and grammar corrections:
Common Problems:
The AAPAR web-app is optimized to allow for printing/exporting using tools installed in all major web browsers.
You can print or export using the following steps:
For best results choose the following options in the print dialog box:
To export a page as a PDF file, follow the options above and:
On a Desktop:
On a Tablet or Mobile Device:
Editor Roles and Access
Access to program assessment reports are based on the department and editor roles assigned within the AAPAR interface. Department editors (Deans, Chairs, Administrative Support, and Institutional Assessment Council representatives) are able to view and edit all program reports for the department. Users assigned as Program Assessment Coordinators are able to view all reportes in the department but are only able to edit report they are assigned to.
'View' and 'Edit' Buttons
Users will see a 'View' button whenever a program report is not available for editing – this can be due to a report having been checked out by another user or because the user does not have editing rights. Any user who has the right to edit at a department level or who is currently able to edit a specific program report, can add/modify editors for that program report.
Program Status
Program status indicates the visibility of a program in the AAPAR interface and determines if the program will be included in service statistic reporting.
The status types are:
Note on Change From Active Program Status:
Programs that change from an active program status must continue to meet the minimum reporting requirements:
Note on Service Archive:
When the AAPAR service archives program reports the archive will be maintained at the department level. Programs in archives will be grouped by their status. When archives are completed any program with a status of 'discontinued' will be removed from the department data. Program archives are made after each reporting cycle is complete – currently reporting cycles end on the last day of September.
Program Archives
Once per assessment cycle the AAPAR service will be closed while program assessment reports are archived, typically after the reporting cycle is complete – currently reporting cycles end on the last day of September. The archive process creates a snapshot of the existing program reports, including any attached documents, and makes them available as a resource to department and report editors in subsequent reporting cycles. Archived reports are not able to be edited but can be accessed through the AAPAR service and are able to be exported. Program assessment report archives are maintained at the program report level and are organized by the assessment cycle in which they were created. When archives are completed any program with a status of 'discontinued' will be removed from the department data going forward.
Program Report Editing
Department details and program report content editing can be assigned to UB faculty and staff who have registered with AAPAR. User editing roles can be assigned by any editor at the department or program report level.
Registering With AAPARAny faculty or staff who tries to login to AAPAR will be directed to a register page if they do not have and active account. Before you try to assign an editor role ask the person to login to AAPAR and register (see About Access below). If you need further assistance registering or assigning editor roles contact your IAC representative or CATT Liasion.
Department Editor Roles:
Program Editor Roles:
Users With a Department Editor Role Can:
Users With a Program Editor Role Can:
General Tips – Add or Modify an Editor:
If an editor is incorrectly listed or listed with the wrong role they can be modified by selecting the edit icon next to the editor:
Note About Access:A person must register (see above) with AAPAR before they can be given department or program report editing privileges. If you try to add a person that does not currently have access to the AAPAR service you will get an error instructing you to request the user be added to AAPAR.
Purpose of the overview statistics
The unit and department overview statistics are intended to provide report editors a quick view onto the reporting levels for program reports in a unit or department.
An assessment report is considered complete when a program report has:
An outcome is completely assessed when the following dimensions are completed:
*Indicated by red text in table.
A dash in the table (-) indicates a report with a status type that is not included in statistics reporting.
Assessment within an academic program can be easily organized and implemented by selecting one of the following assessment frameworks as a starting point for the design of the program assessment plan.
This rubric, adapted from the SUNY Council on Assessment (SCoA) Academic Program Assessment Rubric, is used by the Institutional Assessment Council to share feedback to academic departments undergoing Comprehensive Program Review. This rubric can also be used within departments and by program coordinators/directors to review their own assessment activities.
This document provides a template for the information required to be reported in the annual assessment report.
General Tips – We Recommend using Adobe Reader or Pro Desktop Application