Iowa State faculty will be asked to share their work experience and typical weekly schedule through two surveys they'll receive during the next two months.
In a letter to faculty this week, senior vice president and provost Jonathan Wickert and Faculty Senate president Carol Faber said the feedback will be used to better serve and promote the development of all faculty, create better understanding among policymakers of faculty work and ultimately enrich the overall faculty experience at Iowa State.
COACHE
The Collaborative on Academic Careers in Higher Education (COACHE) Faculty Job Satisfaction Survey is administered every four years by Harvard University' Graduate School of Education. It provides a snapshot of faculty satisfaction across nine broad areas such as tenure and promotion, mentoring and collaboration, shared governance, institutional leadership and department-level engagement and collegiality.
Full-time faculty will receive a link to the survey from COACHE (coachefaculty@opinioncast.com) the week of Feb. 1. Part-time faculty as well as full-time faculty who began their service after Nov. 1, 2020, will receive a similar survey administered by Iowa State's Center for Survey Statistics and Methodology (CSSM) to ensure the broadest range of feedback.
Iowa State has participated in the COACHE survey since 2005. Results from previous surveys were used to create and improve the university’s faculty development programs. Examples include:
- Initiatives focused on the transition from associate to full professor
- Flexible policies for faculty
- Faculty Work-Life Advisory Committee
- Promotion and tenure debriefs that share best practices with department leaders.
Board of Regents
The state Board of Regents' biennial Faculty Activities Survey illustrates a typical faculty work week across appointment types. The survey reveals not only how many hours faculty work, but how those hours are divided among teaching, research and creative work, extension and outreach, clinical activities and administrative service to the department, college or university.
CSSM also will administer this survey over an eight-week period beginning Feb. 8, with one-eighth of full-time faculty asked each week to complete it. Results from the three regent universities are shared with the regents in the fall.
Questions about either survey may be directed to Tera Jordan, assistant provost for faculty development, trh@iastate.edu or 294-9804.
