About IRDS

IRDS is focused on enhancing and advancing VCU's data driven culture by leveraging institutional metrics to make an impact. We serve as data wranglers, collecting and intertwining metrics to find actionable insights that lead to collaborative change. IRDS empowers decision makers, enhances institutional effectiveness and maintains compliance through accurate, accessible, and actionable data and analyses.

We are able to make an impact by focusing on the following responsibilities:

Analytics

We use applied research methods to predict outcomes and analyze patterns using traditional institutional data that includes student records, grades, test scores, and other metrics. We also leverage behavioral indicators collected through surveys and engagement activities. 

Business Intelligence

Business intelligence is like pouring the foundation for a house and eventually strategically placing the windows. In other words, business intelligence builds the underlying data infrastructure needed to put critical information into the hands of decision makers.

Communications and Strategic Initiatives

The Communications unit helps the university understand the role and abilities of IRDS and the Provost's Office as a whole by supporting the university's strategic mission. 

Institutional Research

Institutional research includes our core compliance responsibilities and institutional data analysis. Compliance responsibilities are comprised of day-to-day data collection and reporting to the federal government, state agencies, and internal constituents at VCU.