Survey

Survey introduction

Standard or 360° feedback survey?

The survey function is very versatile and offers you various options. You can evaluate courses, survey people anonymously, conduct publicly available questions, or assess people's developments. ILIAS offers you two survey options. You can decide between the Standard type or the 360° Feedback type. Both types allow external users, i.e., persons without ILIAS registration, to be surveyed.

The survey of the type Standard offers you the possibility to systematically collect information about the attitudes, opinions, knowledge, or behaviors of participants. Furthermore, you can collect prior knowledge of participants before the start of an event. Collect data for scientific questions or evaluate events. This type contains questions that are presented to specific persons and automatically evaluated. You can create these questions individually or use them from a question pool. Questions from the question pool can be reused later. The result of your survey can be exported in different formats.

The survey of the 360° Feedback type offers you the possibility to collect competencies or role-related feedback. These results can be used as a starting point for targeted self-development. They can be used to compare your self-image with how others see you. Furthermore, you can compare your skills with a requirements profile, known as GAP analysis. Feedback givers can be assigned by the user who set up the survey or selected by the feedback taker.

Note: You must choose a survey type when you create a survey. You cannot switch between the two types. The decision cannot be changed afterward.

Templates for surveys save work

Your ILIAS administrator can store templates for often-needed settings of surveys. This saves work because templates can be called up with one click when creating surveys.

The settings of the templates are optimized for a specific scenario. These templates are automatically applied, but you can change them on the object after creation. In the templates, some setting options may also be hidden so they cannot be changed. These can be individual settings or entire tabs of the survey object (such as metadata or export). This way, the object appears less complex to users, and they have to deal with fewer presets.

Note: To apply a survey template, select it from the Test Template option in the Type section of the form when creating a survey. If you are not presented with a choice of templates here, ask your administrator to provide you with suitable templates: Use the Contact Administrator link at the bottom of the page.

Introduction - Question types

Different question types

ILIAS offers you the following question types.

The goal of the different question types is to give you the possibility to ask the question in a way that gives you the best possible result.

Single-choice question: ILIAS allows you to create a question with multiple answers, where the participant can select only one answer option.

Multiple-choice question: ILIAS allows you to create a question with multiple answers, from which the participants can also select multiple answer options.

Matrix question: With the matrix questions, ILIAS allows the evaluation of different aspects of a topic. ILIAS displays the individual aspects in the rows while it lists the answer options in the columns of the matrix.

Metric question: The metric questions allow you to ask numerical values on different scales (e.g., the participant's age).

Enter free text: Here, ILIAS offers you the possibility to ask questions which the participants can answer with self-written texts.

Note: ILIAS only offers automatic evaluation for the question-type single-choice questions.

Manage feedback

Selecting feedback takers

ILIAS offers you the possibility to select feedback takers. ILIAS allows you to invite other persons to your feedback survey. For this purpose, you can invite registered persons from the ILIAS platform who are, e.g., in the same course or group as you.

The selected and invited persons of the feedback should provide you with as many participants as possible for your 360° survey. This way, you will achieve a usable and representative result for your survey.

1. Open the tab Feedback takers.
2. ILIAS opens a new page. There you will initially see an empty list of participants.
3. ILIAS offers several possibilities to add a feedback taker.
   • Add the desired feedback recipient by entering the person's name in the User input field and clicking on the Add button.
   • In the User input field, enter the user names of the registered people on the platform. ILIAS offers you suitable user names. Click on the name of the person to add them.
   • If you click the Search users button, ILIAS opens a new page. You can search for persons according to different criteria (e.g., name, department, location...) by writing your desired search term in the appropriate input field and then clicking on the Search button. ILIAS will then open a new page with the search results. There you activate the desired checkbox of the matching person and click on the Add button.
4. ILIAS now displays the selected person in the feedback taker list and reports, "The settings have been saved".

Note: You can add as many feedback takers as you like to a 360° survey.

Giving feedback

ILIAS offers you the possibility to be a feedback participant of a 360°. In this case, you have been invited as a feedback giver.

This function is used for you to evaluate other people and their surveys and to assess the competencies and skills of this person.

1. In the Give Feedback section, click the Start Survey button.
2. ILIAS opens a new page with the survey.
3. Answer the survey questions:
4. Click the Next button to the right above or below the question to move to the next part of the survey.
5. Click the End Survey >> button to close the survey and submit your answers.
6. ILIAS asks, "Do you really want to close the survey? You won't be able to correct your answers after this."
7. Click the Confirm button to close the survey.
8. ILIAS opens a new page.

• Click the Stand in your own answers button to reread your answers.
• Click the Send Participation Confirmation button to tell the feedback taker that you successfully participated in the survey.
• Click the Results button if you want to view all the results of the survey.
• Click the Back to Repository button to go to the start of the survey.

