Global Directory of Academic Programs in Evaluation

Students in this program are prepared for working in a career requiring program evaluation methods and practice skills. The courses are taught by seasoned evaluators who work in diverse settings and bring real-world experience to the classroom. They are leaders in the field who serve on evaluation association boards, author books and articles on evaluation theory and practice, and/or facilitate trainings for evaluation audiences.

The program has its roots in Positive Youth Development. Rather than focusing solely on corrective measures, a Positive Youth Development approach equips young people in the second decade of life with the skills and opportunities necessary for a successful transition into adulthood. This program approach promotes positive outcomes for all youth by recognizing their strengths, fostering positive relationships, and providing youth with opportunities to learn, lead, connect, and serve.

This program prepares professionals for a career in program evaluation, providing both the theoretical knowledge and real-world experience to make our students successful. Graduate students will complete a two-semester supervised practical application course and work alongside evaluation practitioners in a professional evaluation setting to gain first-hand experience applying your learning from prior classes.

The program will provide a strong foundation in program design and implementation. As a student in this program, you will explore a variety of tools and techniques used to measure project progress and report outcomes to the appropriate internal and external stakeholders—including donors, funders, supervisors, or the population being served. You will design relevant and effective frameworks and learn the required methods to conduct data collection, statistical analysis, and reporting. Through lectures and exposure to case studies drawn from relevant organizations, you will gain the skills needed to be able to conduct a monitoring and evaluation program.

This program is designed to prepare professionals whom are broadly trained in both the theory and practice of qualitative and quantitative research, program evaluation, and assessment/measurement. Students learn to design, conduct, and evaluate educational research and evaluation studies; select and implement suitable qualitative and quantitative data analytic procedures; design and evaluate assessments and other instruments; and relate empirical findings to educational and social science policies and practices.

The program develops you as an expert in quantitative research design, educational statistics, and measurement. It is designed to prepare students for a career as an educational researcher, statistician or evaluator. Students will develop the skills necessary to conduct educational research and evaluation and to communicate findings to various audiences and stakeholders.

The program is intended to prepare graduates for more advanced study of quantitative, qualitative, and mixed methods and for roles in research organizations. Students have the flexibility to develop an interdisciplinary understanding of the field of educational research and evaluation. This major is intended to allow students the flexibility necessary to develop programs that meet their individual needs and interests.

This program prepares students for the proper use and application of advanced statistics and evaluation procedures, specifically applied in the social and behavioral disciplines of education, psychology, counseling and other related fields. Our graduates are prepared for educational research and evaluation positions in schools, government agencies, private corporations and foundations, colleges and universities, research institutions and national testing companies.

This graduate certificate is designed for students who hold a minimum of a bachelor's degree and seek to gain a critical understanding of key educational program evaluation techniques, including qualitative inquiry. In this program, students will gain practice in carrying out a real-life program evaluation, including how to plan and design evaluations and logic models.

This certificate program uses a culturally-responsive and equitable evaluation framework. A culturally-responsive or equitable evaluation looks like:
i) Accounting for and respecting culture and context throughout the evaluation process; ii) Including stakeholder voice (service user, funder, etc.) in the evaluation as much as possible; iii) Striving to ensure the evaluation approach reveals structural and systems-level drivers of inequity that impact programs; iv) Disseminating results of the evaluation widely; and v) Using findings of the evaluation to build the capacity of community and community organizations.