Veterinary Student Evaluations of Teaching: Scores and Response Rate When Administered before or after Final Exams

In higher education, instructors and administrators use student evaluations of teaching (SETs) as formative and summative assessments of instruction; thus, they need adequate response rates for optimal validity and reliability. Veterinary students are often requested to complete dozens of SETs each semester, and response rate is shown to decline as the number of SETs increases. Allowing students to complete SETs after final examinations has been suggested to help increase response; however, students' knowledge of their final course grade has been previously shown to negatively influence SET scores. This case study explored how making SETs available to veterinary students after final exams affected quantitative item scores and response rate when compared to SETs administered during the final weeks of the semester, prior to final examinations. Participants (n = 262) were randomly assigned to before finals or after finals groups, and 171 students completed 2,926 SETs. Students were more likely to complete evaluations before finals (vs. after), and first-year students completed more SETs than third-year students. Compared to the prior year, in which SETs were administered before finals, students in the study year completed 31% fewer SETs. Timing of SET delivery did not significantly affect SET item scores, but third-year students rated instructors higher than first-year students on five of 10 items. Students' self-reported expected grade was positively correlated with all 10 SET items for both groups. In this study, timing of completion had no statistical effect on SET item score. However, when students completed SETs after final exams, response rates decreased.