Course Evaluation Questions and Survey Template
Sixteen questions students answer as a course ends, weighted toward its design, so the next group gets a better course.
- 16questions
- About 4 minto complete
- 4question groups
- 2optional comment boxes
The 16 course evaluation questions
A course evaluation survey asks students, as a course ends, how it was designed and taught and what they can now do, so the next run is better. These 16 questions take about four minutes and end with two optional comment boxes. All 16 are already set up, so you can create a questionnaire online from them in one click.
The course as it was built
Six items on design, the part you can change before the next group. In more than 6,000 student evaluations, course design predicted perceived quality more strongly than teachers did.[1]
- The course objectives were clear from the start.unclear goals, which color every answer below.
- The topics were sequenced in an order that helped me learn.the order of topics, the cheapest thing to change.
- The course materials were worth the time they took.too much reading, or the wrong reading list.
- The assessments tested what the course actually taught.a design gap between the teaching and the test.
- In an average week, how many hours did this course take outside class?set it against the hours the course was planned for.
- The course description matched the course I actually took.the catalog entry rather than the teaching.
How it was taught
Five items on delivery, each about the course. When students are rating one teacher instead, the teacher evaluation form is built for it.
- Explanations in class were clear enough to follow.read beside question 11: unclear and too fast need different fixes.
- There was enough time in class to ask about things I did not understand.the shape of each session rather than the material.
- Feedback on my work came back in time to be useful.
- I could find the course materials whenever I needed them.if lowest, where the materials are kept.
- The pace of the course was one I could keep up with.the spread; a split room needs two fixes.
What students leave with
Two outcome items, then how much of the course each student did.
- I can do something now that I could not do at the start of this course.self-rated progress; read it beside the comments.
- What this course taught connects to work I expect to do later.
- How much of the course did you attend or work through?how much of the course each answer covers.
In their own words
Both optional, and each asks for one thing.
- What was the single most useful part of this course?what to keep next time.
- What one change would improve this course for the next group?your list of changes, once sorted into themes.
Running it and reading the results
Send it to every student in the last week of the course, before final grades, with a few minutes of the last class set aside for it. Ask no names, and share results with instructors only after grades are final. For a one-day workplace session rather than a course, the post training survey fits better.
To read it, report how many students chose each answer on each item, with the number who answered and the response rate.[2] Compare each run with the same course last time. Then sort the comments into themes; the change most students ask for is the first one to make.
Course evaluation questions FAQ
How many questions should a course evaluation have?
Enough to cover the course in a few minutes. This one has 16 and takes about four. Use the same items every term so each run lines up with the last, and put anything specific to one course in the comment boxes.
How do you get more students to fill out a course evaluation?
Send each student the link directly and set aside class time to answer it. Then tell the class what changed after the last group's answers: students take part when they believe their feedback gets used.[3]
What are good open-ended course evaluation questions?
Questions that ask for one thing: the most useful part of the course, and one change for the next group. Single answers sort into themes you can count and act on, starting with the change most students asked for.
Michael Hodge, survey methodology · Updated 26 September 2026 · How templates are reviewed
Sources (3)
- Levinsson, H., Nilsson, A., Martensson, K., and Persson, S. D. "Course design as a stronger predictor of student evaluation of quality and student engagement than teacher ratings." Higher Education 88 (2024): 1997-2013. link.springer.com
- Stark, P. B., and Freishtat, R. "An Evaluation of Course Evaluations." ScienceOpen Research, 26 September 2014. stat.berkeley.edu (PDF)
- Nulty, D. D. "The adequacy of response rates to online and paper surveys: what can be done?" Assessment and Evaluation in Higher Education 33, no. 3 (2008): 301-314. uaf.edu (PDF)
Run it before final grades go out
Sixteen questions take each student about four minutes, and the two comment boxes hand you next term's changes.
Use this template