OPAIR

The nexus of research, accreditation, assessment, and strategic planning that supports individual unit endeavors towards organizational excellence by making institutional data and strategic information easily accessible, clearly understood, and well-leveraged both within the University and across the Commonwealth.

Key Projects

DEIB Dashboard

Diversity, Equity, Inclusion, and Belonging

Data Digest

A Modern Approach to the Factbook

iTwo (Institutional Insight)

Interactive Data Analysis and Distribution

Penn State Self Study 2024

Self Study 2024

Reaffirmation of Institutional Accreditation
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News and Updates

OPAIR Spotlight: Kyrie DeShong – Project Manager

“I was very excited to recently wrap up a few big milestones: the upload of our Self-Study and evidence to Middle States, transitioning user ticketing for the IR teams from Jira to ServiceNow, and adding degree completion data to the IDR database/RADAR. I am excited to continue growing RADAR (the Reporting & Data Analytics Resource) as a central point of access for OPAIR institutional reporting & data.”

Registration open for annual Nuventive training sessions for faculty, admins

“All degree programs and for-credit certificates engage in learning outcomes assessment following either the University’s prescribed process or the process required by their disciplinary accrediting body. For those programs following the University’s process, annual reports are due June 30 and are submitted using Nuventive, Penn State’s online assessment management system.”

Self Study 2024

Penn State is accredited by The Middle States Commission on Higher Education (MSCHE), an institutional accreditor recognized by the U.S. Secretary of Education. MSCHE provides accreditation for all programs offered by the University. To maintain accreditation, the University must meet MSCHE’s rigorous Standards of Accreditation and Requirements of Affiliation. 

MSCHE accreditation assures students, their families, and the public of the educational quality of a Penn State education. Institutional accreditation is also a requirement for the University to participate in the Department of Education’s Title IV federal financial aid program.

Strategic University Projects

OPAIR works on special projects outside of the areas of accreditation, assessment, institutional research, and strategic planning due to strategic resources and talent found within the office. This section is a collection of those projects.
CARES Act/CRRSAA/ARP Act Information
Penn State was allotted nearly $55 million from the Higher Education Emergency Relief Fund as part of the Coronavirus Aid, Relieve and Economic Security (CARES) Act, nearly $84 million from the fund as part of the Coronavirus Response and Relief Supplemental Appropriations Act (CRRSAA), and $150 million from the fund as part of the American Rescue Plan (ARP) Act.  Half of Penn State’s CARES Act allocation – or approximately $27.5 million – and the same amount of the CRRSAA allocation along with more than $76 million of the ARP allocation were designated by law to be disbursed as emergency cash grants to students impacted by disruptions to campus operations as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic.

Penn State’s Higher Education Emergency Relief Fund reporting information is available here.

Foreign Gift and Contract Reporting
Section 117 of the Higher Education Act requires institutions to disclose to the Department of Education (DoE) contracts, grants, agreements with or gifts from a foreign source, with a value of $250,000 or more, considered alone or in combination with all other gifts from or contracts with the same foreign source, within a calendar year.  Units should adopt procedures whereby any unit signing a contract or accepting a gift should ascertain whether the other party is a foreign source.

More information on Section 117 of the Higher Education Act, due diligence, and reporting resources are available here.

Nuventive Assessment Management System
Penn State uses Nuventive Improve for its Assessment Management System (AMS). The AMS is an online tool that supports University-wide learning outcomes assessment, strategic planning, and Middle States accreditation. Academic programs use the AMS to document their Program Learning Objectives (PLOs), create curriculum maps, plan program assessment efforts, and report results. Strategic planning units use the system to document unit-level plans and align plans with University-level outcomes.

Information and training resources for the AMS are available here.

We Earn

Penn State graduates are making an impact across Pennsylvania and the nation. Through cooperation with the US Census Bureau, Penn State conducted a project to estimate Penn State graduates’ return on their higher education investment since 2001. Information was collected from 404,093 degrees awarded across all degrees, levels, and campuses. Not only were earnings examined, but the debt to earnings ratio of the cost of education vs. post-graduation earnings were also addressed.

