Selecting KPIs to track for schools and higher education can be a tough process.

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A key performance indicator (KPI) is a type of performance measurement that helps you understand how your organization, department, or institution is performing and allows you to understand if you’re headed in the right direction with your strategy.

If you’re looking for key performance indicators for schools or higher education, you know that there are hundreds to select from. That’s why we’ve narrowed down a list of 30 critical education KPIs—divided between nine categories specific to education management—that you can begin tracking today.

At ClearPoint Strategy, we specialize in helping educational institutions implement effective KPI tracking systems that provide comprehensive insights into their performance. By leveraging our software platform, schools and higher education institutions can automate data collection, create customized reports, and gain valuable analytics to make informed decisions. Our expertise ensures that you select the right KPIs and effectively monitor and achieve your strategic goals.

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30 Key Performance Indicators In Education

Academia

  1. Graduation Rate: This KPI determines the number of students who completed their schooling or received a particular certificate or degree within the normal time frame. (You’ll want to ensure you have a policy for tracking transfers in and out of your grades.)
  2. Awards: This metric looks at the number of awards granted to students and/or faculty and staff during each academic calendar year.
  3. Research Grants: This metric examines the percentage of the grants students and/or faculty received versus those that were applied for. You may also want to track total grant dollars.
  4. Student Attendance Rate: Determining the number of students that have achieved, say, 90% attendance during a given semester or academic year is vital to track. (You can set your target and measure accordingly.)
  5. Employment Rate Post Graduation: The percentage of students who secure employment within a certain period following graduation. This KPI measures the effectiveness of the institution in preparing students for the job market.

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Finances

  1. Percentage Of Students On Aid: This metric calculates the number of students receiving some kind of financial assistance, like scholarship money or government aid. In a secondary school you may also track those on meal assistance.
  2. Grant Money: It’s important to track the dollars fundraised for an institution through endowments, donations, or partnerships.
  3. Tuition Costs: This metric examines the cost to each student in a given scholastic timeline (i.e. a quarter or semester) to attend the institution.

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Ratios

  1. Student To Faculty Ratio: Schools may want to examine this metric to ensure students are receiving the proper attention. In most cases, the lower your student to faculty ratio is, the better.
  2. Cost Per Student: This metric calculates every cost a school incurs to educate each student. This might include campus and building maintenance, teacher and staff salaries, some books costs, some food costs, and much more.
  3. Faculty To Administration Ratio: If this ratio is too low—say, you have only two administrators for 50 faculty members—there may be issues with scheduling, organization, and finances.
  4. Number Of Students Enrolled Per Number Of Applications: This metric is particularly important for private schools who wish to remain academically competitive. Additionally, it can help you keep tabs on statistics with the student body so you are able to offer the right amount of student resources. This can also be called the acceptance rate.

Curriculum

  1. Percentage Students In Focus Areas: This metric allows you to examine the percentage of students taking, say, a foreign language, STEM courses, or AP courses. (Which focus areas you hone in on will depend entirely on your strategy.)
  2. Proficiency Rates For Each Subject: This allows you to see not just how your curriculum breaks down, but how each area of a curriculum is performing.

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Faculty

  1. Percentage Of Faculty With Advanced Certifications Or Degrees: In higher education, this metric may be important for recognition, grant money, or simply the reputation of the school.
  2. Number Of Training Sessions Per Year: Ensuring faculty members are in touch with the latest teaching methods or technologies helps ensure that students receive the best educational experience.
  3. Faculty & Staff Attendance Rates: If your institution has a low attendance rate from faculty and staff members, this can have a negative effect on the organization as a whole. Timelines can be thrown off, and time and money is spent finding substitutes or temps.
  4. Faculty & Staff Retention Rate: Not only does a high retention rate help students and professors build better rapport, but education management also doesn’t have to retrain new employees as regularly.

