Get Evaluated

Requirements

To participate in MIT’s online subject evaluations, instructors must have:

How To Get Evaluated

Each term, departments select which subjects and instructors will be evaluated. Department administrators enter teaching and evaluation data into a central system from which surveys are generated. To ensure that you and your subject(s) are being evaluated, please contact your department administrator.

Managing Evaluation Questions

The online survey uses the questions from the HASS (download sample PDF) and Science/Engineering (download sample PDF) paper evaluation forms. In Spring 2013, departments also have the option to pilot a third form with a reduced set of questions applicable to all subjects and teachers at MIT. Regardless of which form is used, these questions are standard across the Institute and cannot be removed.

You may also add questions that are specific to your teaching, section, and subject. The questions can be framed in a variety of formats such as scalar, numeric, and open-ended, among others. Because the surveys are intended to be anonymous, please do not ask for information that might indentify respondents. For example, it is not appropriate to ask students to provide demographic information such as class year, gender, or race.

To add questions to an evaluation, you must contact your department's subject evaluation coordinator no later than three weeks before the beginning of the evaluation period. They can also provide a preview of the survey for you.

For more information on creating and formatting questions, please read our question guidelines.

Evaluation Periods

Although the majority of evaluations take place at the end of each term, MIT’s Online Subject Evaluation system can accommodate subjects that end earlier as well. The system is also open to credit subjects offered during IAP.

The end-of-term evaluation period is approximately two weeks before the end of classes and continues through reading period. Please note that it does NOT extend through finals to ensure that students’ responses are not influenced by the exams or their final grades.

Students who are registered for credit or as listeners and have a Kerberos ID receive an email invitation to participate at the beginning of the evaluation period. Those who haven't completed their evaluations receive reminders every few days during the evaluation period.

Cross-registered students CAN participate in MIT’s online evaluations. However they must have an MIT ID in order to obtain a Kerberos ID and MIT Certificates. Please direct your students to http://web.mit.edu/subjectevaluation/evaluate.html.

Viewing and Increasing Response Rates

Real-time response rates for your subjects are available during and immediately after the evaluation period begins.

You can help boost response rates by:

emphasizing to your students how important the evaluations are to you and your department and describing a particular instance where you changed your approach or subject content based on student feedback
letting them know that they can view the quantitative results online at web.mit.edu/subjectevaluation/results.html
encouraging students to take the evaluation in class on their laptops
working with your department administrator to get the word out

View Results

Results are published only after final grades have been submitted. Quantitative results are published in the aggregate for members of the MIT community. Reports for instructors and department administrators also include students’ written comments.

MIT and Kerberos IDs are separated from student responses before results are reported. Disclosure and protection of student responses are governed by the Student Information Policy at http://web.mit.edu/policies/11/sip.html.

Get Help

For technical problems (logging in, viewing results, or any other technical assistance matter) and other questions, please contact se-help@mit.edu.

Subject Evaluations