Multilevel modeling is an increasingly popular multivariate technique that is widely applied in the social sciences. Increasingly, practitioners are making instructional decisions based on results from their multivariate analyses, which often come from nested data that lend themselves to multilevel modeling techniques. As data-driven decision making becomes more critical to colleges and universities, multilevel modeling is a tool that will lead to more efficient estimates and enhance understanding of complex relationships. This volume illustrates both the theoretical underpinnings and practical applications of multilevel modeling in IR. It introduces the fundamental concepts of multilevel modeling techniques in a conceptual and technical manner. Providing a range of examples of nested models that are based on linear and categorical outcomes, it then offers important suggestions about presenting results of multilevel models through charts and graphs. This is the 154th volume of this Jossey-Bass quarterly report series. Always timely and comprehensive, New Directions for Institutional Research provides planners and administrators in all types of academic institutions with guidelines in such areas as resource coordination, information analysis, program evaluation, and institutional management.

While the term benchmarking is commonplace nowadays in institutional research and higher education, less common, is a solid understanding of what it really means and how it has been, and can be, used effectively. This volume begins by defining benchmarking as “a strategic and structured approach whereby an organization compares aspects of its processes and/or outcomes to those of another organization or set of organizations to identify opportunities for improvement.” Building on this definition, the chapters provide a brief history of the evolution and emergence of benchmarking in general and in higher education in particular. The authors apply benchmarking to: Enrollment management and student success Institutional effectiveness The potential economic impact of higher education institutions on their host communities. They look at the use of national external survey data in institutional benchmarking and selection of peer institutions, introduce multivariate statistical methodologies for guiding that selection, and consider a novel application of baseball sabermetric methods. The volume offers a solid starting point for those new to benchmarking in higher education and provides examples of current best practices and prospective new directions. This is the 156th volume of this Jossey-Bass series. Always timely and comprehensive, New Directions for Institutional Research provides planners and administrators in all types of academic institutions with guidelines in such areas as resource coordination, information analysis, program evaluation, and institutional management.

All around the world, postsecondary institutions are facing competitive environments, declining resources, and changing societal needs. Institutions are affected by globalization, state and local government needs, economic restructuring, information technology, and student and staff mobility. Institutional researchers have a critical role to play in addressing these issues. In this volume, we have embedded the practice of IR as experienced globally. We brought together a discussion that is delivered from multiple perspectives, but fundamentally one that draws from the collaborative efforts of practitioners across borders. By embedding notions of globalization that affect IR, we can engage readers in broad discussions on where we are coming from and where we are heading. This is the 157th volume of this Jossey-Bass quarterly report series. Always timely and comprehensive, New Directions for Institutional Research provides planners and administrators in all types of academic institutions with guidelines in such areas as resource coordination, information analysis, program evaluation, and institutional management.

This volume presents work focused on underrepresented persons in a variety of levels of higher education. Each scholar has used critical quantitative approaches to examine access and/or success in the higher education arena. Their scholarship pushes the boundaries of what we know by questioning mainstream notions of higher education through: the examination of policies the re-framing of theories and measures the reexamination of traditional questions for nontraditional populations. The work is divergent, but the commonality of the presentations lies in each scholar’s critical approach to conventional quantitative scholarship. Their research highlights inequities and explores factors not typically included in conventional quantitative analysis. This is the 158th volume of this Jossey-Bass quarterly report series. Always timely and comprehensive, New Directions for Institutional Research provides planners and administrators in all types of academic institutions with guidelines in such areas as resource coordination, information analysis, program evaluation, and institutional management.

Faculty diversity is gaining unprecedented emphasis in the mission of colleges and universities, and institutional researchers are being pushed for relevant data. This volume examines faculty diversity from a variety of perspectives. Together, they constitute a comprehensive outlook on the subject, highlighting factors including racial background, gender, citizenship, employment status, and academic discipline, and examining how growing diversity has affected the work experience and productivity of faculty and the learning outcomes of students. Special attention is given to international and nontenure-track faculty members, two groups that have experienced rapid growth in recent years. The authors: Present empirical evidence to support the increasing importance of faculty diversity in institutional research Show the need for actively tracking the changes in diversity over time Highlight the critical role of research methodology in all such work. This is the 155th volume of this Jossey-Bass quarterly report series. Always timely and comprehensive, New Directions for Institutional Research provides planners and administrators in all types of academic institutions with guidelines in such areas as resource coordination, information analysis, program evaluation, and institutional management.

This volume offers readers a comprehensive means to understanding glass ceiling effects in higher education. Each chapter approaches the glass ceiling from a different perspective, providing compelling arguments that truly highlight the importance and usefulness of collecting data on this topic. Institutional decision makers will find valuable information to confront the challenge of glass ceiling effects across different institutional environments. Likewise, institutional researchers will find step-by-step protocols to collect and analyze glass ceiling data as well as a variety of rich examples. Readers will not only find this sourcebook useful for institutional planning purposes, but it will also help them truly understand how the glass ceiling impacts women and people of color in higher education.

Have you been told you need to do multilevel modeling, but you can′t get past the forest of equations? Do you need the techniques explained with words and practical examples so they make sense? Help is here! This book unpacks these statistical techniques in easy-to-understand language with fully annotated examples using the statistical software Stata. The techniques are explained without reliance on equations and algebra so that new users will understand when to use these approaches and how they are really just special applications of ordinary regression. Using real life data, the authors show you how to model random intercept models and random coefficient models for cross-sectional data in a way that makes sense and can be retained and repeated. This book is the perfect answer for anyone who needs a clear, accessible introduction to multilevel modeling.

This book presents a practical, effective, and systematic approach to the measurement, assessment, and sensemaking of institutional performance. Included are strategies to measure and assess the performance of Curriculum, Learning, Instruction, Support Services, and Program Feasibility as well as a meaningful Environmental Scanning method.

Multilevel Modeling Methods with Introductory and Advanced Applications provides a cogent and comprehensive introduction to the area of multilevel modeling for methodological and applied researchers as well as advanced graduate students. The book is designed to be able to serve as a textbook for a one or two semester course in multilevel modeling. The topics of the seventeen chapters range from basic to advanced, yet each chapter is designed to be able to stand alone as an instructional unit on its respective topic, with an emphasis on application and interpretation. In addition to covering foundational topics on the use of multilevel models for organizational and longitudinal research, the book includes chapters on more advanced extensions and applications, such as cross-classified random effects models, non-linear growth models, mixed effects location scale models, logistic, ordinal, and Poisson models, and multilevel mediation. In addition, the volume includes chapters addressing some of the most important design and analytic issues including missing data, power analyses, causal inference, model fit, and measurement issues. Finally, the volume includes chapters addressing special topics such as using large-scale complex sample datasets, and reporting the results of multilevel designs. Each chapter contains a section called Try This!, which poses a structured data problem for the reader. We have linked our book to a website (http://modeling.uconn.edu) containing data for the Try This! section, creating an opportunity for readers to learn by doing. The inclusion of the Try This! problems, data, and sample code eases the burden for instructors, who must continually search for class examples and homework problems. In addition, each chapter provides recommendations for additional methodological and applied readings.

This edited volume documents attempts to conduct systematic and prodigious research using multilevel analysis in educational settings, and present their findings and identify future research directions. It showcases the versatility of multilevel analysis, and elucidates the unique advantages in examining complex and wide-ranging educational issues. This book brings together leading experts around the world to share their works in the field, highlighting recent advances, creative and unique approaches, and innovative methods using multilevel modeling and theoretical and practical aspects of multilevel analysis in culturally and linguistically-diverse educational contexts.