Data and Assessment Resources

Ad Astra assists users in gathering information on optimal course schedules to meet historical and predictive student demand.

This platform uses current student Pathways, or degree maps, as well as course enrollment and course schedule data to assist users in their course planning and scheduling efforts each semester.

Useful Links:

• Ad Astra Platform
• Ad Astra User Guide

What is Lightcast?

Lightcast is a labor market analytics company that combines occupation data from government, job posting and job profile sources with educational program data.

Lightcast provides us with close to real-time data on current job market. It provides information on where the jobs are, expected employment growth, skills and credentials that are in demand and more.

What data can you gather from Lightcast?

Data from the platform is useful for analysis of the market for new programs; review and optimization of current program portfolios; researching keywords and content for marketing; understanding the needs of employers so that we can adapt curriculum to meet their needs; identifying, building and strengthening employer partnerships; and helping to prepare job-seeking students to present themselves in the best possible light to employers.

Who has access?

SFASU has a limited number of license seats available, these seats are user specific and cannot be share between multiple people.  The Office of Institutional Assessment & Accreditation is one office on campus with licenses to access Lightcast.

What reports are available?

• Program Overview Report: An overview of the demand for a program with data related to competitive landscape, job postings, skills, target occupations and more.
• Industry Overview: An overview of an industry with data related to jobs, growth, earnings, demographics and more.
• Occupation Overview: An overview of an occupation with data related to jobs, earnings, demographics and more.
• Regional Reports: An overview of a regional economy and demographics.

How to request a report?

Submit am IAA Request Form and select “Lightcast Report Request”

IAA Request Form

How often is Lightcast Data Updated?

Majority of the Lightcast Data (industry, occupation, education, demographics) is updated with quarterly collection of the most recently available data.

Job Postings data is scraped daily.

Education data is collected from (NCES) IPEDS Dataset as they are released.

Light Cast Resource Links

• Lightcast Knowledge Base
• Lightcast KB - Data Basic Overview
• Lightcast KB - Complete List of Data Sources
• Lightcast KB - Occupation to Program Mapping
• THECB Look up Program CIP

Planning and outcomes assessment software that supports data-informed strategic planning, program overview, accreditation, student learning and administrative outcome development and assessment.

Nuventive Improve Resource Links

• Nuventive Improve
• Nuventive Improve Change Request Form - Update Units and User Permissions Request

Academic Users:

• Program Learning Outcome User Guide
• Program Learning Outcomes Quick Guide

Administrative Users:

• Improvement Objectives User Guide
• Improvement Objective Quick Guide