Assurance of learning is the continuous improvement process the College of Business uses to make sure students are learning what we say they should know at the successful completion of their program.
There is an initial process of defining program competency goals and objectives and then of aligning the curriculum with those goals. Following iterations of that process allow for refining the goals and objectives or changing them based on student and market needs and expectations.
There is a second process that iterates at least once every five years but often more than that in which we assess how our students are doing in each of the competency goals (pretest), analyze the data, develop and deploy appropriate interventions that we expect will improve our students relevant learning, and reassess how our students are doing (posttest).
Assessment Cycle
The assessment cycle or loop is made up of primarily four steps:
Develop (or refine) a measure
Assess student artifacts
Deploy an improvement intervention
Reassess student artifacts
Infographic
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These loops are continuous until the competency goal is considered to have been fully accomplished or it becomes a lower priority compared to other potential goals. The loops for each learning goal are independent and are generally at different stages to make the comprehensive process manageable.
Assessments take place at specific points in time. Interventions, once implemented, are ongoing and become part of the standard operating procedure unless they are found to be ineffective or counterproductive. The effectiveness of an intervention is determined by comparing the results of another assessment (posttest) to the initial assessment (pretest). The statement “closing the loop” refers to the process of assessing if the intervention was successful or not (reassessing new students’ artifacts).
College of Business
Program Competency Goals
Program competency goals are broad statements that describe the knowledge or abilities that we want our graduates from a given program to have at the end of the program. The College of Business initially defined these goals in 2008. Since then, program goals have been changed or refined to better reflect the current expectations for our graduates given the feedback from major stakeholders (alumni, employers, advisory board, etc). Any changes or refinements have to be approved by the majority of the college faculty.
UNDERGRADUATE PROGRAM COMPETENCY GOALS Upon Graduation, our students should: |
Bachelor of Arts in Business Administration
(1) Functional Business Knowledge
1.1 Learners will demonstrate broad functional knowledge across all areas of business.
1.2 Learners will apply appropriate technological tools in support of business decision-making.
(2) Effective Business Communication
2.1 Learners will write clear, concise, and well-organized business reports.
2.2 Learners will produce and deliver professional quality oral presentations.
(3) Ethics and Values
3.1 Learners will recognize basic concepts and theories related to business ethics and social responsibility.
3.2 Learners will recognize the ethical dilemmas and social responsibility in a business situation and recommend courses of action to address the issues.
(4) Global Business Issues
4.1 Learners will understand the complexities of the cultural, economic, regulatory, and social environments as they impact business in a global economy.
4.2 Learners will develop viable alternatives and make effective decisions in an international business setting.
Bachelor of Arts in Business and Applied Science
(1) Functional Business Knowledge
1.1 Learners will demonstrate broad functional knowledge across all areas of business.
1.2 Learners will apply appropriate technological tools in support of business decision-making.
(2) Effective Business Communication
2.1 Learners will write clear, concise, and well-organized business reports.
2.2 Learners will produce and deliver professional quality oral presentations.
(3) Ethics and Values
3.1 Learners will recognize basic concepts and theories related to business ethics and social responsibility.
3.2 Learners will recognize the ethical dilemmas and social responsibility in a business situation and recommend courses of action to address the issues.
(4) Global Business Issues
4.1 Learners will understand the complexities of the cultural, economic, regulatory, and social environments as they impact business in a global economy.
4.2 Learners will develop viable alternatives and make effective decisions in an international business setting.
Bachelor of Arts in Manufacturing Management
(1) Functional Business Knowledge
1.1 Learners will demonstrate broad functional knowledge across all areas of business.
1.2 Learners will apply appropriate technological tools in support of business decision-making.
(2) Effective Business Communication
2.1 Learners will write clear, concise, and well-organized business reports.
2.2 Learners will produce and deliver professional quality oral presentations.
(3) Ethics and Values
3.1 Learners will recognize basic concepts and theories related to business ethics and social responsibility.
3.2 Learners will recognize the ethical dilemmas and social responsibility in a business situation and recommend courses of action to address the issues.
(4) Global Business Issues
4.1 Learners will understand the complexities of the cultural, economic, regulatory, and social environments as they impact business in a global economy.
