Program Assessment Plan
American University
CAS: History - PhD
CAS: History - PhD
Contact Person for Eric Lohr
Assessment:
Primary Department: History
Does 2014 report reflect Yes
changes in your LOs? :
Are there any changes in your No
assessment method?:
Learning Outcome: Content Knowledge
Students will be able to demonstrate broad knowledge of historical events and periods and their significance.
Outcome Year: 2014-2015
Start Date: 10/04/2011
Outcome Status: Active Learning Outcome
Assessment Plan
Assessment Method
Target
All comprehensive examinations will be evaluated for students' knowledge of historical 80% of students will pass.
eras and historiography.
Measure Type:
Quiz/ Exam
Placement in faculty positions or jobs requiring the PhD is evidence that the students
have qualified themselves by achieving the learning outcome. We will survey students
after graduation and keep track of where they go next.
Measure Type:
Job/Grad School Placement
12/03/2014 2:06 PM
Active
Every Spring. Beginning Spring 2012.
Graduate director will compile results for
inclusion in Department's Annual Report.
No
Every Spring. Begins Spring 2013.
Graduate Director, aided by the
administrative assistant, will track graduates Graduate Director.
of the program and keep placement records.
We will aim to see X% of our graduates in
faculty positions or professional positions
commensurate with the PhD. (Percent to be
determined after data collection period.)
Director of Graduate Studies will examine the grade distribution for the last 2 academic 60% of students will receive an A.
years of colloquium offerings.
Measure Type:
Other
Director of Graduate Studies will review the pass/fail statistics of PhD comprehensive
exams under the "new" system every 2 academic years, beginning once the first PhD
student takes his exam under the updated guidelines.
Measure Type:
Quiz/ Exam
Schedule/Cycle
90% of PhD students will pass all parts of
their comprehensive exam the first time.
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No
Every 2 academic years starting AY 16-17. Yes
Every 2 academic years, beginning once the Yes
first PhD student takes his exam under the
updated guidelines (first academic year
cycle will likely be AY 15-16 & AY 16-17).
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Learning Outcome: Historical Schools of Thought
Students will be able to explain and critique the historical schools of thought that have shaped scholarly understanding of their fields of study.
Outcome Year: 2014-2015
Start Date: 10/04/2011
Outcome Status: Active Learning Outcome
Assessment Plan
Assessment Method
Target
All comprehensive examinations will be evaluated for students' knowledge of historical 80% of students will pass.
eras and historiography.
Measure Type:
Quiz/ Exam
Placement in faculty positions or jobs requiring the PhD is evidence that the students
have qualified themselves by achieving the learning outcome. We will survey students
after graduation and keep track of where they go next.
Measure Type:
Job/Grad School Placement
Active
Every Spring. Beginning Spring 2012.
Graduate director will compile results for
inclusion in Department's Annual Report.
No
Every Spring. Begins Spring 2013.
Graduate Director, aided by the
administrative assistant, will track graduates Graduate Director.
of the program and keep placement records.
We will aim to see X% of our graduates in
faculty positions or professional positions
commensurate with the PhD. (Percent to be
determined after data collection period.)
Director of Graduate Studies will examine the grade distribution for the last 2 academic 60% of students will receive an A.
year offerings of HIST-744 Historians Craft.
Measure Type:
Other
Director of Graduate Studies will review the pass/fail statistics of PhD comprehensive
exams under the "new" system every 2 academic years, beginning once the first PhD
student takes his exam under the updated guidelines.
Measure Type:
Quiz/ Exam
Schedule/Cycle
No
Every 2 academic years, beginning in AY 14 Yes
-15 with an examination of F12 and F13
grade distribution.
Every 2 academic years, except for AY 14- Yes
80% of PhD students will pass their
comprehensive exam (all parts) the first time 15 since no one has taken the exam under
the new guidelines yet. The first academic
they take it.
year for this method will be AY 16-17.
