Components of the Review Process
Review Components and Procedures
Reviews will encompass several stages, and each review will usually require a full academic year to complete. The components of the review include a departmental self study, an external review and yearly follow-up to evaluate progress toward achieving departmental goals. Each of these components is discussed in more detail below.
Because many departments in the Arts and Sciences have both undergraduate and graduate programs, reviews will be conducted jointly by Emory College and the Graduate School of Arts and Sciences. Deans of both schools will be involved in determining the cycle of reviews, formulating the key questions each review should address, and choosing and charging the external review teams. Internal self studies and external reports will be addressed to both deans. The Associate Dean of the Graduate School will serve as a liaison to the Graduate School Executive Council to keep the Council informed of the plans and progress of the review of graduate programs. Those programs that have only an undergraduate component or only a graduate component will be discussed on a case-by-case basis—in some cases, it may be appropriate to involve deans of both the College and the Graduate School; in other cases, only one dean may be involved.
Reviews will occur at seven-year intervals. Where appropriate, reviews will be clustered to include similar or overlapping academic units, (e.g., institutes, centers, departments or areas such as the social sciences or the humanities).
Selection of departments and programs to be reviewed
In the spring semester the deans will meet to determine the specific priority areas to be selected for review in the coming academic year. In selecting department/programs for review the following criteria may be considered:
1. the university/school strategic plan;
2. opportunities to develop and/or enhance interdisciplinary collaboration within and beyond the walls of the university;
3. opportunities to examine clusters of department/programs;
4. time since last review and/or change in leadership;
5. exigency resulting from faculty retirements or resignations; financial increase or decrease in resources;
6. special situations and difficulties requiring attention and review.
At least one semester prior to their external review, the departments or programs to be reviewed will be notified by the deans and will receive all necessary documentation including timetables, any relevant information on strategic planning and review process guidelines, including self-study guidelines
Preparing the Self-study Document
Please refer to Preparing the Self-Study Document for detailed guidelines.
Preliminary Planning
Soon after departments have been notified that they are to be reviewed, the deans will convene an orientation meeting to coordinate the review and the preparation of the unit’s self-study report and supporting documents. The participants in this initial meeting will include the deans of the College and the Graduate School, the Coordinator of Academic Program Review, the department chair(s), and faculty and/or staff members at the chair’s discretion.
In consultation with the appropriate department/program chairs/directors, the deans will prepare the specific charge to the external review team members, and circulate it to the committee, who in turn may suggest additions to or modifications of the charge.
The questions each review will address will vary by department, but may include:
1. Does the department have a clear mission? Has it set goals and aspirations for the future? Do the goals and vision relate clearly to the vision of the Arts & Sciences and University?
2. Is the department or program advancing the state of the discipline or profession? Does the program respond to the needs of the profession?
3. Is the teaching or training of students effective and innovative? Is teaching valued by the department?
4. Does the program meet the institution’s goals?
5. How is the program assessed by (external) experts in the field?
6. What is the quality of the faculty? What measures are used to assess this? Are faculty members fulfilling their mission as scholars and teachers?
7. Is there effective leadership the department?
8. If appropriate, does the department/program work well with other units of the University to foster interdisciplinary scholarship and instruction?
9. If appropriate, does the department/program foster international exchanges and linkages?10. If appropriate, does the department/program foster interaction with and partnership between the University and external communities?
11. Does the infrastructure (staff, facilities, equipment, library and technology) facilitate the work of the program?
12. Does the self-study document reflect the situation that actually exists in the department/program?
When the charge is completed it will be forwarded to the members of the external review committee.
Selection of the reviewers
The deans will request from the department chair/program director the names of leading journals in the field, professional organizations, chairs of departments and faculty at peer colleges and universities, etc. The deans will consult with individuals from the organizations and institutions discussed to gather a list of potential reviewers. They will then formulate a list of possible reviewers; this list is sent to the department, which may veto any candidates who may have conflicts of interest. Please note: the initial list provided by the department is not a list of potential external reviewers. Rather, it is a list of people who will be consulted for names of the most appropriate reviewers. It is entirely possible that the names that appear on the initial list provided by the department will not appear on the list of potential external reviewers.
The Office of the Dean will contact potential reviewers, will coordinate travel plans and make travel and lodging arrangements. Notice of all arrangements will be sent to the deans, directors and chairs. The deans will host the entrance and exit interviews while the specific departments will arrange for local travel and departmental visits and meetings. The Office of the Dean will finalize the site visit schedule.
