Center for Research on Undergraduate Education (CRUE)

Welcome to the Center for Research on Undergraduate Education (CRUE), an interdisciplinary center conducting, promoting, and disseminating high-quality research on the impact of college and the conditions for student success.

Mission

The mission of Center for Research on Undergraduate Education (CRUE) is to implement and disseminate research and scholarship which foster understanding of effective undergraduate education.  The Center will fulfill this mission by (1) pursuit and coordination of research and funding initiatives for CRUE faculty and graduate students, and (2) dissemination of research results to national, regional, and state audiences via CRUE publications; refereed journals; scholarly meetings; professional association conferences and publications; and institutional consultations.

Vision

The long-term vision for CRUE is national and international recognition as the premier interdisciplinary center conducting, promoting, and disseminating high-quality research on the impact of college and the conditions for student success.

Rationale

As the only research entity in the country focused on undergraduate education and the undergraduate experience, CRUE fills a unique and timely role.  Interest in improving the quality of undergraduate education has never been greater.  Baccalaureate attainment rates vary widely and nearly one out of five four-year colleges and universities graduates less than one-third of their first time, full-time, degree-seeking first-year students within six years (Education Trust, 2004), a rate most see as unacceptable.

Calls for more effective means to foster undergraduate success for a wider population of students and more meaningful research about college student experiences are featured in higher education publications and professional association agendas, as well as the popular press.  Through their research and scholarship, faculty in the College of Education at UI have made substantial contributions to the national conversation about undergraduate education and the growing body of knowledge about college impact and outcomes.  CRUE provides a framework for systematic pursuit of these important research agendas.