The mission of the office of Institutional Research and Planning is to provide analytical resources for the strategic use of institutional information in support of planning, evaluation, decision-making and external relations. IRP reports to the President and to the Vice-President Academic and Provost; however it provides analytical and research support for all members of the Administration Committee.
To fulfill its mission, IRP undertakes the following activities:
- Acts as liaison with the government and other external agencies (e.g., the Universities branch of the Ministry of Training, Colleges and Universities (MTCU) , the Council on University Planning and Analysis (CUPA), Statistics Canada, etc.) to keep informed about external decisions and proposals which affect higher education and to provide the University’s input when the decisions are being made.
- Support negotiations with government regarding enrolment changes and negotiations with other institutions concerning new program development/collaboration.
- Researches and develops background studies in anticipation of planning and management needs.
- Develops the internal and external communication and publication strategy for institutional data. Compiles and publishes University Statistics (institutional and program level). Design and operation of distributed access to institutional data via the COGNOS software.
- Interprets and applies MTCU rules and regulations concerning enrolment reporting and tuition fees which determine the largest share of the University’s operating income. In this capacity, provides written procedures which the Office of the Registrar and all Faculties must follow in order to comply with the regulations and which internal and external auditors use to report our compliance to MTCU. Prepares and submits enrolment reports to MTCU for the purpose of claiming operating grants.
- Owns (Policy 108) the electronic routines for the extraction of registration and other required data necessary to prepare Enrolment Reports to MTCU and Statistics Canada. IRP ensures that the elements which have a major impact on the funding levels are correctly coded in the SIS.
- Submits reports to various external agencies including Statistics Canada and the Council of Ontario Universities (COU). Prepares faculty complements reports to external agencies like COU, Statistics Canada and the Association of Universities and Colleges of Canada (AUCC).
- Is responsible for major internal and external institutional surveys such as program evaluation surveys, the Canadian Undergraduate Survey Consortium (CUSC), the National Survey of Student Engagement (NSSE), the Graduate and Professional Student Survey (GPSS) and others similar.
- Provides statistical support of all facets of the Undergraduate Program Review Audit activities, in collaboration with the Senate Committee on the Evaluation of Undergraduate Programs.
- Provides statistical support of the Graduate Program Review process, in concert with the Faculty of Graduate and Postdoctoral Studies.
- Conducts comparative analyses with other institutions (institutional and program level).
- Develops Key Performance Indicators in support of institutional goals and objectives.
- Plays an active role in addressing data integration, data integrity, optimization issues, and the standardization of information within the University.
- Has unrestricted access in read-only mode to all University databases. Assists with the design and development of institutional databases to ensure that the data collected meets reporting and institutional analysis needs.