In 2023, the Institutional Student Survey Committee identified a need for campus units to conduct assessment/evaluation projects regarding student needs, satisfaction, and evaluation of programs to a samples larger than currently allowed through the DMI/Student Affairs Research Approval (SARA) process (5,000 students, or 60% of a population).  

However, the committee also acknowledged that students are receiving an increasing number of survey solicitations from various levels of campus (department, college, university). This process was created to (1) create a pathway for units to distribute student surveys for institutional improvement efforts to more than 5,000 students, (2) encourage collaborative survey projects across units, and (3) provide consultation for units on survey practices and existing campus data to minimize duplication. It will be launched in Summer 2024 and considered a pilot program for 2 years and then evaluated for continuation.

Applications will be submitted prior to the start of each semester. Representatives from the Institutional Student Survey Committee will review all applications and select one project for each semester based on the below criteria. All applicants will be notified of the status of their application within two months after the submission deadline. Applications not approved for a semester will be considered for the subsequent semester if the requester desires.

Successful applicants will receive feedback from the committee regarding best practices and data privacy and be assigned a committee contact to assist in distribution. All internal surveys must be designed on a university approved survey platform (Webtools, Qualtrics, or RedCap). Third party surveys sponsored by a campus unit may be approved after university cyberssecurity, privacy, purchasing, legal, and accessibility conditions have been met. Distribution to students can be via Webtools Email+ or via Qualtrics. If Qualtrics is chosen the survey itself will be housed with the Institutional Survey committee and data will be de-identified prior to being shared with the unit. Surveys will be allowed no more than 3 solicitation emails and cannot be distributed during the last two weeks of a semester or during the first week of any institutional survey.

If selected, the requesting unit(s) will be expected to pay for DMI sampling services to obtain the sample, have the ability to analyze the data, and fund/award any incentives. A final data set and copy of reports should be submitted to the Institutional Student Survey Committee upon completion.