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Indiana University School of Medicine
Indiana University School of Medicine
Center for Inclusive Excellence

Diversity Engagement Survey

The Diversity Engagement Survey (DES) is a workforce engagement tool that draws upon theoretical components of organizational inclusion. It was developed and validated by the University of Massachusetts Medical School in collaboration with the Association of American Medical Colleges (AAMC).  

The survey measures the inclusiveness of the academic learning environment and will continue to help identify and measure the IU School of Medicine’s areas of strengths and improvement regarding organizational inclusion. The 22 survey items map onto eight inclusion factors:  

  • Trust
  • Appreciation of individual attributes
  • Sense of belonging
  • Access to opportunity
  • Equitable reward and recognition
  • Cultural competence
  • Respect
  • Common purpose

 

Built for academic health centers

IU School of Medicine will be one of the 68 academic health centers that uses DES results to inform strategic planning and direction for recruitment, engagement, and retention. In September 2024, over 7,000 medical school faculty, staff, and trainees will be asked to provide feedback on three essential conditions of an inclusive workplace environment: Vison/Purpose, Appreciation, and Camaraderie. All departments will receive local benchmark reports comparing their results to over 170,000 respondents.  

Learn more about the DES project

Frequently Asked Questions

  • Faculty
  • Full-time staff  
  • PhD graduate students 
  • Postdoctoral trainees 
  • Residents and fellows 

Approximately 10 minutes.

A personalized invitation will be sent to your IU email address. Search for #DESengage to find the invitation.

Yes, you can complete the survey in multiple sittings. 

The survey will be open from Tuesday, September 3 through Thursday, September 26, 2024.

Feedback will be included in aggregated benchmark reports received from the survey vendor and an internal dashboard to increase transparency and engagement across the school community. Again, any subgroup with less than 10 respondents will be censored and not reported.  

Each department, led by the chair and vice chairs (strategic engagement, faculty affairs, profession development), will be accountable for reviewing, understanding, and communicating results to their academic unit.  

Yes, we contracted a third-party vendor (DataStar) to conduct the entire survey administration. All collected responses will be deidentified before returning it back to IU School of Medicine. Further, any subgroup with less than 10 respondents will be censored and not reported. 

Departments will receive benchmark reports six to eight weeks after the survey closes. 

Email any additional questions or concerns to iusmdiv@iu.edu.