9. LIAS will redirect you to the desired page.

Note: ILIAS represents a Start Survey button for each person you are asked to provide an assessment on. Depending on your settings, you may have the option to add yourself as a feedback taker. Due to the different question types ILIAS offers, you may have to select one or more answer options or free-form texts. In the middle, above the questions, a progress bar shows you how much of the survey you have already answered. If you don't want to answer the survey in one go, click the Pause Survey button in the upper right corner. Now you can continue the survey at a later time. Which buttons are available to you at the end of the survey depends on the settings of the survey owner.

Manage feedback donors, and invite externals.

ILIAS allows you to invite other people to your feedback survey. For this purpose, you can invite registered persons from the ILIAS platform who are, for example, in the same course or the same group as you. Furthermore, ILIAS invites persons outside of the platform, without access to the ILIAS platform, to your survey.

The selected and invited persons of the feedback should provide you with as many participants as possible for your 360° survey. This way, you will achieve a usable and representative result for your survey.

1. Open the tab Feedback takers.
2. ILIAS opens a new page and shows you the table with the title Feedback takers.
3. In the Actions column, click the Manage Feedback Givers link.
4. You have several options to add feedback givers:

• In the Users, text entry field, enter the usernames of the people who are also registered on the platform. ILIAS offers you suitable user names. Click Add.
• Click the Search Users button to use other criteria to find a user (e.g., city, zip code, town...).
• You can add external users who are not registered on the platform as feedback givers.

5. Click on Add external feedback givers. ILIAS displays input fields for the desired persons. Then click on the Save button.
6. ILIAS opens a new page and shows you the table, Manage feedback givers, with the added feedback givers.
7. Activate the checkboxes in front of all the names of the feedback givers you want to invite.
8. Select the Mail entry in the drop-down menu above or below the table and click on the Execute button.
9. ILIAS will show you a ready-addressed mail form. It contains a link to the survey for external participants and an access code. You can also add a few personal words.
10. Click on the Submit button.
11. ILIAS sends the mail with the invitation and reports, "Your mail has been sent".

Note: Each feedback recipient can manage his feedback givers individually. To do so, click on the action link Manage feedback recipients in the Feedback recipients table. If you have not yet selected feedback recipients, follow the steps below. Select feedback recipients. Click on the Info tab to see how many feedback takers the survey already has.

Close survey

You have selected and invited feedback takers and can see how many of them have completed the survey in the Info tab.

To view the survey results, you need to close the survey.

1. Open the Feedback takers tab.
2. ILIAS will show you a new page with the Feedback takers table.
3. Activate the checkboxes in front of the feedback takers whose 360° survey you want to close for the feedback givers.
4. In the drop-down menu above or below the table, select Close survey for feedback givers and click the Execute button.
5. ILIAS asks you to confirm the closing of the survey.
6. Click on the Confirm button.
7. ILIAS reports, "The 360° surveys of the feedback takers have been closed".

Note: As a feedback taker of a 360° survey, you can close the survey by clicking the Close survey for feedback takers button in the Info tab in the Feedback taker info section. After closing a survey, you cannot add any more feedback takers to the survey. Depending on the survey settings, you can now either view the results yourself, or the results will be communicated to you by the course administration.

Viewing feedback from the 360° survey

As a feedback taker, you can view and assess the results of the surveyed persons.

You have participated in a 360° survey as a feedback taker. In other words, you have asked other people to assess you and thus give you feedback about yourself. In other words, about what image other people have of you. You now want to look at this third-party assessment and see the feedback.

Prerequisite: 360° Feedback is configured so that you can view the results. Depending on the 360° Feedback setting, you can view the results yourself or they will be provided to you by the management.

1. Call up the desired survey.
2. Click on the Info tab.
3. Click on the Close survey for feedback provider button.
4. ILIAS will now show you a new tab called Results.
5. Open the Results tab to view the feedback. All responses will be displayed anonymously.

Participate in a survey

Participate in surveys

ILIAS offers you not only the possibility to create a survey but also to participate in them.

You want to participate in a poll.

1. Click on the Start Survey button.
2. ILIAS presents you with the questions asked with different answer options.
3. Answer the questions posed:

• If you are presented with choice answers, select the most appropriate answer or answers.
• You will be asked to formulate the answer freely if you find an input field.

4. Click on the Next button on the right above or below the question to proceed to the next part of the survey.
5. Click the End Survey >> button to close the survey and submit your answers.
6. ILIAS asks "Do you really want to close the survey? You won't be able to correct your answers after this."
7. Click the Confirm button to really end the survey.
8. ILIAS will redirect you back to the parent course.

Note: In the middle, above the questions, a progress bar shows you how much of the survey you have already answered. If you don't want to complete the survey in one go, click the Pause Survey button in the upper right corner. Now you can continue the survey at a later time. To do so, click on the Continue survey button.

The Questions tab

Manage questions

ILIAS offers you different functions around questions.

You can structure and manage your questions in different ways. You can use questions from existing question pools or create your questions. To create your survey, you can use different views. The page view displays the content of the questions on individual pages. In the list view, ILIAS provides you with an overview where all questions can be seen. ILAIS provides you with the same functions in both views. They only differ in their approach.

