Graduate Assessment Plan

We assess progress toward each of our learning outcomes with a combination of direct and indirect metrics. These are listed in the table below.

Annual Professional Development Plan (Fillable)

Learning Outcome	Direct Metrics	Indirect Metrics
Demonstrate knowledge of the fundamental concepts of Biology	Proportion of students performing At or Above expectations, as decided by the supervisory committee in the “Fundamental concepts” question on the APDP	Proportion of students performing At or Above expectations, as determined by self-assessment of the “Literature” question on the APDP Proportion of graduating students that answer satisfied or very satisfied to a question about learning fundamental concepts in an exit interview
Utilize skills related to the discipline	Proportion of students performing At or Above expectations, as decided by the supervisory committee in the “Utilizes skills” question on the APDP	Proportion of students performing At or Above expectations, as determined by self-assessment of the “Utilizes skills” question on the APDP Proportion of graduating students that answer satisfied or very satisfied to a question about job preparation in an exit interview
Communicate effectively in the methods related to the discipline	Proportion of students performing At or Above expectations, as decided by the supervisory committee in the “Communications skills” question on the APDP	Proportion of students performing At or Above expectations, as determined by self-assessment in the “Communications skills” question on the APDP Proportion of graduating students that answer satisfied or very satisfied to a question about scientific communication skills in an exit interview
Conduct sound research using discipline-appropriate methodologies	Proportion of students performing At or Above expectations, as decided by the supervisory committee in the “Sound research” question on the APDP	Proportion of students performing At or Above expectations, as determined by self-assessment in the “Sound research” question on the APDP

Future Decisions

As we continue to develop and implement this assessment plan, we will direct specific efforts toward the following initiatives.

• Determine whether and how to include skills related to teaching in our assessment plan
• Revisit the structure of comprehensive exams to ensure they test fundamental concepts
• Design a rubric to evaluate comprehensive exams, the research proposal, and thesis/dissertation defense
• Design a seminar course on presentation skills modeled after that required in Chem/Biochem