6 QUALITY INDICATORS
6.1 Undergraduate
Commentary and Context of Data Sets
The Office of Institutional Research and Analysis (IRA) will provide programs going through the IQAP cyclical review with access to program-relevant data through the BI Portal.
Please Note: For assistance or to request any additional data, programs can contact: irahelp@mcmaster.ca
The Quality Assurance Framework suggests that programs provide context and commentary on some of the following data (if available):
- Faculty: qualifications, funding, honours, awards, research, innovation and scholarly record; appropriateness of collective faculty expertise to contribute substantively to the program and commitment to student mentoring.
- Students: applications and registrations; attrition rates; time-to-completion; final-year academic achievement; graduation rates; academic awards; student in-course reports on teaching.
- Graduates: rates of graduation; employment six months and two years after graduation; postgraduate study; alumni reports on program quality when available.
- Other: Any other evidence that the program and faculty ensure the intellectual quality of the student experience.
Below is a sample of the type of data that is available through the portal for undergraduate programs. Programs are asked to provide context and commentary on the data that they include in their report.
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UNDERGRADUATE |
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NOW AVAILABLE ON THE PORTAL |
Grade Point Average Academic Standing Headcount Dean/Provost honour list Fall-Winter Average Course Grades Course Utilization Student units taught 1st year to 2nd year Retention Plan Movement Upper level retention Degrees awarded NSSE Full – Time Faculty In Program Survey Results |
6.2 Graduate
Commentary and Context of Data Sets
The Office of Institutional Research and Analysis (IRA) will provide programs going through the IQAP cyclical review with access to program-relevant data through the BI Portal.
Please Note: For assistance or to request any additional data, programs can contact: irahelp@mcmaster.ca
Below is a sample of the type of data that is available through the portal for graduate programs. Programs are asked to provide context and commentary on the data that they include in their report.
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GRADUATE |
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NOW AVAILABLE ON THE PORTAL |
Flow though data Cohort data Degrees awarded Headcount CGPSS Full – Time Faculty |
Required Graduate Program Criteria:
6.2.1 Time-to-Completion
In addition to the data that is provided centrally by the Institutional Research and Analysis (IRA) office, the program should also provide a narrative on how students’ time-to-completion is both monitored and managed in relation to the program’s defined length and requirement.
6.2.2 Quality and Availability of Graduate Supervision
Please evaluate the quality and availability of graduate student supervision using the template provided below.
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Completed and Current Numbers of Thesis1 Supervisions by Faculty Member |
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Completed |
Current |
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Member |
Master’s |
PhD |
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Master’s |
PhD |
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Ffff 2 |
2(15) |
3(10) |
6 |
1(5) |
0(3) |
2 |
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Gggg |
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If desired, columns (or an additional table) may be added to reflect the supervision of major research papers at the master’s level. Do not include supervisory committee activity in this table.
Faculty members who are involved in more than one graduate program should list the number of students supervised in the program under review and, in parentheses, the total number of students supervised in all graduate programs. (e.g., Ffff is currently supervising 1 Master’s student in the program under review and 5 in total.)
Note: If there are different types of degrees (e.g., MA, PhD) separate categories should be added to the table
6.2.3 Evidence of Faculty, Student and Program Quality
Listed below are some of the indicators that departments may provide as evidence of faculty, student and program quality.
Faculty: funding, honours and awards, and commitment to student mentoring;
Students: grade-level for admission, scholarly output, success rates in provincial and national scholarships, competitions, awards and commitment to professional and transferable skills and times-to-completion and retention rates;
Program: evidence of a program structure and faculty research that will ensure the intellectual quality of the student experience, and commitment to development of professional and transferable skills;
Courses: evidence of sufficient and regular graduate level course offerings to ensure that students will be able to meet university requirements in terms of:
- the minimum number of courses required,
- the level of courses required, and
- the timely completion of other required elements appropriate for the degree level (e.g., transfer exams, comprehensive exams).
