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Institutional Research

The Office of Institutional Research conducts research to support planning and decision making across campus. This includes coordinating the collection and dissemination of campus data for both internal and external reporting purposes.

Activities Include:

  • Special studies — Conduct specialized studies in support of campus needs and priorities
  • Trend analysis — Inform the college community about campus and external trends
  • Peer comparisons — Summarize information about comparison institutions
  • Survey research — Coordinate and report on survey research
  • Assessment — Provide support for academic and administrative assessment efforts
  • Factbook — Prepare an annual factbook
  • Mandated reporting — Coordinate state and IPEDS (Integrated Postsecondary Education Data System) reporting
  • Liaison to consortia — Serve as institutional research liaison for consortia such as HEDS (Higher Education Data Sharing), COFHE (Consortium on Financing Higher Education), and AICUP (Association of Independent Colleges and Universities of Pennsylvania).

Statement On College Rankings

President Bloom and Colleagues' Statement about College Rankings
Statement on rankings

Planning for Swarthmore 2020

The College has launched a planning process designed to set imaginative goals for the Swarthmore of 2020.
http://cmp.swarthmore.edu
Parrish in the Fall

Middle States Reaccreditation Self-Study

Swarthmore College has completed a comprehensive Self-Study as part of the Middle States Commission on Higher Education's reaccreditation review, which occurs every 10 years.
https://www.swarthmore.edu/middlestates/
Swarthmore in the Fall