Dimensions of Academic Program Quality

Abstract

Is program quality best understood and measured by a set of conceptual dimensions, by a set of hierarchical levels, or by specific programs? To develop and empirically validate a framework for assessing the quality of academic programs, the authors examined national data from three professional fields. Their results provide empirical justification for the position taken by several authors that single-variable or single-dimension concepts of quality are inadequate. For example, size and resources are best examined at the program level, while faculty reputation and prestige are best understood as a combination of program and institutional factors.