Here you will learn how to manage and structure your questions. Insert questions from existing question pools into the survey or create questions directly. Design the view and arrangement of your questions.

Questions in side view

Questions in the page view

ILIAS offers several views for creating a survey.

You want to add questions to the survey in the side view.

Prerequisite: The use of pool questions is activated in the settings.

1. Open the desired survey.
2. Click on the Questions tab.
3. Click the Create question button to create a new question.
4. Select desired question type in the ▼ menu:

• Add a new single-choice question
• Add new multiple-choice question
• Add a new Matrix question
• Add a new Metric question
• Add new text question

5. Under the Pool selection setting, activate the desired radio button
6. Do not use a question pool to create the question directly in the survey. You will not be able to reuse the question in other surveys.

• Use an existing question pool to store the question in an already existing question pool. With this option, ILIAS opens a selection menu with already created question pools you can access. Choose in which pool you want to file the question.
• Create a new question pool if you don't have a question pool yet in which you manage your questions. ILIAS presents an input field where you can enter the desired name of the pool. The question pool will be created in the same course, group, or category where the survey is located.

7. Click on the button:

• Save to create the question and stay in the edit view.
• Save and return to create the question and return to the page view.

8. ILIAS creates the question and reports "Change saved".

Note: If you want to use existing questions, click the Add from Pool button. If you have already created one or more questions, you can specify the order of the questions under the Position setting when creating a new question.

Multiple questions on one page

ILIAS offers you different ways to create your surveys. You have different possibilities to display your questions.

You want to present more than one question on one page.

Prerequisite: The use of pool questions is activated in the settings.

1. Open the survey and click on the Questions tab.
2. If you have already created a question on the page, click the + button above or below the existing question to add a new question to this page.
3. ILIAS will present you with a ▼ menu with different question types:

• Add New Matrix Question
• Add a new metric question
• Add new Multiple Choice question
• Add a new single-choice question
• Add new free text question
• Add from Pool

4. ILIAS will open a new page.
5. Under the Pool Selection setting, select the option:

• Do not use a question pool to create the question directly in the survey. You will not be able to reuse the question in other surveys.
• Use an existing question pool to place the question in an existing question pool. ILIAS opens a selection menu with already created question pools with this option. Choose in which pool you want to file the question.
• Create a new question pool if you do not have a question pool yet in which you manage your questions. ILIAS presents a text input field where you can enter the desired name of the pool.

6. Click on the Submit button.
7. ILIAS opens the screen to create the question.
8. Click on the button:

• Save to create the question and stay in the edit view.
• Save and return to create the question and return to the page view.

9. ILIAS has created the questions on the desired page.

Question pool in the page view

To make things easier, ILIAS allows you to fall back on proven questions. Question pools allow you to design surveys quickly and effectively.

You want to add one or more questions from a question pool.

Prerequisite: In the tab Settings for the setting Use question pool, the option Questions can optionally be created in a question pool is activated.

1. Open the Questions tab.
2. ILIAS offers two possibilities to add a question from a question pool:

• You want to add a question from a question pool on a new separate page. To do so, click the Add from Pool button.
• You want to add a question on a specific page. Go to the desired page of the survey to which you want to add the question. Click on the + button above or below the existing question and select the entry in the ▼ menu Add from the pool.

3. ILIAS opens a new page.
4. You will be offered a table with all questions from the question pools to which you have access.

• For a targeted search, use the filter:
• To do this, enter one or more search terms in the respective input fields or select the pool whose questions you want to add in the ▼ menu Available pools.
• Click on the Apply Filter button.
• ILIAS will show you all the questions to which you have access.

5. Select the checkbox of the question(s) you want to add.
6. Click on the Insert button.
7. ILIAS adds the question(s), and reports "Question(s) added".

Note: If you cannot find questions in a pool, this may be because the question pool is not online or you lack access rights.

Move questions to other pages.

If you do not like the arrangement of your questions at the end of the creation process, you can rearrange it.

You want to move a question to another page. You have several possibilities to do this.

Precondition: Your survey already has several pages.

You want to move the question to the previous or next page.

1. Open the Questions tab.
2. Click on the question you want to move.
3. ILIAS opens a selection menu.
4. Choose where you want to move the question:
   Move to the next page
   Move to the previous page
5. ILIAS will move the question to the desired page and redirect you to it.

You want to move the question to any page

1. Double-click on the desired question.
2. ILIAS then displays the question with a black frame.
3. Select the entry in the ▼-Cut or Copy menu.
4. ILIAS places the question on the clipboard and reports, "Questions have been copied to the clipboard.
5. Select a destination or empty the clipboard".
6. In the ▼ menu, Jump to the page, and select the page to which you want to move the question.
7. ILIAS opens this page.
8. Click the + button and select the entry in the ▼-Paste menu to reposition the question.
9. ILIAS inserts the question in the desired location.

