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Building Capacity in Institutional Research Around the World: IR Grows Wider and Stronger Each Year
Data-informed decision making continues to be a focal point for higher education leaders around the world, and professionals who endeavor tasks related to institutional research continue to grow in many regions acros...Read Moreabout: Building Capacity in Institutional Research Around the World: IR Grows Wider and Stronger Each Year -
Strategic Analytics and Its Applications in University Decision Making
What Is Strategic Analytics?Strategic analytics is a relatively new concept for institutional research and effectiveness in higher education. Currently, a small number of universities have adopted “strategic analyt...Read Moreabout: Strategic Analytics and Its Applications in University Decision Making -
People Are the Heart of AIR
I remember well my first AIR Forum. The year was 1997 and the Forum was in Orlando. I was relatively new to institutional research (IR), and the convergence of so many IR people at the national meeting was both exhilarat...Read Moreabout: People Are the Heart of AIR -
AI in Higher Education: Implications for Institutional Research
Although the COVID-19 pandemic forced a temporary shift in focus, we now see a return to further development and implementation of advanced technologies and broader uses of Big Data in education and other work sector...Read Moreabout: AI in Higher Education: Implications for Institutional Research -
Online Colleges and Universities: Are They Delivering on Diversity and Inclusion? A Recent Analysis from IPEDS Data
Although several studies have examined diversity and inclusion in higher education, they have largely overlooked online colleges and universities. Online education has become more popular due to the COVID-19 pandemic and...Read Moreabout: Online Colleges and Universities: Are They Delivering on Diversity and Inclusion? A Recent Analysis from IPEDS Data -
Order Up! Everything I Learned About Institutional Research Came from Working in Restaurants
The few of us in this world who have endeavored to hone our skills and talents in the field of institutional research (IR) do so with the thought that ours is a truly unique profession. I mean, if one thinks about it, th...Read Moreabout: Order Up! Everything I Learned About Institutional Research Came from Working in Restaurants -
The Provision of PII Data on Faculty and Staff by Institutional Researchers
One of the primary responsibilities of offices of Institutional Research (IR) is responding to ad hoc requests for data on students, faculty, and staff at their institutions. Some of these ad hoc requests are for persona...Read Moreabout: The Provision of PII Data on Faculty and Staff by Institutional Researchers -
Conducting Generalizability Studies with Unbalanced Data
In a recently published article in AIR Professional File (Sturgis, Marchand, Miller, Xu, and Castiglioni, 2022), I, along with my co-authors, introduce generalizability theory (G-theory) to institutional research (IR) pr...Read Moreabout: Conducting Generalizability Studies with Unbalanced Data -
An IR Offices Reflection: Responding to Annual Reporting for Year Two of the Higher Education Emergency Relief Fund (HEERF)
Recently, the federal government asked institutions that received Higher Education Emergency Relief Fund (HEERF) funding to report data for year two of the reporting cycle. The request this year included multiple items t...Read Moreabout: An IR Offices Reflection: Responding to Annual Reporting for Year Two of the Higher Education Emergency Relief Fund (HEERF) -
Good Institutional Research Is More About Managing People than Managing Data
Performance management and professional development are frequently discussed interchangeably, yet one is a reflection on the past while the other is forward looking. When I think of performance management, I think ab...Read Moreabout: Good Institutional Research Is More About Managing People than Managing Data -
Creating a Common Data Language on Campus
A former provost, who is now a college president, told me that IR is “The Keeper of Truth.” This seems logical, as IR should be the point of contact for both internal data analysis and external data repor...Read Moreabout: Creating a Common Data Language on Campus -
5 Tips for Implementing a Data and Analytics Culture
When I hear “data and analytics culture,” I immediately think of the work Jason Simon and his team are doing at the University of North Texas (UNT). Jason Simon, Ph.D., Associate Vice President of ...Read Moreabout: 5 Tips for Implementing a Data and Analytics Culture -
IR Professionals as Change Agents
When I began working in the field of institutional research (IR) in 2010, my daily tasks consisted of completing some externally mandated reports and a few ad hoc internal requests. Today, there are daily data requests, ...Read Moreabout: IR Professionals as Change Agents -
In Memoriam: Alexander Astin
The AIR community mourns the loss of Alexander Astin, who was a pioneer of student experience research and theories and professor emeritus at the UCLA School of Education & Information Studies. He passed away May 18 ...Read Moreabout: In Memoriam: Alexander Astin -
Why Good Intentions Aren’t Enough to Use Data Ethically
Significant ethical scandals are thankfully rare in institutional research and effectiveness (IR/IE). Every few years brings a case of an institution that has deliberately falsified data, usually data for external survey...Read Moreabout: Why Good Intentions Aren’t Enough to Use Data Ethically -
The Importance of Class Size: An Interview with Mark Umbricht
AIR talked to Mark Umbricht, Director of Data Analysis and Research at University of North Carolina System, to chat about how his 2018 AIR Forum session was referenced in Ron Lieber’s book, The Price You ...Read Moreabout: The Importance of Class Size: An Interview with Mark Umbricht -
Raising the Data Literate and Qualitatively Responsible
Back in fall 2006, I had barely started my career in the IR/IE field, and our oldest child was starting her first year in Governor’s School in Virginia. One of her assigned books was How to Lie with Statistics by...Read Moreabout: Raising the Data Literate and Qualitatively Responsible -
Introduction to Data Ethics
Every day, more than 2.5 exabytes (1 exabyte = 1 billion gigabytes) of data are produced. By the end of 2025, estimates suggest that number will rise to 436 exabytes. Data is truly everywhere, and its use is expanding an...Read Moreabout: Introduction to Data Ethics -
Ethical Use of Data: Scenarios for Discussion
The full impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on our students, prospective students, faculty, and staff is not yet known. Institutional research professionals can help support a better understanding of this impact by first r...Read Moreabout: Ethical Use of Data: Scenarios for Discussion -
Considerations for Ethical Use of Data During a Pandemic
The collection, analysis, and reporting of data in ethical ways has always been foundational for institutional research. Ethical research requires not only a high degree of veracity and accuracy in our work, but it als...Read Moreabout: Considerations for Ethical Use of Data During a Pandemic