Mapping the RNL Satisfaction Priorities Surveys to the WASC Senior College and University Commission Standards for Accreditation
Many institutions rely upon the Ruffalo Noel Levitz suite of satisfaction and priorities survey results to demonstrate the fulfillment of institutional accreditation requirements. In the region served by the WASC Senior College and University Commission (WSCUC) – California, Hawaii, and the Pacific – WSCUC-accreditation colleges and universities are responsible for showing fulfillment of the Standards of Accreditation. Ruffalo Noel Levitz student surveys can help!
The PDF documents available via the links below show the Ruffalo Noel Levitz survey items mapped to the WSCUC requirements, tailored specifically to each discrete survey.
RNL survey items mapped to the WSCUC Standards of Accreditation
Download the appropriate document(s) based on the survey version(s) you are using on your campus:
Make note of the following
- WSCUC requirements are stated in the publication, “2013 Handbook of Accreditation” (as published July 1, 2013, under the Creative Commons). There are four Standards, each with a series of statements called “Criteria for Review” that define how the Standards are to be evaluated. Fulfillment of all the Criteria for Review is necessary to achieve compliance to the Standards. In the documents here, the Ruffalo Noel Levitz survey items are mapped onto the Criteria for Review. To interpret the meaning of some of the mappings, users may need to consult WSCUC publications that further define the meaning of the Criteria for Review.
- In order to simplify print formatting in the PDF available for download, the text of some WSCUC Criteria for Review has been lightly edited or truncated, especially if the original text is more than 20 words. Key words, phrases, and numbering from the original have been preserved to enable quick recognition. Please see the original text from WSCUC to understand any given requirement in its entirety.
- Not all WSCUC Criteria for Review refer to processes that students can experience, so not all WSCUC criteria have been listed with a survey item affiliated. For example, students will not know details of the institution’s relationship to WSCUC as described by Criteria for Review 1.8, so no survey items have been mapped to that numbered item.
- The documents list Ruffalo Noel Levitz items as they appear on the survey instruments, clustered beneath the Criteria they support. Some survey items are mapped to multiple Criteria. Only the Ruffalo Noel Levitz survey items which students rate for “Importance” and/or “Satisfaction” appear in these mappings.
- Most relationships in these mappings should be self-evident. Mapped relationships between a survey item and WSCUC requirements may be either direct or indirect. For example, not only do students experience instructional and support services directly, but also, employee training programs indirectly influence the quality of the services that the students experience. The mappings are meant to be illustrative, not comprehensive and definitive.
- The final section of the document lists survey items which may be related to WSCUC requirements at the discretion of the survey user – especially, the campus-created survey items.
- Questions about these documents or the survey instruments? Please contact Ruffalo Noel Levitz.
Additional Assessment Tools
Within this family of surveys are instruments for various populations:
- Student Satisfaction Inventory, the instrument for traditional students, available in versions for four-year colleges and universities, community colleges and career schools;
- Institutional Priorities Survey, the companion to the Student Satisfaction Inventory, assesses campus personnel;
- Adult Student Priorities Survey, used by many graduate and adult undergraduate programs;
- Priorities Survey for Online Learners, for students in online distance learning programs;
- Parent Satisfaction Inventory, a companion to the four-year Student Satisfaction Inventory, for the parents of currently enrolled students.
You receive the data in an organized tabulation report that you can use right away. Of particular interest:
- College Employee Satisfaction Survey, which measures satisfaction of faculty, staff, and administrators in areas such as institutional mission and planning, level of support, resources to accomplish objectives, campus communications, and work environment;
- Alumni Outcomes and Loyalty Survey, which measures institutional success and alumni engagement;
- Employer Satisfaction Survey, which measures employers’ satisfaction with your institution’s graduates;
- And many other tools for particular populations.
Our custom research projects can include such elements as telephone and written surveys; in-depth interviews; predictive modeling; geodemography; focus groups; environmental scans; awareness and opinion measurement; research-based publications and websites; and audits of current practices, programs, and communications. We have experience conducting small, medium, and large market research projects that are highly customized to each institution, campus, and system. Our research has helped institutions take the actions they needed to be more competitive.
