1. Needs Assessment of Students and Student Groups
By: Sam Earls

2. Questions Guiding This Presentation
What is a Needs Assessment?
Why should Student Affairs practitioners care about Needs Assessments?
How can I carry out a Needs Assessment?

3. Definition
According to Upcraft and Schuh (1996), “assessing student needs is the process of determining the presence or absence of the factors and conditions, resources, services, and learning opportunities that students need in order to meet their educational goals and objectives within the context of an institution’s mission” (p. 128).

4. Why Needs Assessments? Survival Keeping Up With Students
Lack of funding
Competition for resources
Proof of utility
Keeping Up With Students
Ask students
Programs match needs
Treating the cause

5. Steps For A Needs Assessment
Step 1: Determine the problem
Military veterans not receiving proper support
Transgender students experiencing discomfort due to facilities
Step 2: Identify the purpose
Discover how needs are or are not being met
Step 3: Decide what information is needed
Data from institution, students, faculty, or staff, for example

6. Steps Continued Step 4: Choose how information will be gathered
Quantitative
Qualitative
Combination
Step 5: Determine whom to include in your assessment
Whole group or representative sample of the group
Step 6: Decide how to collect data
Focus groups vs. ed surveys

7. Steps Continued Step 7: Choose instruments to collect the data
Pre-existing instrument vs. locally created instrument
Step 8: Appoint people to collect the data
Outsiders vs. insiders
Step 9: Determine how the data should be analyzed
Ask the experts

8. Final Steps Step 10: Uncover the implications for your institution
How do we address the problem?
Crux of the assessment
Step 11: Report the results properly
Make sure something comes out of your assessment

9. Conclusions Pros outweigh cons Needs Assessments are crucial
Quality check
Lifelong learners