Achieving Evidence-based Improvement and Transparency in Higher Education: The current status and challenges regarding data utilization and disclosure in Japan

This article reports the results of a nationwide questionnaire survey of 1,104 Japanese higher education institutions conducted in late 2015 and early 2016. Its goal was to investigate the current status and issues related to the utilization and disclosure of educational information. A total of 248 institutions responded to the survey. Based on the findings of the nationwide survey, this article examines an initiative at Ritsumeikan Asia Pacific University as an emerging case of the preparation of infrastructure and the utilization of educational information. Discussed is how information on higher education is collected and utilized to improve its quality and to promote internal quality assurance. Also examined is the maturational status of the institutional research (IR) function in terms of data utilization in Japanese higher education with reference to the maturity model for IR.