Note: When cutting a question, ILIAS deletes it at the original location after pasting it at the destination location. When copying, on the other hand, the question remains at the original location.

Heading for questions

ILIAS does not only offer question types to design your survey. You have other options to make your questions stand out from each other.

You want to add headings to your questions.

1. Click on the question you want.
2. Select the entry in the ▼ menu Add heading.
3. ILIAS opens a new page.
4. Under the Heading setting, enter the desired title in the input field.
5. Click on the Save button.
6. ILIAS saves the heading.

Delete questions

If you do not like the arrangement of your questions at the end of the creation process, you can change it again.

You want to delete a question.

1. Open the Questions tab.
2. Click on the sub-tab Preview.
3. Click on the question you want to delete.
4. ILIAS opens a ▼ menu.
5. Click on the Delete entry.
6. Click the Confirm button.
7. Click the Confirm button to delete the question permanently.

Editing pages of a survey

Adding a page

ILIAS offers you several ways to customize your survey.

You want to add a page to the survey.

1. Click on the Create question button.
2. ILIAS opens a new page.
3. In the drop-down menu, select the question type to be created on the new page.
4. If necessary, in the ▼ menu to the right of the setting, select "Position" where you want your question to appear.
5. Under the Pool Selection setting, select the option:

• Do not use a question pool to create the question directly in the survey. You will not be able to reuse the question in other surveys.
• Use an existing question pool to place the question in an existing question pool. ILIAS opens a selection menu with already created question pools. Choose in which pool you want to file the question with this option.
• Create a new question pool if you do not have a question pool yet in which you manage your questions. ILIAS presents a text input field where you can enter the desired name of the pool.

6. Click on the Create button.
7. ILIAS opens the screen to create the desired question type.
8. Click on the button:

• Save to create the question and stay in the edit view.
• Save and return to create the question and return to the page view.

9. ILIAS will create your question on the new page.

Delete a page

If you don't like questions or divisions, you not only have the option to move them. You can also remove created things.

You want to delete the currently displayed page of the survey.

1. Click the "Delete Page" button to the right of the ▼ menu Jump to Page.
2. ILIAS asks you to confirm that you want to delete this page
3. Click on the Confirm button.

Note: Deleting the page automatically deletes all questions on it. If you have not previously stored them in a question pool, you will no longer have access to these questions after deleting them.

Moving a page

If you do not like the arrangement of your questions at the end of the creation process, you can rearrange it.

You want to move the currently displayed page of the survey.

1. Click on the Move Page button to the right of the Delete Page button.
2. ILIAS opens a new page.
3. In the ▼ menu, select the position to which you want to move the page.
4. Click on the Submit button.
5. ILIAS moves the page to the desired position and opens it again.

Questions in the list view

Creating a question in the list view

LIAS offers several views for creating a survey.

You want to add a question in the list view of the survey.

1. Open the Questions tab.
2. Click on the List View sub-tab.
3. Select the desired question type in the ▼ menu in the upper left corner:

• Matrix question
• Metric question
• Multiple Choice Question
• Single Choice Question
• Enter free text

5. Click the Create Question button to the right.
6. ILIAS will open a new page.
7. Under the Pool Selection setting, select the option:

• Do not use a question pool to create the question directly in the survey. You will not be able to reuse the question in other surveys.
• Use an existing question pool to place the question in an existing question pool. ILIAS opens a selection menu with already created question pools with this option. Choose in which pool you want to file the question.
• Create a new question pool if you do not have a question pool yet in which you manage your questions. ILIAS presents a text input field where you can enter the desired name of the pool.

8. Click on the Submit button.
9. ILIAS opens the screen to create the desired question type.
10. Click on the button:

• Save to create the question and stay in the edit view.
• Save and return to create the question and return to the page view.

11. ILIAS creates the question and reports "Change saved".

Obtain the question pool in the list view.

To make things easier, ILIAS allows you to refer to proven questions. Question pools can be used to design surveys quickly and effectively.

You want to add one or more questions from a question pool.

Prerequisite: The use of pool questions is activated in the settings.

1. Open the Questions tab.
2. Click on the List View sub-tab.
3. Click the Add from Pool button to the right of the Create Question button.
4. ILIAS opens a new page.
5. You will be presented with a table of all questions from question pools that you have access to.

• For a targeted search, use the filter:
• To do this, enter one or more search terms in the respective input fields or select the pool whose questions you want to add in the ▼ menu Available pools.
• Click on the Apply filter button.
• ILIAS will show you all the questions to which you have access.

6. Select the checkbox of the question(s) you want to add.
7. Click on the Insert button.
8. ILIAS adds the question(s), and reports "Question(s) added".

Note: If you cannot find questions in a pool, this may be because the question pool is not online or you lack access rights.

Set the order of questions.

You can structure your survey to make it understandable, build on each other, and maintain a common thread.

You want to set the order of the questions in the survey.