Related Action Steps
* Supporting Assessment: Curriculum Review
Description: Curriculum of graduate courses offered over 2 years will be reviewed to ensure that sufficient topical, chronological, and sub-field breadth is available to all students
during a typical program of study.
Chair and Graduate Director will agree that sufficient courses are offered.
Every Spring. Begins 2012.
Graduate Director and Department Chair.
Learning Outcome: Critical Analysis
Students will be able to deploy skills of critical analysis:
a. Formulating persuasive arguments
b. Evaluating evidence and critiquing claims in the literature
c. Interpreting a variety of primary sources
Outcome Year: 2014-2015
Start Date: 10/04/2011
Outcome Status: Active Learning Outcome
Assessment Plan
12/03/2014 2:06 PM
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Assessment Plan
Assessment Method
Target
Sample final projects from Research Seminar to ensure these goals are met.
75% of the research papers and dissertation Year 2 Spring. Begins Spring 2014.
Graduate Committee.
proposals will demonstrate original
contribution from primary research, engage
literature of the field and meet professional
standards.
No
Placement in faculty positions or jobs requiring the PhD is evidence that the students
have qualified themselves by achieving the learning outcome. We will survey students
after graduation and keep track of where they go next.
Measure Type:
Job/Grad School Placement
Every Spring. Begins Spring 2013.
Graduate Director, aided by the
administrative assistant, will track graduates Graduate Director.
of the program and keep placement records.
We will aim to see X% of our graduates in
faculty positions or professional positions
commensurate with the PhD. (Percent to be
determined after data collection period.)
No
Director of Graduate Studies will examine the grade distribution for HIST-751 Research
Seminar for the last academic year.
Measure Type:
Other
60% of students will receive an A,
Every academic year, starting AY 14-15.
indicating superior research and writing
performance. 50% of papers will be judged
as being of publishable quality by the
instructor.
Yes
Measure Type:
Final Paper/ Final Project
Schedule/Cycle
Active
Learning Outcome: Major Research Project
Students will be able to design and conduct major research projects, deploying these essential skills:
a. Reviewing the state of the field to identify a new topic and locate their work within larger scholarly conversations
b. Identifying and accessing a sufficient base of primary sources
c. Producing a high-quality research paper, well-written and meeting professional standards, suitable as the basis for conference presentation or academic publication
d. Designing and writing a dissertation based on extensive research that makes an original contribution to knowledge
Outcome Year: 2014-2015
Start Date: 10/04/2011
Outcome Status: Active Learning Outcome
Assessment Plan
Assessment Method
Target
Sample final projects from Research Seminar to ensure these goals are met.
75% of the research papers and dissertation Year 2 Spring. Begins Spring 2014.
Graduate Committee.
proposals will demonstrate original
contribution from primary research, engage
literature of the field and meet professional
standards.
Measure Type:
Final Paper/ Final Project
12/03/2014 2:06 PM
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Schedule/Cycle
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Active
No
Assessment Plan
Assessment Method
Target
Schedule/Cycle
Active
Placement in faculty positions or jobs requiring the PhD is evidence that the students
have qualified themselves by achieving the learning outcome. We will survey students
after graduation and keep track of where they go next.
Measure Type:
Job/Grad School Placement
Graduate Director, aided by the
Every Spring. Begins Spring 2013.
administrative assistant, will track graduates Graduate Director.
of the program and keep placement records.
We will aim to see X% of our graduates in
faculty positions or professional positions
commensurate with the PhD. (Percent to be
determined after data collection period.) We
will seek to enroll every student in a
Facebook page to maintain contact after
graduation.
No
Director of Graduate Studies will examine the grade distribution for HIST-751 Research
Seminar for the last academic year.
Measure Type:
Other
60% of students will receive an A,
Every academic year, starting AY 15-16.
indicating superior research and writing
performance. 50% of papers will be judged
to be of publishable quality by the instructor.
