Projects

Wabash National Study of Liberal Arts Education

This is a multi-institution, long-term study of college effects being conducted in collaboration with the Wabash Center for Inquiry in the Liberal Arts, the University of Michigan, and Miami University of Ohio. This research seeks to answer the following questions: How can we demonstrate the outcomes of liberal arts education? What particular liberal arts education conditions produce these outcomes? How does liberal arts education affect student development? The Center for Research on Undergraduate Education will analyze quantitative data collected from more than 5,000 students at twenty institutions representing the spectrum of institution types – liberal arts, regional, community college, and research.

Research on Iowa Student Experiences (RISE)

During the 2005-2006 academic year, the faculty and research associates of CRUE conducted a study of experiences and outcomes of undergraduate students at The University of Iowa in a project initiated by the Office of the Provost.  The project incorporated quantitative and qualitative research methods to gain a comprehensive picture of undergraduate life at UI, using a conceptual framework of student success and engagement.  A report of the study results was provided to the Office of the Provost in September 2006, but data analyses continue.

Student Affairs-Academic Affairs Partnership Assessment Project

The Center for Research on Undergraduate Education in collaboration with the Boyer Center has completed a Fund for the Improvement of Postsecondary Education (FIPSE)-funded project to assess academic and student affairs partnerships. Eighteen community colleges, colleges and universities participated in this study. Examples of partnerships included: living-learning units, faculty-student fellows programs, and service-learning courses. Some of the goals of the project were to assess learning outcomes, to develop assessment tools, and to identify best principles of partnership formation. Results of the study will be reported in a book to be published by Jossey-Bass in 2008.