1. Open the Questions tab.
2. Click on the List View sub-tab.
3. ILIAS shows you a table with your questions.
4. In the Sort column, enter the desired order of the questions in numeric values.
5. Click the Save Mandatory Status and Sort button at the top or bottom of the question list.
6. ILIAS saves the defined question sequence.

Note: When sorting, individual questions are treated in the same way as question blocks. The order within a question block is displayed indented by ILIAS and can also be changed according to these instructions.

Moving a question in the list view

ILIAS offers you different possibilities to design your survey individually.

You want to move one or more questions in the list view.

1. Open the Questions tab.
2. Click on the sub-tab List View.
3. Activate the checkboxes in front of the question you want to move.
4. Select the Move entry in the drop-down menu.
5. Click the Execute button next to the drop-down menu.
6. ILIAS reopens the page and asks you to select a target position.
7. Activate the checkbox in front of the desired target position.
8. Select above or below the table with your questions in the ▼ menu:
   Insert in front to insert the question in front of the selected question.
   Insert after to insert the question after the selected question.
9. Click on the Execute button.
10. ILIAS inserts the question at the desired position and reports "Change saved".

Note: You can also select multiple checkboxes when moving questions.

Make answering mandatory

In a survey, some questions are more important than others or whose data must be collected completely.

You want to make it mandatory for participants to answer a question.

1. Open the Questions tab.
2. Click on the List View sub-tab.
3. In the table with your questions, check the Mandatory checkboxes of the desired questions-.
4. Click on the button Save mandatory status and sorting.
5. ILIAS marks the question as mandatory.

Note: To remove a question's mandatory status, deactivate the question's checkbox and proceed similarly.

Create question block

ILIAS offers you various options for designing your survey.

You want to combine several questions into one question block.

1. Open the Questions tab.
2. Click on the sub-tab List View.
3. Activate the checkboxes of the questions you want to combine into one question block.
4. Select the entry Define question block in the drop-down menu above or below the table with your questions.
5. Click on the Execute button.
6. ILIAS opens a new page.
7. Enter the desired title of the question block in the Title input field.
8. Activate the Show block title checkbox to display the title to the survey participants.
9. Activate the Show question text checkbox to display the question text of each question within the block.
10. Click the Save button.
11. ILIAS saves the question block, returns to the list view, and reports "Change saved."

Edit question block

If you do not like the arrangement of your questions at the end of the creation process, you can change it again.

You want to edit the settings of a question block.

1. Open the Questions tab.
2. Click on the List View sub-tab.
3. Open the Actions menu in the row of the desired block.
4. Select the entry in the ▼ menu Edit.
5. ILIAS opens a new page.
6. Make the changes to the settings.
7. Click on the Save button.
8. ILIAS applies the changes, returns to the list view, and reports "Change saved".

Resolve question block

ILIAS offers you various options for designing your survey.

You want to resolve a question block.

1. Open the Questions tab.
2. Click on the sub-tab List view.
3. Activate the checkbox of the question block you want to dissolve.
4. Select the entry Dissolve question block in the drop-down menu above or below the table with your questions.
5. Click on the Execute button.
6. ILIAS dissolves the question block and reports "Change saved".

Previewing and printing a survey

Survey preview for participants

To control and tune your survey settings, ILIAS offers you the preview function.

With the preview, you can view and survey from the participant's point of view without creating a data set. This allows you to do a test run before publishing the survey.

1. Open the Questions tab.
2. Click on the Preview link.
3. ILIAS opens the survey from the participant's view.

Print surveys

You can also print your survey.

You want to print the survey or export it as a PDF file.

1. Open the Questions tab.
2. Click on the Print view link.
3. Click on the Print button.
4. ILIAS opens the print dialog of your browser.

Note: Only the survey questions and answers will be printed, not the survey results. You can print the results of the survey in the Results tab.

Reusing answers with phrases

Phrases - Introduction

You can save frequently used answers or ratings of matrix and single-choice questions in ILIAS and reuse them for new questions. A classic example of this is the answer options for frequency questions: "Never, Once, A Few Times, Often, Always." These sets of answer options are called "phrases" in ILIAS. You can create and save your phrases. You can use these phrases for other questions with just a few mouse clicks.

In addition, ILIAS already comes with some frequently used phrases that you can use for your questions.

Include phrases in questions.

ILIAS offers the possibility to use settings that simplify and shorten the creation of a survey.

You want to embed reusable answer options (so-called phrases) into a question.

Prerequisite: You are in the edit mode of the question.

1. Click on the Create question button to get to the editing screen.
2. Click on the Add phrase button under the Answers setting.
3. ILIAS will present you with a list of existing phrases.
4. Activate the option of the desired phrase.
5. Click on the Add phrase button.
6. ILIAS inserts all corresponding answers into the question and reports "Phrase added".
7. Click the Save button to apply the information.

Save phrases for reuse.

