Highlights of the CIRP:
- Survey looking at incoming characteristics of first-year college students, including demographics, student expectations of college, high school experiences, future goals, attitudes, values, and motivation
- Survey is 40 questions, 4 pages, and takes up to one hour to complete
- Survey is administered by the Higher Educational Research Institute
Uses of the CIRP:
- Given by itself, data from the CIRP can provide a "snapshot" of how an entering class looks; this information can be helpful to better understand the backgrounds and experiences of entering students, along with their expectations of college
- Institutions can compare how their entering class compares to entering classes at similar types of institutions
- CIRP data is often combined with the College Student Survey (CSS), which is typically administered at the end of a student’s senior year; looking at how student attitudes, values, and goals have changed over the college experience can provide interesting information about student growth
- Administering CIRP alongside other assessment tools (e.g., CAAP or CCTDI) can suggest relationships between learning outcomes and student characteristics
Liberal Arts Outcomes and the CIRP:
- The CIRP can identify the extent to which entering students have participated, or plan to participate, in some of the practices that contribute to a liberal arts education (e.g., expectations for faculty interaction, intent to study classes in the liberal arts versus technical studies)
- The survey looks at student history, attitudes, and experiences that might reflect broader liberal arts outcomes (e.g., how often a student visits an art gallery might suggest his or her inclination to inquire, history of depression speaks to well-being)
- Alone, the CIRP does not measure outcomes, it simply suggests qualities of an entering class; however, it is often used alongside outcomes surveys to look at relationships between student characteristics and the particular outcome in question; CIRP data can add depth and richness to these other outcomes surveys
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