What is Academic Assessment?
Academic assessment is a structured, ongoing process that helps the SUNY Old Westbury community understand, reflect on, and strengthen student learning across all programs and degrees.
Definition
The act of judging or deciding the amount, value, quality, or importance of something, or the judgment or decision that is made."
- The Cambridge Dictionary
Assessment in Higher Education
In higher education, academic assessment refers to the systematic gathering and analysis of data about student learning and program performance. This evidence-based process informs decisions about curriculum design, teaching approaches, and institutional policy — with the ultimate goal of continuous improvement in the quality of education students receive.
The Three Core Functions of Assessment
Assessment is organized around three interconnected activities:
- Gather Data: Collect meaningful evidence of student learning across courses and experiences.
- Analyze Outcomes: Examine patterns at the program level to identify strengths and areas for growth.
- Inform Decisions: Apply findings to improve curriculum, pedagogy, and institutional policy.
Assessment at SUNY Old Westbury
At SUNY Old Westbury, academic assessment focuses on evaluating our academic programs — including the Liberal Education (General Education) program and degree programs — rather than assessing individual courses or students. This distinction is important: our goal is to understand how well a program, as a whole, is achieving its intended student learning outcomes.
The purpose of program-level assessment is not to evaluate individual instructors or assign grades. Instead, it asks a broader question: Are our students, collectively, achieving the learning goals we have set for this program? The answers guide meaningful, evidence-based improvements to the educational experience at Old Westbury."
By grounding this work in clearly articulated student learning goals, SUNY Old Westbury’s assessment practices support a culture of reflective inquiry — one where faculty, staff, and administrators work together to ensure every student has the opportunity to learn, grow, and succeed.
At SUNY Old Westbury, academic assessment typically refers to assessment of academic programs, such as the Liberal Education (General Education) program and degree programs. The goal of this type of assessment is to evaluate academic programs (not individual courses) vis-a-vis their respective student learning goals.