Materials sent to the reviewers
The self-study document will be forwarded to the deans at least eight weeks prior to the review team’s visit. Additional information might be requested from the department/program after the deans have reviewed the report. At least one month prior to the review, the dean’s office will send materials to the external review team. Those materials will include the department’s self-study. The materials will also include several attachments, which will vary by department, but may include:
• department/program’s most recent annual report;
• description of department/program’s organizational structure;
• complete C.V.s for all faculty associated with the program;
• faculty awards and honors;
• faculty status and retention;
• description of curriculum, including major/minor requirements and graduate program requirements, summaries and course evaluations;
• sponsored research and training grants (if appropriate);
• data describing the undergraduate program over the previous 10 years, covering course offerings, enrollments, majors, honors program, courses taught by tenured and non tenured faculty;
• list of thesis and dissertation committees;
• data describing the graduate program over the previous 10 years in terms of admissions, attrition, completion rates, time to degree and placements (for graduate programs);
• list of support staff and their job descriptions;
• description of infrastructure, including space and equipment.
The college will provide the reviewers with the following materials:
• College, Graduate School, and University Strategic Plans;
• Graduate Student Handbook;
• College Catalog;
• A letter outlining the charge of the external review team.
External reviewers’ visit
Upon arriving on campus, the external review team will have an introductory meeting with the deans and the Coordinator of Program Review. All participants in this meeting will have received the appropriate self-study documents and related materials in advance. Any pertinent background information, the charge and other relevant issues may be discussed at this meeting.
Departmental meetings will be scheduled with members of the faculty and both graduate and undergraduate students in the program. In planning the departmental visit, enough time should be scheduled for the review team to meet on their own each day to consult and organize.
The deans, the Coordinator of Program Review, and other designated individuals will attend an exit interview with the external review team. During this meeting, the external review team will present their findings to the group.
The external review committee’s report
The review panel will submit its report to the deans within one month of its site visit. The document must speak to the charge. The review committee will be informed that the document will be distributed to the department/program. The review committee may address any issues or make suggestions they do not want seen by the entire department/program in a separate document.
The deans will examine the review committee’s report and will determine if the report covers the issues that were identified in the charge to the team. The deans may then either accept the report as is or request further information. Once the report is accepted, the deans will notify the department chair and request that the document be circulated among the faculty for response.
The response to the review
After receiving the review committee’s report, the department/program should read it carefully and determine whether or not it agrees with the report. If the department finds the report problematic in any way, it should submit a written response to the deans within 14 days of receipt of the report. These comments will be appended to the final report. If the department accepts the report as is, it should simply inform the deans of this decision in writing.
Within a month of receiving the department/program’s response to the review, the deans and the Coordinator of Program Review will meet with the unit’s faculty to discuss the review as a whole. During the meeting the group will discuss the departmental self-study, the strategic plan set forth by the department, and the external review team’s report as well as what actions the department will take in response to the review.
After that meeting, the administration will submit a formal written response to the review that will present its recommendations based on the unit’s self study, the external review and the meeting with the department/program. The deans’ recommendations will also consider University and school-level priorities and resources. The deans’ report will discuss any actions to be taken by the unit, and suggest a timetable for these actions. The deans may request a written response to some of the recommendations; if this is the case, the deans will provide a timeline for the written response. If the unit has questions or concerns about any of the recommendations, it should respond to the recommendations in writing within 30 days of receiving the deans’ report. If the unit accepts the recommendations, only an acknowledgement of receipt is necessary.
Review of the reports
The review process will help to serve as the basis for making a number of decisions in department(s)/program(s):
1. advise curricular changes: enlarge a program’s breadth of offerings; change the curriculum; integrate or consolidate course offerings; (for both undergraduate and graduate programs);
2. suggest administrative changes: change department/program leadership; merge departments and programs; add technical or staff support;
3. recommend priorities for budget and resource allocation: recommendations should be consistent with university priorities and should include recommendations for undergraduate programs, graduate programs and faculty;
4. indicate where new opportunities might exist for initiating new, but possibly risky, programs that could make Emory more unique/special in the academic market; and/or
5. propose new faculty lines to expand expertise, productivity and scholarship; question whether certain programs or areas of teaching and research no longer serve the Emory academic mission and suggest steps to merge, reduce or eliminate such programs and reallocate resources more effectively.
Within one year after the response meeting, the deans will convene a follow-up meeting to determine the status and progress of the actions taken in response to the review. This follow-up meeting will be conducted in concert with yearly departmental planning sessions. Based upon this meeting the deans will then inform the department/program of any additional steps to be taken to meet the objectives of the review if necessary.