Course Evaluation Calendar

As schools vary in their evaluation needs and course end dates, please review the summary about the general process below in addition to the current individual course evaluation calendars below to know what to expect for courses in your school or program. Timelines for early ending courses and summer sessions are condensed and only include a 1-week course review window.

Evaluation calendars managed by the Office of University Assessment are published on this page. Jump to current calendars by School/Program:

Undergraduate | Graduate | Pratt EGRP | Certificate in College Teaching | Graduate Liberal Studies

Process and General Timeline

Each semester, after the add/drop deadline, the Office of University Assessment imports course data with instructors and TAs into Watermark Course Evaluations & Surveys. Once course data are in the system, there are several phases in the course evaluation cycle, depending on project settings determined by school administrators:

• Departmental window
  • Course list review. At this time, administrators will be notified of the window in which courses in Watermark are available for review and editing. School-level or department-level administrators will manage courses, instructors, and TAs within the Watermark platform to ensure evaluations are distributed appropriately.
  • Custom Questions - Departments (optional). Departments will be notified of their window of access to attach custom questions to evaluation(s) for any selection of courses under their purview.
• Instructor window(s)
  • Instructor review of courses. Instructors in participating projects will be notified of their review window overlapping with departments to view and verify that their courses and any TA assignments are appropriate for the purposes for evaluation. *NOTE: At this time, the instructor view does not include co-instructors. Instructors of team-taught courses should communicate amongst themselves to verify each has access to the course in Watermark.
  • Custom Questions - Instructors (optional). After departmental access for custom questions has closed, instructors  of participating projects will be notified of their window to add custom questions to course evaluation(s).
• Evaluation window. During this time, course evaluation surveys will be open, and students will receive reminders throughout the window to complete their evaluations in Watermark. Instructors and administrators will also receive communications during this time to monitor response rates in Watermark.
• Report Distribution. Reports will be released based on the timeline of individual schools and programs. Instructors and departments will be notified of reports available in Watermark.
• SACES. The Student Accessible Course Evaluation System (SACES) is a searchable platform in Watermark for participating schools. The Office of University Assessment will update the database each term before Shopping Carts open for the next full term. SACES policies are decided independently by each school. Instructors teaching courses under Trinity College, Nicholas School of the Environment, and Pratt School of Engineering will have an opportunity to opt out of sharing results with students. If desired, an opt-out for a particular course must be submitted via the SACES selection form by the deadline, which will be communicated with reminders each term. Late requests to opt out will not be approved.

*For schools where evaluation dates are reflective of individual course end dates, the general evaluation window refers to the window aligned with the school's general LDOC. 

**Results are released when the courses in participating projects reach a collective 95% of grades submitted to the University Registrar. The target release date is an estimation based on prior semesters.