Since 1994, EBI MAP-Works has been dedicated to improving retention, student success, and the quality of the college student experience. We have empowered over 1,500 college and universities to impact student development, learning, retention and satisfaction through the MAP-Works® student success and retention platforms, and through national benchmarking assessments for accreditation and continuous improvement. MAP-Works' retention effectiveness is grounded in theory, research and statistical methods. EBI Benchmarking Assessment programs are rooted in accreditation and professional standards and in principles of continuous improvements. MAP-Works and the EBI Benchmarking Assessments are the essential foundation of an effective assessment and student success initiative.
Company History
At the annual meeting of the Big Ten M.B.A. Program Managers 1993, a lengthy discussion ensued between Dr. Joseph Pica and Glenn Detrick regarding the comparison of data across programs. Frustrated by the lack of data collected on a standard that would allow comparisons, Dr. Pica volunteered to organize a benchmarking study that would identify key analysis factors and create a set of data definitions to assure comparability. Glenn, then Vice President of the Graduate Management Admission Council (GMAC), agreed to lend his advice and the expertise of the company to the development of the project. Educators collaborated and mapped out a data collection instrument that would provide standard definitions and methods for collecting data regarding M.B.A. programs. They focused their attention on admissions and student recruiting, class profiles, financial aid, budgeting, staffing, student services, placement and curricula.
A pilot assessment was conducted, and the results were reported at the 1994 GMAC annual meeting. Participating schools were very enthusiastic about the usefulness of the comparative analysis, and program attendees voiced their interest in participating in future efforts. Subsequently, in 1994, EBI was formed to provide benchmarking services for M.B.A. education. Sixty-eight schools participated in the first M.B.A. Administrative Benchmarking Project in 1994–1995. In the following project, which began in 1996, the authoritative EBI assessment was born. Initially, 98 management schools participated in a very successful effort to benchmark student satisfaction levels in their full and part-time M.B.A. programs. Graduating students were asked about their satisfaction with administrative support, teaching in required and elective courses, skills development, placement services, teaching quality in the academic disciplines, facilities, classmates and their overall satisfaction with the program. This project was expanded in 1997 to include a separate assessment to look at satisfaction levels of graduating undergraduate business students. Several new assessments were created in 1998, including faculty satisfaction and residence hall satisfaction. For each assessment, schools received reports detailing the perceptions of their own students as well as the satisfaction levels of students at six participating peer or competitive schools of their choice. Our first products started in Management Education and have expanded to include Nursing Education, Teacher Education, Fraternity/Sorority Life, College and University Housing, High School Students, First Year Initiative, Engineering Education and College Union/Student Center.
In 2003, EBI and Ball State University partnered to create MAP-Works, a comprehensive program that enables colleges and universities to improve student success and retention. MAP-Works capitalizes on Ball State’s 20 years of experience with the original MAP (Making Achievement Possible) and EBI’s years of experience with national benchmarking assessments.
True to the company mission of continuous improvement, in 2012 EBI joined the Macmillan New Ventures portfolio of innovative education technology companies under the new name EBI MAP-Works. With assessment and analysis capabilities used worldwide within the general business, healthcare, social sciences, education, government and professional research markets, EBI MAP-Works continues to transform and expand to meet the demands of an ever-changing education and corporate climate.