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Data User Support

Providing flexible, user-centered assistance to help campus stakeholders access, understand and use data effectively.

Academic Outcomes

Institutional Assessment and Research (IAR) provides Data User Support services designed to help campus partners understand, navigate, and use institutional data and reporting tools effectively. This includes self-guided support such as help guides, instructional videos and the CSUMB Data Glossary, which offers clear definitions, example values, business rules and metadata for terms used across campus dashboards and reports to ensure consistent understanding of data language and sources.

In addition to our self-guided resources, IAR hosts Data Exploration Open Labs—regular drop-in sessions where users can ask questions and get real-time guidance—and offers curated data presentations by appointment to spotlight specific tools or topics. The office also engages campus partners in the Data User Advisory Group (DUAG), a collaborative forum where members test and provide feedback on reports, dashboards and documentation before they’re released, helping make IAR data tools more useful, accessible and aligned with user needs.

Data User Support Services and Resources

Self-Guided User Support via the CSUMB Data Glossary

The CSUMB Data Glossary provides clear definitions and context for terms used in institutional reports and dashboards, including business rules, example values, data sources, and metadata, helping users interpret and use campus data consistently. Campus Data Warehouse tutorials and help guides are also available.

View CSUMB Data Glossary
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Data Exploration Open Labs

Data Exploration Open Labs are open, hands-on Zoom sessions where campus data users can get help working with IAR’s data tools—such as dashboards, reports, and survey visualizations—and ask questions tailored to their data needs. These labs are held weekly and are designed to support users in navigating and making sense of available data resources.

View Data Exploration Open Labs
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Data User Advisory Group

IAR's Data User Advisory Group (DUAG) brings together campus partners to review, test, and provide feedback on IAR reports, dashboards and documentation, helping ensure data tools are clear, useful and aligned with campus needs.

View Data User Advisory Group
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Campus Data Warehouse Updates Blog

The Campus Data Warehouse Updates blog provides timely posts about new features, data loads, known issues, alerts, and resolved problems for the Campus Data Warehouse, keeping users informed about enhancements, changes, and important status updates for dashboards and datasets. It serves as a searchable archive of communications that help data consumers stay up to date on system developments and how they might affect access to and interpretation of institutional data.

View Campus Data Warehouse Updates Blog

Campus Data Warehouse Reporting Schedule

View a reporting schedule for when key census and finalized data in the Campus Data Warehouse is refreshed and made available in dashboards and reports—such as admissions funnels, enrollment, grades, retention and graduation, degrees, and other institutional metrics—helping users know when the most recent data will be accessible for planning and analysis.

View Campus Data Warehouse Reporting Schedule
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Majors Documentation

IAR's Documentation on Majors provides a comprehensive, tabulated list of CSUMB’s academic majors, including details such as short and full names, degree levels, major codes, CIP codes, status and date ranges, modality and support type, helping users see the official inventory of current and past programs.

View Majors Documentation
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Continuous Improvement Driven by Campus Needs

IAR has closely integrated our user support services with our continuous improvement efforts for our data tools by creating feedback loops that directly inform the design, improvement, and usability of our data tools based on real campus needs and questions.

Data User Support Services

IAR provides data user support services to support data users with questions they have regarding student data and the data and tools available to answer those questions. IAR's data user support services include:

  • Self-Guided User Support
    • IAR develops and maintains help guides, videos, the CSUMB Data Glossary, and other documentation.
  • Data Exploration Open Labs
    • These are pre-scheduled, bi-weekly sessions held for two hours on Fridays.
    • Users can ask questions, receive guidance, and learn how to use available data tools better.
  • IAR Curated Data Presentations
    • These by-appointment presentations of data tools available from IAR can be requested by individuals, programs, and groups on campus.
    • Presentations highlight resources available to address a specific question or area of interest.

Through our data user support services, IAR provides targeted data exploration and resource support relevant to the questions users are asking and the data and tools available to answer those questions.

Problems that are discovered by users in IAR’s reports and dashboards and requests for new reports or visualizations are submitted by users through the IT Tickets system.

Acceptance Testing and Feedback Activities

  • Data User Advisory Group (DUAG)
    • DUAG workshops are held once a month during fall and spring terms and as needed during summer and winter.
    • DUAG members help test and provide feedback on dashboards in the Campus Data Warehouse, other IAR reports, help guides, videos, and other documentation resources.
    • DUAG members also provide information back to campus departments on new and updated data tools.
    • IAR collates feedback submitted by DUAG members through Data Exploration and Feedback Activities.
    • IAR reviews feedback, evaluates the scope of changes, creates IT Tickets for minor changes, and advises users to submit an IT Ticket for other changes.
  • In-Depth Engagement with Selected users
    • On an as needed basis for particular topics, selected users are invited to collaborate on projects with IAR.
    • IAR collects feedback and submits IT Tickets for Campus Data Warehouse development as needed.

All IT Tickets submitted through our feedback processes are evaluated by the Data Warehouse Team for feasibility and prioritization. Tickets are deemed either feasible or not feasible in the Campus Data Warehouse.

For IT Tickets deemed feasible in the Campus Data Warehouse:

  • When data is already in the Campus Data Warehouse, IAR creates or modifies dashboards / visualizations.
  • When data is not yet available in the Campus Data Warehouse model or needs to be corrected, a full Campus Data Warehouse development project is initiated.

For IT Tickets deemed NOT feasible in the Campus Data Warehouse:

  • IAR creates or modifies reports / visualizations outside of Campus Data Warehouse (when possible).
  • Users are directed to other tools (where available).
  • Users are informed if the request is not feasible.

Contact IAR

Our IAR team is available to point you in the right direction for your data needs.

Institutional Assessment and Research

Still have questions about data or want to set up a curated data presentation or in-depth engagement with IAR?

Find Us

IAR's offices are located on the 2nd floor of the Tanimura & Antle Family Memorial Library.

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