Yes
Learning Outcome: Teaching Skills
The skills listed above can lead to positions outside academia, such as in museums, archives, and government service. They also apply to students who seek faculty positions. For the latter group, students
will additionally develop teaching skills, such as course design, classroom management, lecturing, leading discussions, and crafting assignments and evaluation methods.
Outcome Year: 2014-2015
Start Date: 10/04/2011
Outcome Status: Active Learning Outcome
Assessment Plan
Assessment Method
Target
Placement in faculty positions or jobs requiring the PhD is evidence that the students
have qualified themselves by achieving the learning outcome. We will survey students
after graduation and keep track of where they go next.
Measure Type:
Job/Grad School Placement
Graduate Director, aided by the
Every Spring. Begins Spring 2013.
administrative assistant, will track graduates Graduate Director.
of the program and keep placement records.
We will aim to see X% of our graduates in
faculty positions or professional positions
commensurate with the PhD. (Percent to be
determined after data collection period.) We
will seek to enroll every student in a
Facebook page to maintain contact after
graduation.
Teaching skills are important for those PhD students who seek faculty positions. We will
survey PhD students to see whether they have had opportunities to learn these skills by
taking the Greenberg Seminar in Effective Teaching, or completing the Department's
Graduate Professional Development sequence, and to apply them by teaching their own
courses or sections at AU or elsewhere.
Measure Type:
Survey
X% of PhD students should have training
and experience in teaching before
graduation. (Target to be set after we have
tracked this measure for a cycle to get a
baseline.)
12/03/2014 2:06 PM
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Schedule/Cycle
Active
No
Every other spring. Begins 2012. Graduate No
Director will conduct a biannual survey of
PhD students.
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Assessment Plan
Assessment Method
Target
Schedule/Cycle
Active
The Director of Graduate Studies will attempt to track PhD job placement to see if
students who want to pursue careers in teaching find positions.
Measure Type:
Job/Grad School Placement
PhDs who are hoping to teach at any level
are not on the job market for more than 2
years.
Every 2 years, starting AY 15-16
Yes
The department will review SET statistics for graduate students who have taught as
adjuncts in the last 2 academic years.
Measure Type:
Focus Group
All graduate student adjuncts will meet at Every 2 academic years, starting AY 15-16. Yes
least the CAS average for overall professor
quality.
Learning Outcome: Professional Dissemination
Students will be able to engage in professional dissemination of their work by presenting their research at conferences or submitting manuscripts to academic journals.
Outcome Year: 2014-2015
Start Date: 10/04/2011
Outcome Status: Active Learning Outcome
Assessment Plan
Assessment Method
Target
Placement in faculty positions or jobs requiring the PhD is evidence that the students
have qualified themselves by achieving the learning outcome. We will survey students
after graduation and keep track of where they go next.
Measure Type:
Job/Grad School Placement
Every Spring. Begins Spring 2013.
Graduate Director, aided by the
administrative assistant, will track graduates Graduate Director.
of the program and keep placement records.
We will aim to see X% of our graduates in
faculty positions or professional positions
commensurate with the PhD. (Percent to be
determined after data collection period.)
Integration in the professional community of scholars takes place through participation in 70% of doctoral students will have engaged
extramural scholarly conferences, grant-writing, and academic publication. We will
in at least one of these activities before
survey and record doctoral student activity in this area.
graduation.
Measure Type:
Survey
Director of Graduate Studies and the department will keep track of number of CAS
Research and Travel/Conference Grants awarded to PhD students.
Measure Type:
Other
12/03/2014 2:06 PM
Schedule/Cycle
Active
No
Graduate Director, with the help of
No
administrative assistant, will continue to
maintain a database of grant, conference,
and publication activity by doctoral students
and graduates.
At least 5 PhD students will present at
Every 2 academic years, starting AY 14-15. Yes
conferences or be awarded a research grant
each year.
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