The Work We Do

Regular work undertaken by DIPEM:

The work of DIPEM is organised into three functional areas: Monitoring and Evaluation, Institutional Research and Planning, and Data Governance.

University Strategic Plan, UJ APP, DHET APP

Activities in this area include:

• Responsible for finalising the annual UJ APP .
•  Providing the 1^st, 2^nd and 3^rd quarterly reports on the UJ APP, and the interim 4^th quarter report.
• Participating in the audit of the APPs, and preparation of data for REMCO.
• Finalising year-end report of DHET APP; mid-year report DHET APP on an annual basis.
• Monitoring Strat Plan indicators and preparing presentations for MEC breakaway and Council.
• Facilitating in the development of a new 10-year strategic plan through a consultative process.
• Developing a new online data input and collection process, and dashboard for the strategic plan.

Enrolment planning and monitoring – Annual Planning

Activities in this area include:

• Closely monitoring enrolment at the beginning of the year in particular, and as the year progresses, providing input to guide the process.
• Providing data analyses of enrolment trends, scenario plans and budget implications in terms of TIUs.
• Developing a detailed enrolment plan for the following year in conjunction with the faculties and steering a complex iterative process through various levels.
• Reporting on enrolment at various university committees.
• Preparing presentations on enrolment for various committees and working groups.

Surveys – undergraduate, postgraduate, employability, PG dropout

Activities in this area include:

• Ethical clearance processes for all surveys.
• Graduate employability survey.
• Post-graduate experience survey.
• Undergraduate experience survey.
• Post-graduate dropout survey.
• Revision of survey instruments.
• Survey reports and presentations at both institutional and faculty levels.
• Reporting at relevant university committees.
• Additional institutional research methods to augment surveys e.g. literature review, qualitative research methods.

Rankings submissions and analysis

Activities in this area include:

• Collecting and collating data according to the requirements of various rankings agencies.
• Cleaning and sorting the data for submission.
• Submitting data and information (e.g. policies) to the Times Higher Education Impact Rankings in 17 different areas.
• Submitting to the QS and THE agencies for various rankings e.g. World University Rankings and Employability Rankings.
• Updating lists of academics and employers for agencies to use in their survey processes.
• Receiving and analysing rankings results and providing reports to the executive and to media relations.
• Preparing presentations on rankings systems and results.
• Analysing rankings systems and recommending actions at UJ in various domains for the purpose of optimising outcomes.

Data provision and tool development; data governance

Activities in this area include:

• Providing data for various processes – audit, quarterly reporting, strategic plan monitoring.
• Providing analyses, reports and presentations for Council and executive e.g. on student success, cohort tracking, dropout rates etc.
• Ensuring that data governance protocols are adhered to in various domains.
• Maintaining the HEDA environment and developing new modules or dashboards where needed.
• Assisting other domains with data interpretation and systems development e.g. PGS
• Dealing with a multitude of data requests and queries from across the university.
• Providing data for external reporting.
• Ensuring successful audits of reporting data.

VC Consultation meetings with Senior Leadership

• There are two such meetings held annually that are hosted by DIPEM.

Stakeholder Footprint