REP4 empowers pre-college and college students to identify problems in higher education and pitch solutions directly to institutions. But does participating in REP4 actually change how students see themselves, their futures, and their ability to shape higher education? And when institutions implement student ideas, do they capture what students said mattered most?
We designed an evaluation framework with REP4 to measure student outcomes and institutional alignment. We surveyed 337 students across seven institutions before, immediately after, and 3-4 months following regional summits. We also analyzed 44 student pitches from 2021-2024 and coded them against 13 institutional prototypes to identify alignment and gaps.
Pre-survey scores were already high (ceiling effect), making it difficult to detect statistically significant changes over time. Future evaluations would benefit from standardized data collection and earlier baseline measurement. The alignment analysis revealed opportunities for institutions to incorporate student ideas around career exploration and external collaboration.
