Office of Data, Assessment and Institutional Research

Survey Procedures

 

K-State Survey Procedures aim to ensure that surveys conducted within the university community are valid, effective, and adhere to established guidelines. These guidelines apply to all surveys involving campus constituents, including students, faculty, and staff.

 

Overview

  • Purpose: Ensure that university surveys targeting campus constituents (students, faculty, staff) are valid, effective, and minimize redundancy while adhering to established guidelines.
  • Scope: Applies to all surveys targeting university-wide constituents. (Refer to the Scenarios section.)
  • Exclusion: Surveys falling below the participant threshold as defined in the University-Wide Survey Definition section and specific types of surveys (e.g., degree program alumni surveys, academic department reviews, focused samples, event feedback surveys, course evaluations, leadership performance surveys, routine administrative forms, and voting polls) are excluded from this procedure.
  • Review: This procedure undergoes an annual review process to ensure its relevance and effectiveness.
  • Analysis: The survey sponsor is responsible for survey data analysis, reporting, and communication.



University-Wide Survey Definitions

  • Campus Constituent: Includes students (prospective, current, former) and university employees (staff, faculty, administrators).
  • University-Wide Survey: Refers to surveys targeting large groups, such as:
  • Survey Types:
    • Administrative: For internal program planning purposes.
    • Research: Surveys contributing to generalizable knowledge.
  • Submission: Complete University-Wide Survey Proposal 30 days before launch date.



Scenarios

There are three possible scenarios for presenting a university survey request:

Scenario #1: Request Based on Another Institution's IRB Approval
  • Determine if K-State requires research approved by another institution's IRB that requests the same data or engagement with K-State students.
  • Factors considered by K-State IRB include:
    • Is K-State listed as a site/location?
    • Is anyone at K-State "engaged" in the research activity?
  • If K-State is identified as a site but not engaged in the research activity, no further action is required.

Scenario #2: Request from K-State IRB Submission
  • If research-related and the IRB submission indicates a survey component involving large groups, such as:
    • 1000+ students, 500+ employees, or
    • 30% of a chosen population (e.g., tenured, non-tenured, or randomly selected campus constituents),
  • The IRB application and request for data/survey do not require the Survey Proposal Submission Form but funnel through the University-Wide Survey Working Group.
  • Survey sponsors are expected to notify the Working Group for coordination and avoidance of duplications.

Scenario #3: Request to Survey – Non-Research Related
  • If not research-related or not required to go through IRB protocols and involves large groups,
  • The survey sponsor fills out the Survey Proposal Submission Form for University-Wide Survey Working Group review.

 

Procedure For Conducting Surveys

Option #1: IRB Application

  • Includes Scenario #1 and #2.
  • Action: Determine required process and forms under the IRB process. Applicants are not required to submit the Survey Proposal Submission Form.
  • Proposal Details: Submission of IRB Application, protocol, Data Requests/Needs and Approvals.

Option #2: University-Wide Survey Proposal Form

  • Includes Scenario #1 and #3.