Assessment is a continuous improvement process aimed at identifying outcomes, gathering information, and fostering relational engagement to build a culture of assessment. The Office of Assessment and Research (OAR) is committed to demonstrating the impact and value of Student Life programming and guiding data-informed decisions that promote student success, equity, and well-being.

Vision

Nurturing equity-centered assessment and research practice in the Division of Student Life promotes a supportive, relational, and data-driven culture to provide an equitable student experience.

Mission

To foster an equity-centered environment that uses assessment to inform practices, policies, and decision-making to meet the evolving needs of students. We prioritize relational work, shared accountability, and transparent data sharing.

Strategic Goals

1. Foster relational assessment work
2. Promote equity-centered use of data
3. Build an inclusive and transparent assessment culture
4. Guide data-informed decisions
5. Provide educational opportunities for assessment capacity building
6. Advance timely and relevant inquiry into student success
7. Prioritize well-being and flourishing for students and colleagues 

Core Values

• Integrity: honest, transparent, and principled handling of information
• Relational engagement: prioritizing partnerships and collaboration to build a culture of assessment.
• Learning: using data to continuously update what we think we know and challenge our assumptions
• Equity: supporting fair processes and outcomes and deconstructing unfair ones
• Well-being: promoting the well-being of students, staff, and colleagues in all aspects of assessment and research

Selected Office of Assessment and Research Projects

Student Wellbeing and Success Initiative (SWaSI) 

A tailored, multi-cohort, longitudinal assessment measuring various aspects of belonging and several psychosocial factors that may contribute to student success. Has the capacity to assess various institutional inputs from advisement, high-impact practices and other programmatic experiences, and prevention/intervention efforts in terms of well-being and success outcomes.

First Destination Survey Post-Graduation Outcomes

The First Destination Survey is focused on collecting employment information about recent graduates’ first destination (employment, graduate school, etc.). This provides information to UO students to benchmark how their education and career information relates to past cohorts of UO graduates. It also provides outcomes data for UO programs and colleges to report their impact on post-graduate engagement and career outcomes of their recent graduates.

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