BPD Outcomes Survey - Archive and History

In 1987, the BPD Outcomes Assessment Instrument was first circulated for BSW Programs to use in evaluating the experiences of their alumni/ae.  It was revised in 1990 to incorporate optical scanning technology in the gathering of data.  This revised version has been used continuously through 1999, and has amassed a national database of over 9,000 BSW graduates.  This database has been the basis for numerous publications on baccalaureate social work education.  Programs obtained information on using the instrument by sending a request on their letterhead.

In return mail, the BSW Program was sent a copy of the BPD Outcomes Instrument, a Use Agreement, and a Facesheet of basic Program information.  OPSCAN sheets were ordered from John Rogers at a nominal cost, and Programs were permitted to duplicate the instrument themselves. Programs mailed the instrument to graduates who were certified within the past two years, and collected the OPSCAN sheets which were returned.  The Facesheet of basic information on each BSW Program was completed and submitted along with the completed OPSCAN sheets to the Rochester Institute of Technology for SPSS analysis.  Within two weeks, the Program received a full univariate descriptive analysis of their own data compared to the existing overall BPD database at the time of analysis.