You can make it easier for yourself to create for later following surveys by filling the databases behind such settings for use. You can save frequently used answers or ratings of matrix and single-choice questions as phrases in ILIAS and reuse them for new questions.

You want to save your answers as a new phrase.

Prerequisite: You are already in question edit mode.

1. Click the Create Questions button to access the editing screen.
2. Under the Answers setting, click the Save as phrase button to save your entries for reuse in another question.
3. ILIAS loads a new page.
4. Enter a title in the input field for the new phrase.
5. Click on the Confirm button.
6. ILIAS saves the phrase and reports, "The phrase was successfully saved." You can now continue editing the question."

Note: Saving phrases is only possible for single and matrix questions.

Working with question pools

Relationship between surveys and question pools

Surveys are composed of questions. These questions can be created directly in the survey or managed in a question pool. Existing questions can be copied between both levels:

• Questions can be created in a question pool and used in one or even multiple surveys. Therefore, using a question pool is particularly worthwhile if you want to use the same questions regularly: You then copy them each time from the pool into the survey.
• Changes you make to the question from the survey can optionally be transferred to the pool. However, you need editing rights to the target question pool for this.
• Conversely, changes you make from the question pool to a question that has already been copied can also optionally be transferred to the survey - but only if you have the appropriate rights to do so and no participant records exist.
• Questions can also be created directly in the survey. These questions are then initially only available in the survey currently being edited. However, you can copy any question from a survey into a question pool, regardless of how it was created or got there.

Editing a question pool afterward

ILIAS remembers which questions you have created directly in a survey and which you have copied into a question pool only later. If you change this question later in the question pool, ILIAS allows you to copy the changes in the survey to keep both the same.

You want to copy a question you created in the survey into a question pool.

1. Open the Questions tab.
2. Click on the List View sub-tab. Select the checkbox of the question you want to copy to a question pool. You can also select multiple questions.
3. Select Add to question pool at the top or bottom of the question list.
4. Click on the Execute button.
5. ILIAS opens a new page.
6. Select the desired question pool from the drop-down menu.
7. Click on the Submit button.
8. ILIAS copies the question to the question pool and returns it to the list view.

Note: You can also copy a question to a question pool multiple times. This can be useful to keep a kind of history of the question and to be able to insert different versions later. However, only the last copy made will retain a direct link to the survey. If you change the question in the question pool afterward, ILIAS will only offer to apply them to the survey for this last created copy.

Default survey settings

Overview of settings in surveys

In the settings, you define how your survey is presented to the participants, how the data is collected, and how the results are prepared.

In the Settings tab of the survey, you can:

• decide whether the participants can edit the survey anonymously or whether the answers should be assigned to a name
• decide whether you want to reuse the questions if necessary and therefore use a question pool
• put the survey online and make it available to the participants
• define an introductory text for your survey. You can explain the survey's goals to the participants in the introductory text.
• give your participants a closing remark on the last page of the survey to thank them for their participation or to explain how and where the results can be viewed.
• set up email reminders for users to participate

Rename survey

If you do not like the settings at the end of the creation process, you can make changes afterward.

You want to change the title of your survey.

1. Open the Settings tab of the survey.
2. Enter the new name of the survey in the input field under the Title setting.
3. Click on the Save button.
4. ILIAS will display the new title above the tabs.

Access and privacy of the results

ILIAS offers you several options regarding the settings concerning the results.

You want to define whether the participants' data should be saved in the survey results and if so, displayed in the statistics.

1. Open the Settings tab.
2. In the Results section, under the Participants' access to results setting, enable the option:

• Participants do not have access to results if only users who can edit the survey are allowed to view the results
• All registered ILIAS users can access results if all ILIAS users are allowed to access the survey results.
• All survey participants have access to the results if all feedback should be visible. In the Results section, under the Privacy setting, enable the option.
• With names: Participants' names will be included in the results along with their answers. This may result in refusal to answer or selecting socially desirable (but inaccurate) answers for some questions.
• Without names/ Anonymous survey: answers are recorded without saving the names of the answerer. The survey's author cannot see which people participated in this case.

3. Click the Save button.

Note: Once at least one participant has completed the survey, you cannot change this setting. To change this setting after the survey has started, you would first have to delete the existing participant data.

Survey external participants

The survey function allows you to poll different groups of people.

You want people who are not registered with ILIAS to be able to participate in the survey. The data will be collected anonymously.

1. Open the Settings tab.
2. In the Survey administration: access section, activate the Authentication with access keys option.
3. Click on the Save button.

Note: ILIAS extends the survey menu in the Participants tab with sub-tab Access keys. You can generate access keys for external participants and send them via the ILIAS mail system. These allow external participants not registered with ILIAS to participate in the survey. They also ensure that participants in an anonymous survey cannot take it more than once.

Activate question pools in the survey.

Using question pools in surveys can save a lot of work because questions that are needed multiple times only need to be created once.

You want to enable or disable question pools in your survey.

