FAQs

What is SACSCOC?

“The Southern Association of Colleges and Schools Commission on Colleges (SACSCOC) is an institutional accreditor for quality assurance in higher education. SACSCOC accredits institutions that award associate, baccalaureate, master’s, or doctoral degrees, including those offered via distance and correspondence education, and direct assessment within these institutions. It serves as the common denominator of shared values and practices among its members in the United States and international institutions of higher education approved by the SACSCOC Executive Council, Board of Trustees, and the Appeals Committee of the College Delegate Assembly.” (https://sacscoc.org/)

What is a QEP?

“The Quality Enhancement Plan (QEP) is a document developed by the institution that (1) includes a process identifying key issues emerging from institutional assessment, (2) focuses on learning outcomes and/or the environment supporting student learning and accomplishing the mission of the institution, (3) demonstrates institutional capability for the initiation, implementation, and completion of the QEP, (4) includes broad-based involvement of institutional constituencies in the development and proposed implementation of the QEP, and (5) identifies goals and a plan to assess their achievement.” (https://sacscoc.org/quality-enhancement-plans/)

How does the QEP impact students?

The QEP directly impacts students by creating and/or enhancing student success initiatives that improve learning and engagement. A goal is to ensure that students have access to improved learning opportunities that will help them succeed both academically and professionally.

Who is involved in the QEP process on campus?

The Quality Enhancement Plan program, represents a collaborative effort. Individuals from across our campus community (faculty, staff, and students) are involved in developing and implementing a program that will focus on improving student success.

What are some examples of QEPs at MTSU?

MTSU has been very successful in developing and implementing Quality Enhancement Plans. Please visit the following links to learn more about previous QEPs and what they are continuing to do to improve and enhance student success for MTSU students.

MTEngage – https://www.mtsu.edu/mtengage/

EXL – https://www.mtsu.edu/exl/

How can faculty, staff, and students be involved?

MTSU encourages faculty, staff, and students to be involved in the QEP development and implementation processes. Several members of the MTSU community were part of the Topic Selection Committee which worked over the previous academic year to create a list of potential topics and then to narrow that list to the top four for review by our constituencies – https://www.mtsu.edu/qep/plan-development/.  Additional work will continue this academic year to choose the final topic and to begin work on an implementation plan. Students, faculty, and staff from across campus will be part of this continued effort which will lead us to our next QEP.

How did we select Career Readiness as MTSU’s newest Quality Enhancement Plan?

The QEP Topic Selection Committee (TSC) reviewed several data sources to revise and refine potential QEP topics. Data sources included anecdotal data from their colleagues, cross-campus stakeholder conversations, institutional data from MTSU and other sister universities, and research reports. The QEP Leadership Team met with staff in MTSU’s Office of Institutional Effectiveness, Planning, and Research (IEPR) in order to access and explore institutional data. QEP TSC discussed the data, generated potential QEP topics based on this data, and generated a ranked list of QEP topics based on this data. Read more.