Reengineering a College of Engineering: The Role of an Institutional Research Office. AIR 1996 Annual Forum Paper.

The role played by the institutional research office in the successful re-engineering of the University of Miami (Florida) college of engineering is described. The private research university's engineering school was at risk of closure due to declining enrollment and a changing job market. A committee of engineering faculty and other university administrators wrote a strategic plan using ideas from internal and external sources and site visits to other institutions. The plan outlined objectives for enrollment, external funding, overall college quality, faculty commitment and development, quality of overall student experience, fiscal solvency, and institutional image. The university's institutional research office provided five types of analyses: student and faculty demographic data; projection models; results of student surveys; focus group data; and credit hour and financial data breakdowns. In addition, the institutional research administrator assisted in interpretation of data and in preparation for a planning retreat. The services provided by the office were found useful. Recommendations included: provision of a listing of institutional research reports and customized analysis services to university deans; more use of focus groups; and identification of development of reports on key issues. (MSE)