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Course evaluations are open!

Fall 2024 deadlines:

  • December 4 (condensed evaluation period)
  • December 21 (default evaluation period)

Find out which period your unit uses.

91社区.CA / Mercury / Unit Heads & Liaisons

Questionnaires

View your unit's current questionnaire

This page contains information on the structure of Mercury questionnaires (including required and optional components) as well as guidelines for designing questionnaires.

Structure of Mercury Questionnaires

Course evaluation questionnaires use the following structure.

1. Required: Statement about the purposes, uses, utility, and mode of accessibility

The following statements appear before students begin completing a course evaluation questionnaire.

English

"Subject to certain limitations, end-of-course evaluation results are to be accessible to the 91社区 community. A statistical summary of responses will be used:

a. to help instructors improve future offerings of courses;
b. to inform students about courses and instructors;
c.聽as a component of the teaching dossier; and
d. to help administrators and faculty committees in their decision-making processes.

Any written comments will be used to provide useful information (e.g., suggested improvements) to the instructor and Head of the academic unit but will not be available to the 91社区 community.

Course evaluations are completely anonymous.

Results are not available to an instructor until the final grades for the course have been submitted and approved.鈥�

French

芦聽Sous r茅serve de certaines restrictions, les r茅sultats des 茅valuations de cours doivent 锚tre mis 脿 la disposition de la communaut茅 de l鈥橴niversit茅 91社区. Un r茅sum茅 statistique des r茅ponses sera utilis茅 :

a. pour aider les enseignant(e)s 脿 am茅liorer la prestation future des cours;
b. pour informer les 茅tudiant(e)s au sujet des cours et des enseignant(e)s;
c. comme une composante du dossier d鈥檈nseignement des professeurs; et
d. pour aider les administrateurs ainsi que les comit茅s facultaires dans leurs processus聽d茅cisionnels.

Les commentaires 茅crits serviront 脿 pr茅senter des renseignements utiles (p. ex. am茅liorations propos茅es) 脿聽 l鈥檈nseignant(e) et au directeur/directrice du d茅partement, mais ne seront pas mis 脿 la disposition de la communaut茅 de l鈥橴niversit茅 91社区.

Les 茅valuations de cours sont enti猫rement anonymes.

Les r茅sultats sont remis 脿 un(e) enseignant(e)聽聽 seulement apr猫s que les notes finales du cours ont 茅t茅 pr茅sent茅es et approuv茅es.聽禄
2. Required: Four Core Questions

The following four questions must be included in all questionnaires, in this order.

  1. Overall, this is an excellent course.

  2. Overall, I learned a great deal from this course.

  3. Overall, this instructor is an excellent teacher.

  4. Overall, I learned a great deal from this instructor.

When applicable, the Academic Unit may replace the word 鈥渋nstructor鈥� by another appropriate term, such as 鈥渢eacher鈥� or 鈥渓ab coordinator."

This part must include a space for students to provide written comments.
3. Optional: Faculty-Wide Questions

Faculties may choose to have Faculty-wide questions that appear on all course evaluations in the Faculty.

  • Maximum number of questions: 18.聽

  • The Dean or delegate should submit the default questionnaire(s) to with a message to that effect.聽

  • If in subsequent years, the Faculty wishes to revise the default questionnaire, the Dean or delegate should submit the revised questionnaire to .

  • Neither instructors nor units within the Faculty can modify or delete questions on the default questionnaire.

  • This part must include a space for students to provide written comments.

NOTE: If the total number of questions on the Faculty-wide questionnaire (including the 4 core questions) is less than 22, departments or Schools within the Faculty may choose to add additional questions, up to a maximum of 22.

View information on designing questionnaires (recommended questions, comments, templates, language)
4. Optional: Department- or School-Wide Questions

Departments or Schools may add additional questions, provided the number of Faculty-wide questions is less than 18.

  • Maximum number of questions: 18 minus the total number of Faculty-wide questions.聽

  • The Mercury Liaison should send the unit questions to the聽mercury.info [at] mcgill.ca (Mercury System Administrator)聽and copy the unit head. 聽

  • If in subsequent years, the department or School wishes to revise the unit questions, the Mercury Liaison should submit the changes to the聽mercury.info [at] mcgill.ca (Mercury System Administrator)聽and copy the unit head.

  • Instructors cannot modify or delete these questions.

  • This part must include a space for students to provide written comments.

View information on designing questionnaires (recommended questions, comments, templates, language)
5. Required: Teaching Assistant Questions

Core questions 3 and 4 referring to Teaching Assistants rather than the instructor. Up to 3 questions related to Teaching Assistants.

  • Overall, this Teaching Assistant is an excellent teacher. (Core question 3)

  • Overall, I learned a great deal from this Teaching Assistant. (Core question 4)聽

NOTE: Questions related to Teaching Assistants do not count against the maximum of 25 questions. This part must include a space for students to provide written comments.
6. Optional: Instructor-Added Questions

Instructors may add up to three (3) questions to their course evaluations. Instructors will receive an email when the question submission period opens.

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Designing Questionnaires

When constructing questions for your unit鈥檚 questionnaire, keep in mind that students do not have access to the comments. Therefore, a question such as 鈥淭he evaluation methods used in this course were appropriate鈥� is difficult to interpret because without student comments, it is not possible to discern whether the evaluation methods were too easy or too difficult. View student guidelines for interpreting numerical results.

Creating meaningful questionnaires

Resources, including a bank of recommended questions and guidelines for creating custom questions, are available to assist academic units and instructors in developing their questionnaires.

Access resources on writing meaningful questions

Comment Boxes

  • Students should have at least one opportunity to provide written comments.
  • Any question may include a comment box.
  • Comments often provide useful information for improving courses and teaching as well as helping in the interpretation of results.
  • All comments are confidential to the instructor and the head of the academic unit.
  • Instructors may use聽intact聽sets of comments in their聽Teaching Portfolios.

Language

  • Default course evaluation questionnaires can be made available to students in聽more than one language if the academic unit submits聽translated versions to聽.
  • Students would then be able to select the language of the course evaluation questionnaire.

Need help developing your unit's questionnaire?

Contact Teaching and Learning Services for a consultation.

While this web page is accessible worldwide, 91社区 is on land which has served and continues to serve as a site of meeting and exchange amongst Indigenous peoples, including the Haudenosaunee and Anishinabeg nations. Teaching and Learning Services acknowledges and thanks the diverse Indigenous peoples whose footsteps mark this territory on which peoples of the world now gather. This land acknowledgement is shared as a starting point to provide context for further learning and action.

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