SACSCOC Fifth Year Interim Report
Spacer
Assessment : 2013 - 2014 : Educational Programs :
Statistics MS
Statistics MS
4 Goals 4 Objectives 3 Indicators 5 Criteria 7 Findings 3 Actions
| GOAL: Deliver A Curriculum With Appropriate Discipline Specific Skill Sets |
| Objective |
|
||||
| Students will have a working knowledge of the foundational topics including regression analysis, design of experiments, multivariate analysis, and mathematical statistics (Bayesian analysis, biostatistics, quality control, nonparametric statistics, sampling theory, Time Series Analysis, and statistical computing). |
| Indicator |
|
|||
|
A comprehensive oral examination, given by a committee of three faculty members, will be administered to candidates for the degree of M.S. in Statistics which will examine the candidate's knowledge of the primary areas of concentration within the program, as well as the candidates own communication abilities. The committee will then judge the candidates' knowledge of the material according to a previously agreed upon rubric with three levels of comparison: High Pass, Pass, and Fail. |
| Criterion |
|
|||
| All candidates will receive a mark of either "High Pass" or "Pass" for the Multivariate Analysis component of the comprehensive oral exam. The rubric used is the same one shown in the "Mathematical Statistics" criterion. |
| Finding |
|
|||
| Out of the seven students 3-high passes and 4-passes. |
| Criterion |
|
|||
| All candidates will receive a mark of either "High Pass" or "Pass" for the Regression Analysis component of the comprehensive oral exam. The rubric used is the same one shown in the "Mathematical Statistics" criterion. |
| Finding |
|
|||
|
Three high passes and four passes |
| Criterion |
|
|||
| All candidates will receive a mark of either "High Pass" or "Pass" for the Mathematical Statistics component of the comprehensive oral exam. |
| Finding |
|
|||
| Three high passes and four passes |
| Criterion |
|
|||
|
All candidates will receive a mark of either "High Pass" or "Pass" for the Design of Experiments component of the comprehensive oral exam. The rubric used is the same one shown in the "Mathematical Statistics" criterion. |
| Finding |
|
|||
|
All seven students successfully completed the oral comprehensive exams. However, we saw one student was a bit stressed out due to the busyness at the end of the last semester. Statistics faculty plans to monitor closely these kind of students and advise them with time management early in the last semester. |
| Finding |
|
|||
|
All seven students successfully completed the oral comprehensive the oral comprehensive exams. However, we saw one student was a bit stressed out due to the busyness at the end of the last semester. Statistics faculty plans to monitor closely these kind of students and advise them with time management early in the last semester. |
| Finding |
|
|||
| Two high passes and five passes |
Actions for Objective:
| Action |
|
|||
|
We monitor students success after graduation to see if changes should be made to produce better quality graduates. |
| GOAL: Deliver A Curriculum That Emphasizes Communication Skills |
| Objective |
|
||||
|
Students will be able to prepare and deliver oral presentations of mathematical material based on a statistics practicum. Students will devlop the ability to critique problems, and provide their own solutions based on statistical analysis. |
| Indicator |
|
|||
| A statistics practicum, under the guidance of one of the faculty members, and assessed by a committee of four faculty members, will be administered to candidates for the degree of M.S. in Statistics which will examine the candidate's knowledge of the primary areas of concentration within the program, as well as the candidates own communicative abilities. The committee will then judge the candidates' ability to effectively communicate mathematical ideas according to a previously agreed upon rubric with three levels of comparison: High Pass, Pass, and Fail. |
| Criterion |
|
|||
|
All candidates will receive a letter grade by the members of the examining committee during the practicum assessment according to the attached rubric. |
| Finding |
|
|||
| All seven students successfully complteted the practicum intime. |
Actions for Objective:
There are no actions for this objective.
There are no actions for this objective.
| GOAL: Consistent Cohort Of Graduate Students Each Year |
| Objective |
|
||||
|
We will support ten new graduate students each year, as many as twenty in the two years of our program. Support should be such that fulltime students are supported by at least $10,000 more than the cost of tuition and fees. |
Actions for Objective:
| Action |
|
|||
| We will request additional TA positions from Dean of Graduate Studies |
| GOAL: Improve Instruction By TAs |
| Objective |
|
||||
|
Will encourage and assign teaching assistants in elementary statistics courses as instructors. |
| Indicator |
|
|||
|
Teaching evaluations and classroom visits by faculty |
Actions for Objective:
| Action |
|
|||
|
Offer teaching duties for students with 18 hours of grad courses |
| Previous Cycle's "Plan for Continuous Improvement" |
|
The statistics faculty still believe this applies this year. They are constantly examining their program to make sure it reflects current trends and needs in their area. Statistics faculty decided to observe closely and help with the non-English speaking students throughout the program. Statistics faculty also decided to offer two more core courses (Regression and Design of Experiments) every year instead of every other year. This will allow students to get the basics of the subject in their first year of the program. Improving physical facilities such as lab spaces and office spaces for graduate students is also a key area that should be addressed.
|
| Update on Previous Cycle's "Plan for Continuous Improvement" |
|
All of our non-English speaking students completed the program successfully. Regression and Design & Analysis of Experiment courses are now scheduled every year instead every other year. TA offices were renovated. However, we still need more office space for students. |
| Plan for Continuous Improvement |
|
We need more TA positions to have a healthy cohort of students. And also current TA stipend is not adequate. Our students are struggling financially due to low stipend and we are planning to communicate this to the university administration. Need at least one more faculty member. We need more office space for students.
|