In Fall 1993 Academic deans, the Planning Committee of the IUPUI Faculty Council, and the faculty-led Program Review and Assessment Committee developed guidelines for academic program review. Prior to this time, several individual academic units had been reviewed by discipline-specific accrediting bodies or Graduate School, but the campus had not conducted its own comprehensive reviews. The first academic review conducted under the new guidelines took place during 1993. The first academic support unit was reviewed in 1994.

Academic program review is a collaborative process designed to bring to bear the judgment of respected colleagues in assessing and improving the quality of academic and service units. This process involves students, faculty, community members, school and campus administrators, and external specialists in the discipline in (1) gathering information about a program (i.e., a department, or a school if the school has no departments), (2) reviewing and analyzing this information during a site visit, (3) synthesizing all available information and making judgments about overall program quality and recommendations for improvements, and (4) following up to ensure that the unit is fully supported in its efforts to address the outcomes of the reviews.

While self-study and peer review are also fundamental components of the external process of accreditation, program review at Indiana University-Purdue University Indianapolis (IUPUI) serves important internal purposes. In its statement of mission and goals this campus has committed itself to continuous improvement of its programs and services, to setting new standards for collaboration and interdisciplinary work, and to strengthening community connections that promote academic and cultural activities as well as economic and human development. Program review at IUPUI places emphasis on (1) involvement of campus administrators and faculty from IUPUI units other than the one undergoing review; (2) linkages between the program and the community it serves; and (3) connections between the review and planning, decision-making and resource allocation at departmental, school, and campus levels. These emphases ensure that the reviews contribute in a fundamentally important way to the attainment of the campus mission and that warranted recommendations for improvement stemming from them are carried out. Programs that are strengthened through peer review will enhance the overall quality and reputation of IUPUI.

Program review at IUPUI increases the sense of shared purpose among its many diverse academic programs, and reinforces the need for coordinated planning for the future by all campus units. The involvement of campus administrators in the reviews ensures that meaningful and effective follow-up for each review will occur. The involvement of IUPUI faculty from academic units outside the one being reviewed promotes campus-wide understanding of the contributions of each unit to the mission of the institution. The involvement of community members who have an interest in the program emphasizes the importance of IUPUI's connections with the community it serves and, at the same time, furthers community understanding of the program and of IUPUI. It should be noted that the term 'community' may be construed broadly in this context; some programs may perceive their community to be Indianapolis and central Indiana, others may wish to involve community members from throughout the State, while still others consider the region or the nation as their community.