1. Open the Settings tab.
2. In the Settings section, under the Use question pool setting, enable the option:

• Questions can optionally be created in the question pool if you want to store them in the question pool and use them for other surveys. This option must also enable access to questions already stored in a question pool.
• Questions are created directly in the survey if you want to save the questions directly in the survey.
• You can also manually copy these questions into a question pool later if necessary.

3. Click the Save button.

Make the survey available for participants.

After creating and customizing the look of your survey, you still need to make the survey available for editing by your feedback providers.

You want to make your survey available for participants.

1. To do this, open the Settings tab.
2. Select the Online checkbox in the Availability section under the Online setting.
3. Click on the Save button.
4. ILIAS will accept your entries.

Note: Once your survey is online, you can no longer change specific settings (for example, you cannot add or change questions while a survey is running). If you still want to make changes, you must return the survey offline.

Period of the survey

ILIAS offers you several options regarding the settings and the execution of your survey.

You want to define the period in which the survey can be conducted.

1. Open the tab Settings.
2. In the section Availability, under the setting Time limited availability, you have a calendar to limit the survey to your participants.

• In the input field above Start, enter the desired date and time when your survey should be started.
• Enter the desired date, and time your survey should end in the input field via End.
• Furthermore, you can click on the calendar symbol button and manually select a date with a mouse click.

3. Click the Save button.

Note: To set the period, the survey must first be online.

Text the introduction and concluding remarks.

During the creation process, you can leave information explaining your survey so that your feedback givers understand the background of your survey.

You want to create informational text for your questions.

1. Open the Settings tab of the survey.
2. In the Information before the survey start section, under the Introduction settings, enter an informational text that provides more information to the respondent before the survey starts.
3. In the End survey section, under the Closing remark setting, enter an information text that will be displayed to the participant at the end of the survey.
4. Click the Save button.

Note: The information text from the Information before survey start section is already visible before the survey start date.

E-mail after survey submission of a participant

ILIAS offers several control options during an ongoing survey.

You want to be notified by e-mail every time someone completes the survey.

1. Open the Settings tab.
2. Check the box in the End survey section under the Single email per completed survey setting.
3. ILIAS adds the text input fields Recipient address and Additional participant data to the page.

• In the Recipient address input field, enter the desired mail address to which the notification should be sent.
• If necessary, enter an introductory text in the Additional participant data input field, which will be entered in the e-mail before the survey results of a participant.

4. Click the Save button.

Note: If several recipients are to be informed, enter all the desired email addresses in the Recipient address input field. For ILIAS to recognize them as individual addresses, separate them with commas.

Remind users of participation.

ILIAS offers several control options during a running survey.

You want to remind participants to complete the survey. The reminder will be sent by e-mail only to those participants who have not yet participated in the survey or completed it. The participants who have completed the survey will not receive a reminder email.

1. Open the Settings tab of the survey.
2. In the Reminders section, select the checkbox under the Remind users to participate settings.
3. ILIAS adds more settings to the page:

• In the Start and End input fields, enter the desired period in which participants will be reminded about the survey.
• Under the setting Frequency of reminder, specify the interval at which the reminder emails should be sent. For example, if you select "3 days", a reminder email will be sent three days after the date you entered under Start.
• Under the Target group setting, specify who exactly should receive the reminder mail: If the mail is in a course or a group, the mail can be sent to all corresponding members who have not yet completed the survey. Or you can send reminders to all invited participants who have not yet completed the survey.

4. Click the Save button.

Notification when all participants have finished

ILIAS offers several control options during an ongoing survey.

You want tutors to receive a notification when all participants have answered the survey. The notification will be sent via email to selected users who have write permission to the survey. You can then start evaluating the survey.

1. Open the Settings tab of the survey.
2. In the End survey section, under the One email, after all, participants have finished setting, activate the checkbox.
3. ILIAS extends the page with further settings

• In the Tutors (username[s]) input field, enter the username of the person who should receive the notification. The person must have write access to the survey,
• If you want to specify, more than one tutor, click the + button to get another input field.
• Under Target group, specify who should belong to the target group to be checked for completeness: If the mail is in a course or a group, it will be checked if all corresponding members have completed the survey. Or you let check if all invited participants have finished the survey.

4. Click the Save button.

Note: The person notified must have write permissions to the survey.

Why can't I change the settings?

Some survey settings cannot be changed after at least one participant has already answered the questions. To make changes to the survey (add, delete, rephrase questions, or change settings), you must first delete the participants' data. This is because ILIAS does not allow editing a survey for which answers have already been entered in order not to corrupt the data already received. Only after you have deleted the participant data can you edit the survey again.

You want to delete the participant data to make changes to your survey.

1. Click on the Participants tab.
2. Click on the Delete all user data button above the table of participants.
3. ILIAS opens a new page and asks you to confirm that you want to delete the data.
4. Click on the Confirm button.
5. ILIAS opens a new page and reports, "All survey user data has been deleted!"