This information provides the best current estimate of a Penn State degree’s value across the United States. We welcome people to explore the data examine the earnings of students who recently entered the workforce post-graduation; to those who entered it 10-years ago. So jump in and explore the value of a Penn State degree.

404,093

Degrees awarded since 2001

$ 73,482

Median Bachelor’s Degree Earnings After 10-Years

$ 87,316

Median Master’s Degree Earnings After 10-Years

$ 103,229

Median Computer and Information Science’s Bachelor’s Degree Earnings After 10-Years

$ 97,140

Median Engineering Bachelor’s Degree Earnings After 10-Years

$ 225,726

Median Medical Degree Earnings After 10-Years

$ 95,873

Median Law Degree Earnings After 10-Years

$ 89,207

Median Business, Management, and Marketing Bachelor’s Degree Earnings After 10-Years

$ 69,256

Median Penn State Erie Bachelor’s Degree Earnings After 10-Years

$ 68,360

Median Penn State Greater Allegheny Bachelor’s Degree Earnings After 10-Years

$ 69,311

Median Penn State Lehigh Valley Bachelor’s Degree Earnings After 10-Years

$ 59,868

Median Penn State Harrisburg Bachelor’s Degree Earnings After 10-Years

$ 59,999

Median Penn State Abington Bachelor’s Degree Earnings After 10-Years

$ 50,291

Median Penn State Altoona Bachelor’s Degree Earnings After 10-Years

404,093

Degrees awarded since 2001

$ 73,482

Median Bachelor’s Degree Earnings AFter 10-Years

$ 87,316

Median Master’s Degree Earnings After 10-Years

$ 225,726

Median Medical Degree Earnings After 10-Years

$ 103,229

Median Computer and Information Science’s Bachelor’s Degree Earnings After 10-Years

$ 89,207

Median Business, Management, and Marketing Bachelor’s Degree Earnings After 10-Years

$ 97,140

Median Engineering Bachelor’s Degree Earnings After 10-Years

$ 95,873

Median Law Degree Earnings After 10-Years

$ 61,778

Median Penn State Wilkes-Barre Bachelor’s Degree Earnings After 10-Years

$ 59,999

Median Penn State Abington Bachelor’s Degree Earnings After 10-Years

$ 50,291

Median Penn State Altoona Bachelor’s Degree Earnings After 10-Years

$ 55,964

Median Penn State Beaver Bachelor’s Degree Earnings After 10-Years

$ 63,631

Median Penn State Berks Bachelor’s Degree Earnings After 10-Years

$ 60,559

Median Penn State Brandywine Bachelor’s Degree Earnings After 10-Years

$ 45,354

Median Penn State DuBois Bachelor’s Degree Earnings After 10-Years

$ 69,256

Median Penn State Erie Bachelor’s Degree Earnings After 10-Years

$ 44,313

Median Penn State Fayette Bachelor’s Degree Earnings After 10-Years

$ 68,360

Median Penn State Greater Allegheny Bachelor’s Degree Earnings After 10-Years

$ 59,868

Median Penn State Harrisburg Bachelor’s Degree Earnings After 10-Years

$ 56,234

Median Penn State Hazleton Bachelor’s Degree Earnings After 10-Years

$ 69,311

Median Penn State Lehigh Valley Bachelor’s Degree Earnings After 10-Years

$ 63,377

Median Penn State Mont Alto Bachelor’s Degree Earnings After 10-Years

$ 67,270

Median Penn State New Kensington Bachelor’s Degree Earnings After 10-Years

$ 45,526

Median Penn State Schuylkill Bachelor’s Degree Earnings After 10-Years

$ 49,805

Median Penn State Scranton Bachelor’s Degree Earnings After 10-Years

$ 46,966

Median Penn State Shenango Bachelor’s Degree Earnings After 10-Years

$ 63,430

Median Penn State York Bachelor’s Degree Earnings After 10-Years

Dynamic. Accurate. Relevant.

The Data Digest is a tool that has the power to propel the University’s data users into the future. No longer is data hidden behind multiple screens and clicks.

Today, users can access fully customizable dashboards with ease, find the data they desire, carry their filters forward through their search, and export it in one click into Excel.

OPAIR is proud of the Pennsylvania State University Data Digest and works hard to provide more data and features.