Assessment of Student Learning
WHAT IS ASSESSMENT AT MIAD?
How do we know our students are learning? Through assessment. Assessment is an ongoing process for determining student achievement of the core skills essential to their success after graduation. Assessment requires the establishment of clear and measurable learning outcomes and collecting evidence that identifies how well students are achieving these outcomes.
LEARNING OUTCOMES
MIAD has three levels of learning outcomes:
- Eight College-Wide Learning Outcomes are measured across all four years of study. These outcomes are measured in the majors, as well as in First-Year Experience and Critical Studies courses.
- Major-Specific Learning Outcomes are assessed in each of the college’s five majors.
- Individual Course Learning Outcomes identify the specific skills, knowledge, and abilities students must master in order to receive credit for the course.
MIAD’s formal assessment activities focus on measuring College-Wide and Major-Specific Learning Outcomes. Evidence of student achievement toward these outcomes is gathered, compiled and analyzed. Faculty then meet to review, discuss, and interpret the evidence. Based on their analyses, faculty identify ways to make improvements to teaching and learning.
WHY IS ASSESSMENT AT MIAD IMPORTANT?
For two reasons:
- We want to ensure that our students are learning and that we can measure that learning.
- We are committed to continuous improvement.
Several years ago, in a book entitled Academically Adrift: Limited Learning on Campus, researchers found that many students’ skills in critical thinking, complex reasoning and writing actually decline while they are in college. That’s not very good news for the students enrolled in the colleges that the researchers studied. It suggests why many people distrust higher education. What’s the point of attending college if students’ skills decline?
At MIAD we conduct assessment to ensure our students’ skills improve throughout their college careers. Our assessment research at MIAD reveals:
- Over the past 6 years, first-year students’ critical and creative thinking skills are improving.
- Over the past 6 years, first-year students’ research, communication, and reasoning skills are improving.
- Second-year students demonstrate significant growth in critical and creative thinking skills over first-year students.
- In all majors, seniors consistently demonstrate significantly high rates of growth in their studio skills over first-year students. While first-year students show evidence of approaching competency, seniors show clear evidence of mastery.
In other words, the college has an ongoing and meaningful program for measuring our students’ learning. We have evidence that students’ skills and knowledge are growing throughout their four years. In support of their professional readiness, faculty make sure that all of our students:
- Develop learning portfolios to show evidence of their growth across four years
- Work with professional artists and designers throughout their four years
- Develop writing, communication and critical thinking skills through four required writing courses and a writing-based liberal studies education
- Develop senior exhibits and portfolios which are critiqued by professionals
At the same time, faculty are constantly reviewing student growth and seeking new ways to improve the learning experience that MIAD offers.
News
La Mère Brazier: Phoebe Nelson Senior Exhibition 2025
Phoebe Nelson ’25 (Illustration) came to the Milwaukee Institute of Art & Design (MIAD) to study children’s book illustration. Now at the end of her senior year, she is writing and illustrating a children’s book about Eugénie Brazier, the first person to get six Michelin stars, for her Senior Exhibition project.
MIAD Independent Inquiry Program launches with three student grants
Galilea Cerda ’26, Tina Voith ’26 and Madi Weglarz ’25 are the first three Milwaukee Institute of Art & Design students selected to receive Independent Inquiry Program stipends to investigate new technologies and their applicability to art and design education. As first-time applicants, each receives a stipend of $1,200 for a six-week Mini Inquiry this summer.
Grilled Cheese grants propel MIAD seniors
Funds from the annual Grilled Cheese Grant helped Milwaukee Institute of Art & Design (MIAD) awardees Siren Harris, Yo Yo collective and Madi Weglarz complete their 2025 Senior Exhibition projects and future work. All the MIAD awardees are Fine Art + New Studio Practice seniors.
Sebastian Penn: Senior Exhibition 2025
Sebastian Penn ’25 (Animation Track in Illustration), “From Home to Legacy: Black and Queer Bars in Milwaukee.” Sebastian is a President’s (Honor) List student from Holman, Wis.
McKenna Martin: Senior Exhibition 2025
McKenna Martin ’25 (Product Design), “Hyacinth.” McKenna received first place for her design for the 2023 Delta design project/competition at MIAD, is on the Dean’s List and is from Fond du Lac, Wis.