Institution Primary Contacts should refer to the information below throughout the process to ensure that they are on track with the 2024 program requirements. If you have any questions about the information below, please contact the ModernThink project team at greatcolleges@modernthink.com or 888.684.4658. Please note that the below checklist is subject to change throughout the program process. Please check back often for the most up-to-date information. Download the 2024 Great Colleges FAQ one-pager here.
| Deadlines | Action |
|---|---|
| February 12 |
Available: Administrative Portal. All Primary Contacts will be emailed access information to an online platform where employee email addresses and the survey verification form will need to be uploaded. Available: Institution Questionnaire (IQ). Access through Administrative Portal will be granted by February 12 at the latest. The deadline for completing the IQ is March 29. Download the IQ Data Entry Guide here. |
| February 12 | Reminder – Start communicating to your campus community that the Faculty/Staff survey is coming in March to create momentum and excitement! Institutions that communicate with their employees before the start of the survey enjoy significantly higher response rates. See the Important Forms & Documents page for sample communication templates.
We also encourage you to license the Great Colleges program logo, free of charge, to use in your employee survey promotion. Tip (Roll Over) Communications should come from your institution’s president/provost, chief academic officer, or other senior representative. The communications should position the survey/program and serve as an alert so that employees don’t delete the survey invitation email. See Important Forms & Documents for sample communication templates.
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| February 19 | Deadline: Register for the 2024 Great Colleges to Work For Program. Register here. |
| February 21 | Deadline: Survey Verification Form. See Important Forms & Documents for a copy of the Verification Form. |
| February 21 | Deadline: Email addresses. Email addresses for all employees in your random sample are to be uploaded to ModernThink through the Administrative Portal. Please DO NOT email your list to ModernThink. See Important Forms & Documents for instructions on how to format the email list. |
| February 26 | Deadline: Optional Customization/Oversampling. This option includes customization of the survey, oversampling and/or adding other staff that are not included as a function of the program. See Customization or Oversampling for more details. |
| February 26 – March 4 | Send campus community email alert that survey will be starting. Pre-survey communication of the employee survey is critical. This communication should be sent by your institution to your full-time Faculty, Administrators, Exempt Professional Staff and Non-exempt Staff. See Important Forms & Documents for sample communication templates.
We also encourage you to license the Great Colleges program logo, free of charge, to use in your employee survey promotion. Tip (Roll Over) Communications should come from your institution’s president/provost, chief academic officer, or other senior representative. The communications should position the survey/program and serve as an alert so that employees don’t delete the survey invitation email. See Important Forms & Documents for sample communication templates. |
| February 27 | Deadline: Connectivity Test Today. Email sent by ModernThink to your institution’s Primary Contact and IT Contact in advance of the survey launch. Confirm receipt of the test email by replying to the email by March 3. Important: Before this test, download the IT Requirements document and forward to your IT contact. |
| March 4 – March 29 (Survey Period) | Faculty/Staff Survey Period. ModernThink Higher Education Insight Survey© period for your participating faculty and staff (includes adjunct faculty at two-year institutions). ModernThink will send reminder emails during the process to employees that have not yet completed the survey. Primary contacts will be notified the day before reminders are issued. |
| March 29 | Deadline: Surveys Completed. Both the Institution Questionnaire and Faculty/Staff Survey close at midnight today. Download the IQ Data Entry Guide here. |
| May 13 | Available: Recognized and Honor Roll Logos. See our Logo Use page for more information about how to license these logos at your recognized institution. |
| May 29 | Deadline: To order Advanced Reports. Order by this date and receive a 10% discount. See Additional Reports & Services for more details. |
| Early June | Recognition Notification. Institutions will be notified if they have been recognized as a Great College to Work For. |
| Week of July 22 | Participation Reports sent to all applicants. |
| September 6 | Deadline: To order Advanced Reports. Order by this date and receive a 5% discount. See Additional Reports & Services for more details. |
| Mid-September | Recognition Announcement. Recognized institutions will be announced in a special insert of The Chronicle of Higher Education. The list of recognized institutions is embargoed until Monday, September 9, 2024. |