4.2 Learners will develop viable alternatives and make effective decisions in an international business setting.
Bachelor of Arts in Economics
(1) Disciplinary Knowledge
1.1 Learners will be able to identify and connect the appropriate concepts and theory from the field of Economics to real-world issues.
1.2 Learners will be able to identify and correctly apply appropriate empirical and statistical methods in the analysis of economic problems.
(2) Effective Communication
2.1 Learners will be proficient at locating, evaluating, and using information effectively to develop well-organized written communication.
2.2 Learners will develop and deliver clear and well-organized oral presentations.
(3) Ethics and Values
3.1 Learners will recognize basic concepts and theories related to business ethics and social responsibility.
3.2 Learners will recognize the ethical dilemmas and social responsibility in a business situation and recommend courses of actions to address the issues.
(4) Global Perspective
4.1 Learners will be able to explain the main international economic concepts and theory.
4.2 Learners will be able to apply appropriate quantitative methods used in international economic theory and practice to analyze international economic issues.
Bachelor of Science in Accounting
(1) Functional Business Knowledge
1.1 Learners will demonstrate broad functional knowledge across all areas of business.
1.2 Learners will apply appropriate technological tools in support of business decision making.
(2) Effective Business Communication
2.1 Learners will write clear, concise, and well-organized business reports.
2.2 Learners will produce and deliver professional quality oral presentations.
(3) Ethics and Values
3.1 Learners will recognize basic concepts and theories related to business ethics and social responsibility.
3.2 Learners will recognize the ethical dilemmas and social responsibility in a business situation and recommend courses of actions to address the issues.
(4) Global Business Issues
4.1 Learners will understand the complexities of the cultural, economic, regulatory, and social environments as they impact business in a global economy.
4.2 Learners will develop viable alternatives and make effective decisions in an international business setting.
(5) Technical Accounting Knowledge
5.1 Learners will demonstrate knowledge of financial accounting.
5.2 Learners will demonstrate knowledge of managerial accounting.
5.3 Learners will demonstrate knowledge of taxation.
GRADUATE PROGRAM COMPETENCY GOALS Upon Graduation, our students should: |
Master of Business Administration (MBA)
- Integrate knowledge and skills across various functional areas of business.
- Determine solutions to business challenges by applying technology.
- Assess and analyze the potential impact of ethical issues in business contexts.
- Evaluate, and propose solutions to, complex global business challenges.
Master of Science in Accounting (MSA)
- Analyze and solve accounting-related problems.
- Apply technology to meet the needs of the accounting profession.
- Demonstrate social and ethical sensitivities in a complex and global business environment.
- Apply accounting knowledge and skills to generate solutions to address complex global business challenges.
Master of Science in Business Analytics (MSBA)
- Decision Making: Solve business problems and make decisions informed by data.
- Analytics Methodologies and Tools: Access, collect, extract, prepare, and analyze data to support analysis for business.
- Communication Skills: Communicate business problems, analysis, and results to key stakeholders.
- Collaboration and Teamwork: Lead and participate in projects with diverse teams to reach common goals.
Master of Science in Human Resource Management (MSHRM)
- Human Resource Expertise: Apply broad-based HR knowledge to develop strategically- aligned responses to enhance organizational effectiveness.
- Ethical Practice: Generate effective solutions that align with organizational values and professional ethical standards for HR.
- Visionary HR Leadership: Appraise complex organizational situations and justify the appropriate change management initiatives.
- Analytic Decision-Making: Analyze data using information technology resources to direct and evaluate HR decisions.
- Communication: Craft messages for high visibility organizational issues and communicate them effectively with various modalities.
- Global and Cultural Acumen: Integrate perspectives on cultural differences to ensure cross- cultural harmony and organizational success.
Program Packages & Course Outcomes
Course learning outcomes are approved through a curriculum management process in the college and university. Course learning outcomes align with program learning goals and objectives:
Assurance of Learning Report
Click here to view our Assurance of Learning Report 2016-2021.
Contact
For more information about GSU College of Business Assurance of Learning process, please contact the Associate Dean, Dr. Ujvala Rajadhyaksha, urajadhyaksha@govst.edu