Program Assessment

The CVM curriculum prepares students to enter veterinary medicine as confident, capable, and compassionate professionals, ready to make an impact from day one. Program assessment tracks how well students achieve our program learning outcomes throughout the curriculum and uses those results to strengthen teaching and learning.

Curriculum Design

The Utah State University (USU) Doctor of Veterinary Medicine (DVM) degree curriculum aims to train thriving day-one mixed animal veterinarians with the professional, foundational, and applied competencies to serve urban and rural communities in Utah and beyond. The curriculum aligns with the educational missions and goals of USU and the College of Veterinary Medicine (CVM). It follows the domains of competency and the entrustable professional activities (EPAs) defined by the American Association of Veterinary Medical Colleges Competency-Based Veterinary Education group (AAVMC CBVE) as well as the nine competencies defined by the Accreditation Policies and Procedures of the AVMA COE. Students gain foundational knowledge as they study the well body in year one, the diseased body in year two, and medicine and surgery in year three. Clinical and professional skills will be built upon each year, allowing students to combine subject matter with skills and preparing them for the clinical year.

To create a competency-based curriculum, the CVM Curriculum Committee first created a list of program learning outcomes (PLOs) which guided the creation of a list of 45 clinical competencies and a detailed list of new graduate competencies (NGC). The PLOs follow the AAVMC CBVE EPAs and domains of competence and the AVMA COE nine competencies.

Curriculum infographic

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This infographic outlines how outcomes are aligned across the DVM curriculum at multiple levels. It begins with Program Learning Outcomes (PLOs), continues through Clinical Competencies, and flows down to course-level instruction and assessments. 1. Program Learning Outcomes (11 PLOs): Broad skills and knowledge that students are expected to achieve upon completion of the program. Each course generally aligns with 1 to 3 PLOs. 2. Clinical Competencies (45 CCs): Skills, behaviors, and professional abilities demonstrated independently in real-world veterinary clinical settings. These reflect day-one readiness and are mastered in year 4. 3. Pre-Clinical Competencies (PCC): Foundational skills and knowledge applied in simulated or instructional settings. These contribute to the mastery of species/system-specific clinical competencies and are typically mastered in years 1 to 2. 4. Species/System-Specific Clinical Competencies (SCC): Specific clinical competencies practiced in simulated or instructional settings. These contribute to the mastery of clinical competencies and are typically mastered in years 2 to 3. 5. Course Objectives: Each course has 2 or more overarching goals, developed for the 2025–2026 academic year and subject to refinement. 6. IDEA Objectives: These are standardized evaluation criteria used across the university. Each course aligns with 3 to 5 objectives from a total of 13. 7. Topic-Level Learning Outcomes: Each topic within a course includes 2 to 10 or more measurable learning outcomes that indicate what students should be able to do after completing the topic. 8. Instruction: Includes all course materials that students will read, view, practice, or use—such as lectures, readings, homework, and textbooks. 9. Assessments: Includes exams, quizzes, and other tools that measure the achievement of the course objectives and topic-level outcomes. Arrows indicate alignment and flow from high-level program outcomes down through competencies, course and topic-level objectives, instruction, and assessments.

Curriculum Alignment and Mapping

To become competent in each clinical competency, students must gain foundational and medical knowledge as well as clinical and professional skills. To attain this competency, students must gain foundational knowledge about the anatomy and physiology of the cardiovascular system; learn the pathophysiology of the disease; learn to interpret diagnostic results; and select a treatment plan. Students must also demonstrate how to communicate all aspects of clinical case management. To create a comprehensive instructional plan that links the curriculum map to outcomes assessment, each course’s major assessments are mapped to the PLOs they measure. Instructors of record confirm these mappings, which allows the College to identify gaps, redundancies, and misalignments across the curriculum.

The clinical, sub-clinical, and pre-clinical competencies for all 11 PLOs are listed in Program Learning Outcomes and Competency Alignment (PDF). Curriculum mapping will facilitate timely revisions to incorporate current issues and advancements in technology and knowledge.

How We Assess Program Outcomes

Assessment follows an annual cycle aligned with the College’s Outcomes Assessment and Curriculum Monitoring Plan:

  • Plan: Major course assessments are selected as direct measures, and instructors of record confirm which PLOs each assessment measures.
  • Measure: Assessment results are collected each semester and validated for completeness and accuracy, then summarized by PLO across four mastery levels.
  • Act: Findings are reviewed with faculty and the Curriculum Committee, and agreed actions are documented and followed up in the next cycle.

A comprehensive curriculum review takes place every seven years.

2025–2026 Assessment Results

In the program’s first year, the College assessed student achievement of all 11 PLOs using major course examinations and assessments in the first-year curriculum. Average scores across PLOs ranged from 91% to 97%. Results are being reviewed with course instructors, and priorities for the coming year include broadening evidence for PLOs measured by fewer assessments.

Curriculum Assessment and Revisions

The curriculum is managed and continuously assessed using program and student outcomes data:

  • Direct measures: course examinations and assessments mapped to PLOs, clinical and professional skill assessments, and fourth-year preceptor evaluations.
  • Indirect and external measures: course and instructor evaluations, wellness climate surveys, senior exit interviews, alumni and employer surveys, Veterinary Educational Assessment (VEA) and NAVLE results, and admissions data.

Student Assessment and Remediation

Student assessment and remediation plans are detailed in the USU CVM Academic Standards and Procedures Policy.

Reports and Documents