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Facilities

  1. Average Age Of Buildings: Renovating older buildings effectively lowers the building’s age. Thus tracking the age of your buildings on campus helps ensure that adequate maintenance is being provided and that they are fully functional.
  2. Percentage Of Buildings Passing Inspection: Of course, this metric should ideally come out at 100%—but if it’s lower, you’ll know to pay immediate attention to the buildings that did not pass. You could also have an internal inspection for something like the availability of technology. For example, what percent of your buildings have adequate WiFi?
  3. Classroom Utilization Rate: This metric examines whether you’re making the best use of your campus space and keeping classes as full as possible.

Technology

  1. Percentage Of Classes Using Technology: You’ll want a high percentage of classes in your school using the technologies or online platforms that have been provided to them.
  2. Percentage Of Administrators Using Technology: Both teachers and administrators should be using the online- or classroom-based technologies they’ve been provided for lessons, projects, or activities—and this metric should make you aware of whether that is happening or not.
  3. Social Media Engagement: The analytics you’ll need for this metric are often available through the social media platforms your school chooses to employ (like Facebook, for example), and can show how well your social media department is performing.
  4. Calls To Tech Department Per Month: This may act as a productivity metric for your IT department, showing them how many calls they’re fielded and how many (if any) went unanswered.
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Transportation

  1. Percentage Of Students That Take Public Transit: Whether at a junior high or a large university, schools will want to track whether students are using the transportation options that have been provided to them by the institution, municipality, or state.
  2. Percentage Of Students That Commute: Month-to-month or year-to-year, the admissions office will likely want to track what percentage of students commute—as this is directly tied to how much parking and on-campus housing may be needed.
  3. Cost Of Transit: Tracking your cost per student of busses will allow you to analyze if you have an appropriate bus route or if you need to get creative about getting your students to class. You have the same challenge at a university, when looking at the availability of transit options. Having a school transit option might be a good way to encourage attendance.

Housing

  1. Percentage Of Students Living On Campus: Tracking this rate allows administrators to ensure that there is enough room (or too much room) for students on campus and that this stays in line with the long-term strategy of the institution.
  2. Percentage Of Students That Say On-Campus Housing Is Above Average: Survey results are always important to keep in consideration. You’ll want to ensure that students feel their tuition and fees are being utilized appropriately and that administrators are responding to their feedback accordingly. The quality of housing options certainly affects where students choose to live during college.

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FAQ:

Why are key performance indicators important?

Key performance indicators (KPIs) are important because they provide measurable values that demonstrate how effectively an organization is achieving key business objectives. They help organizations track progress, identify areas for improvement, and make data-driven decisions to enhance performance.

How do you identify key performance indicators?

To identify key performance indicators, follow these steps:

- Define your objectives: Clearly outline your organization's goals.
- Determine success factors: Identify what success looks like for each goal.
- Select relevant metrics: Choose metrics that accurately reflect performance related to your goals.
- Ensure measurability: Ensure the chosen KPIs can be easily measured and tracked over time.
- Review and refine: Regularly review and adjust KPIs to ensure they remain relevant.

What are key performance indicators in healthcare?

Key performance indicators in healthcare include:

- Patient Satisfaction: Measures the quality of patient experience and care.
- Average Length of Stay: Tracks the average time patients spend in the hospital.
- Readmission Rates: Monitors the rate at which patients return to the hospital after discharge.
- Treatment Effectiveness: Assesses the success rates of specific treatments or procedures.
- Operational Efficiency: Evaluates the efficiency of healthcare operations, such as bed occupancy rates and staff productivity.

How are key performance indicators typically used by managers?

Managers use key performance indicators to:

- Track Progress: Monitor the achievement of strategic goals and objectives.
- Identify Issues: Detect problems or areas needing improvement.
- Make Decisions: Inform strategic and operational decisions with data.
- Motivate Employees: Set clear targets and expectations, and track performance against these goals.
- Report Performance: Communicate progress and results to stakeholders and team members.

How do you write key performance indicators?

To write effective key performance indicators:

- Align with Goals: Ensure KPIs are directly linked to your organization's strategic goals.
- Be Specific: Define what the KPI measures clearly and precisely.
- Ensure Measurability: Use quantitative data that can be tracked over time.
- Set Targets: Establish clear, achievable targets for each KPI.
- Regularly Review: Continuously monitor and adjust KPIs as necessary to maintain their relevance.