When telling friends and family about his job, Mark Gunty explains that he helps decision-makers at the University make use of the mountains of information available. In that role, he bridges the gap between data as it exists in raw form without context and the information needs of the administration, particularly officers, deans, and chairs. Through data collection, management, and analysis, Dr. Gunty provides decision support services.
As Assistant Director of Institutional Research since November, 1995, Mark Gunty has primary responsibility for administration and analysis of formal and recurring student surveys at Notre Dame. These include surveys of incoming and graduating undergraduates and Graduate School students, law students at several points in their careers, alumni and alumnae ten years after graduation, and all participants in May commencement (the Future Plans Survey). Analysis of student survey data covers a wide range of topics but concentrates on understanding the effects of the educational experience on outcomes such as skill development, satisfaction ratings, life goals and personal attitudes, and educational aspirations. You can see more about these surveys by clicking here
In addition to his IR outcomes and process assessment work, Dr. Gunty provides methodological and analytical support for scholarship of teaching projects in conjunction with the Kaneb Center for Teaching and Learning. In his work with the Kaneb Center, he works with faculty to assess the effects and effectiveness of innovations in pedagogy or curriculum redesign. He has also examined the factors affecting student evaluation of teaching and gender effects in Notre Dame's Teacher and Course Evaluation.
Flowing from reports and analyses conducted for various administrative units, Dr. Gunty produces a series of short research reports, called Highlights. Issues of Highlights have addressed topics such as Comparing Actual and Predicted Graduation Rates, Alumni Satisfaction Ratings, Notre Dame Students Going on for Doctorates, The Impact of Debt Burden, and Trends in Undergraduates' Credit at Entry. You can view issues of Highlights online by clicking here
Dr. Gunty has consulted with Ivy Tech State College and Saint Mary's College on institutional research projects, especially related to program evaluations and campus climate issues.
As an active member of the Higher Education Data Sharing Consortium (HEDS) and the Association for Institutional
Research (AIR), Dr. Gunty has presented at professional conferences around the country. His presentations have
included "Bringing Student Survey Research to Bear on Strategic Planning," "The Future Plans of Undergraduates:
Comparing Data from March and May," "Enhancing Student Survey Response Rates," "Measuring Social Responsibility in
Law Students," and "Unraveling Gender Effects in the Student Evaluation of Teaching with Causal Analytical Modeling
of Blocked Regression Analysis (CAMBRA)." He serves on the HEDS' Assessment Advisory Group.