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What is AEFIS?

AEFIS (Assessment, Evaluation, Feedback & Intervention System) is an assessment management platform (created by AEFIS LLC) that  supports individual student assessment, facilitates curriculum review, and streamlines campus-wide accreditation processes. UW-Madison has entered into a multi-year partnership with AEFIS LLC to provide a campus-wide digital course evaluation survey tool, which is part of a suite of digital learning assessment tools.

The Wisconsin School of Business primarily uses it for  creating, distributing, and managing digital course evaluation surveys.

Training and Support

AEFIS training is provided for free by DoIT's Academic Technology group. Their website provides a list of upcoming training opportunities. You can also be notified of training opportunities, updates to the platform, and planned outages by joining the AEFIS Users Group.

Support is handled internally by emailing Academic Affairs Help. They may reach out to Teaching and Learning (WSB) or Learn@UW-Madison (DoIT Academic Technology) for additional support depending on the nature of the request or issue.

Overview of the Course Evaluation Process

All instructors are assigned to a course evaluation. Students have access to respond to these evaluations during the last few weeks of a course.  Instructors should communicate and provide some classtime for their students to go to UW AEFIS site and fill out the evaluation, typically devoting 10 - 15 minutes to the process. This is a best practice to capture the highest yield rates.

Note that WSB instructors shall not award bonus points or use any other incentive for students to complete the evaluation.

The course evaluation process at the Wisconsin School of Business is a partnership between the Academic Planners (who can be reached by emailing Academic Affairs Help) and Teaching and Learning Support. The Overview of  Digital (AEFIS) Course Evaluation Process provides an overview details of the process including timelines and responsibilities.

Frequently Asked Questions


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titleHow can instructors increase their response rates to course evaluations?

Here are some steps that can improve overall response rate provided by Office of the Provost.

  • Give students time (10-15 minutes) to complete the digital evaluation during class (just as they do with printed, paper evaluations).
  • Encourage students to complete the evaluation by discussing its purpose and importance in the weeks leading up to it.
    • If students know that you will read their feedback and seriously consider changes based on their feedback, they will be more likely to complete the evaluation.
  • Share how you have incorporated past feedback into your courses.
  • Ask students to provide feedback about their own learning relative to the course’s learning outcomes

Note that WSB instructors shall not award bonus points or use any other incentive for students to complete the evaluation.


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titleCan I request a paper version of the course evaluation for use in my course?
No, paper copies are no longer available and all course evaluations are provided through AEFIS.


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titleCan I request an early-term or mid-term course evaluation?
Yes, early-term and mid-term evaluations are encouraged and can be created by emailing Academic Affairs Help.


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titleWhat does the offical course evaluation look like?

A PDF of the official AEFIS course evaluation is available here, AEFIS - WSB Official Course Evaluations.pdf.

The survey WSB Official Course Evaluations, as it is named in AEFIS, It was last modified on January 24, 2019.


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titleWhere can I go to see the results from the course evaluations?

You can log in to AEFIS to see the results of the course evaluations on the day after grades are due. AEFIS will provide insights on all responses including open ended questions.

The official course evaluation results are available through the Teaching and Learning website and clicking on Course Evaluations in the top menu. The timeline for processing course evaluations into official results is varied, but is normally completed before the start of the next full term.

Older course evaluations can be viewed from the Wisconsin School of Business Library.

Key metrics (S1, S2, Top10%, and Top30%) are also available within Digital Measures.


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titleWhat are the differences between the AEFIS and offical course evaluation results?

The primary difference between the AEFIS and the official course evaluations is the calculations of S1 (Scale 1) and S2 (Scale 2).  The scales are referred to as Metrics within AEFIS and have three constraints that make imprecise.

  1. All questions within a Metric must have a Weight
  2. The Weights only support two decimal places
  3. The Weights must add up to 100

Those constraints mean that AEFIS is unable to apply an equal weight to each question of each scale; one question has to be weighted slightly more to add up to 100.

Example: AEFIS calculates S1 (the average of twelve questions) like this 8.37 + 8.33 + 8.33 + 8.33 + 8.33 + 8.33 + 8.33 + 8.33 + 8.33  + 8.33 + 8.33 + 8.33 = 100. The first question is weighted more  to make the numbers sum to 100.

The other difference is that AEFIS does not calculate the Top 10% and Top 30% as a Metric, because AEFIS only supports up to two Metrics.

Note that answers to open ended questions are only available within AEIFS.


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titleHow are S1 (Scale 1) and S2 (Scale 2) calculated?

S1 (Scale 1) is the average of twelve course evaluation questions concerning an individual instructor. Below are the questions that appear on the AEFIS course evaluation that are associated with this metric. The order that it appears in the survey is in bold and the initialized text is how it shows up in official course evaluation results.

  • Survey Question 10 (CA-Q1: Well Organized): The course was well organized.
  • Survey Question 11 (CA-Q2: Methods Appropriate) The teaching methods were appropriate.
  • Survey Question 14 (I-Q5: Course Topics): The instructor clearly explained relationships among course topics.
  • Survey Question 15 (I-Q6: Available Outside): The instructor was available outside of class to answer questions.
  • Survey Question 16 (I-Q7: Stimulated Interest): The instructor stimulated student interest in the course material
  • Survey Question 17 (I-Q8: Enthusiastic): The instructor was enthusiastic about teaching this course
  • Survey Question 18 (I-Q9: Relevance): The instructor explained the relevance of the subject matter.
  • Survey Question 19 (I-Q10: Well Prepared): The instructor was well prepared for class.
  • Survey Question 20 (I-Q11: Time Effective): The instructor used class time effectively.
  • Survey Question 21 (I-Q12: Student Participation): The instructor encouraged appropriate student participation in class.
  • Survey Question 22 (I-Q13: Presented Ideas): The instructor presented ideas and concepts clearly.
  • Survey Question 23 (I-Q14: Showed Concern): The instructor showed concern about student understanding of course material.

S2 (Scale 2) is the average of seven course evaluation questions concerning the course overall. Below are the questions that appear on the AEFIS course evaluation that are associated with this metric. The order that it appears in the survey is in bold and the initialized text is how it shows up in official course evaluation results.

  • Survey Question 24 (G-Q15: Exams Fair): The exams were fair and appropriate
  • Survey Question 25 (G-Q16: Homework Useful): Homework and other graded assignments were useful.
  • Survey Question 26 (G-Q17: Feedback Valuable): Feedback on graded homework and exams was valuable.
  • Survey Question 27 (G-Q18: Exams Returned): Homework, papers and exams were returned within a reasonable period.
  • Survey Question 28 (G-Q19: Assignments Helpful): Course assignments helped me understand the course materials.
  • Survey Question 29 (G-Q20: Textbooks Useful): The textbook, readings and other materials were useful
  • Survey Question 30 (G-Q21: Grading Clear): The grading practices were clear.


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titleWhat course evaluation data is stored in Digital Measures?

Digital Measures stores the following data for each course section taught:

  • Term/Year

  • Course (Subject, Course Number, Section Number)

  • Course Title 

  • Course Description 

  • Course Hours (Calculated by the mode of course hours by section)

  • Scale 1

  • Scale 2

  • Top 10%

  • Top 30%


Additional Resources