A Comparison of Faculty and Student Expectations in a College Major: A Mixed-Methods Approach

Indianapolis, IN

The purpose of this study is to evaluate the university’s psychology academic department using a mixed-methods model in which both qualitative and quantitative data will be collected. Data collection will begin with focus groups and interviews with both psychology students and faculty. Using the Disney Customer Service Integration Matrix, we will explore what students most want from their academic major. After the focus groups and interviews, key themes will be identified of what students and faculty identify as needs and wants from the academic major. These key themes will be used to create a Likert scale survey that will be utilized in the next stage of data collection to assess the importance of each issue to both students and faculty. Student and faculty responses will then be compared. Results will be analyzed and recommendations will be provided to academic departments to help them better understand and meet the expectations of students.