Note: It is not sufficient to check isolated checkboxes in front of participants and delete them. To edit the survey again, all user data must be removed. After deleting the data, the participants can participate in the survey again.

360° survey settings

Overview of settings in 360° surveys

In the settings, you define how your 360° survey is presented to the participants, how the data is collected, and how the results are prepared.

In the survey settings tab, you can specify whether:

• Participants can voluntarily register as feedback takers, i.e., whether they can request feedback about themselves.
• Feedback recipients can select their feedback providers
• Feedback takers can give a self-assessment about themselves, which can later be contrasted with the third-party assessments
• You want to reuse the questions if necessary and use a question pool
• You want to put the survey online and make it available to the participants
• You want to provide an introductory text for your survey. You can explain the survey's goals to the participants in the introductory text.
• You want to present a concluding remark to your participants on the last page of the survey. For example, to thank them for their participation or to explain how and where the results can be viewed.
• Who is allowed to view the results
• Users are reminded by e-mail about participation

If competency management has been enabled globally on your installation, you can decide if you want to use this service for your survey.

Note: All 360° surveys display responses anonymously, so even if individual responses are displayed, it does not show who gave them.

Rename survey

ILIAS still offers the possibility to make changes after creating a survey.

You want to change the title of your poll.

1. Open the tab Settings of the poll.
2. Enter the desired name of the poll in the Title input field.
3. Click on the Save button.
4. ILIAS displays the new title above the tabs.

Note: You can add information about the purposes of the survey or its target group in the Description input field. This information will then be displayed in smaller font below the title.

Feedback settings

You can set various settings to control the behavior of the survey in terms of feedback. You can combine the settings as you wish.

• Self-assessment: Feedback takers can give a self-assessment based on the questions. The survey can only collect third-party feedback if you do not select this option.
• Select feedback givers: Feedback takers select the people who are to give them feedback themselves. If you do not select this option, you will have to assign several feedback givers to each feedback taker in the Feedback taker tab.
• Open 360° feedback: Users who open the survey can decide whether they want to participate as feedback takers. If you offer this option, you must also allow them to manage their feedback givers themselves.

Enable question pools in the survey.

Using question pools in surveys can save a lot of work, as questions that are needed multiple times only need to be created once.

You want to enable or disable the use of question pools in your survey.

1. Open the Settings tab.
2. In the Settings section, under the Use question pool setting, enable the option:

• Questions can optionally be created in the question pool if you want to store the questions in the question pool and use them for other surveys. This option must also be enabled to access questions that are already stored in a question pool.
• Questions are created directly in the survey if you want to save the questions directly in the survey. You can also manually copy these questions into a question pool later if necessary.

3. Click the Save button.

Make the survey available for participants.

After creating and customizing the look of your survey, you still need to make the survey available for editing by your feedback providers.

You want to make your survey available for participants.

1. To do this, open the Settings tab.
2. Select the Online checkbox in the Availability section under the Online setting.
3. Click on the Save button.
4. ILIAS will accept your entries.

Note: Once your survey is online, you can no longer change specific settings (for example, you cannot add or change questions while a survey is running). If you still want to make changes, you first have to set the survey back to offline status.

Period of the survey

ILIAS offers you several options regarding the settings and the execution of your survey.

You want to define the period in which the survey can be conducted.

1. Open the tab Settings.
2. In the section Availability under the setting Time limited availability, you have a calendar to limit the survey to your participants.

• In the input field above Start, enter the desired date and time when your survey should be started.
• Enter the desired date, and time your survey should end in the input field via End.
• Furthermore, you can click on the calendar symbol button and manually select a date with a mouse click.

3. Click the Save button.

Note: To set the period, the survey must first be online.

Text the introduction and concluding remarks.

During the creation process, you can leave information explaining your survey so that your feedback givers understand the background of your survey.

You want to create informational text for your questions.

1. Open the Settings tab of the survey.
2. In the Information before the survey start section, under the Introduction Settings, enter an informational text that provides more information to the respondent before the survey starts.
3. In the End survey section, under the Closing remark setting, enter an information text that will be displayed to the participant at the end of the survey.
4. Click the Save button.

Note: The information text from the Information before survey start section is already visible before the survey start date.

Access and privacy of the results

ILIAS offers you several options regarding the settings concerning the results.

You want to define whether the participants' personal data should be saved in the survey results and, if necessary, displayed in the statistics.

1. Open the Settings tab.
2. In the Results section, under the Feedback takers can view response setting, enable the option:
   No access: feedback takers will not be able to view the answers of their feedback givers. They will not have access to the Results tab. The results must be made available to them by other means, for example, explained in a face-to-face meeting.
   Only own feedback givers: The feedback takers get access to the tab Results. In this tab, however, they are only shown the responses of their feedback givers and not the feedback from others.
   All feedback: The feedback takers get access to the Results tab. In this tab, all feedback takers will see all feedback on all people, not just the feedback they received.
3. Click the Save button.

Note: Responses in 360° surveys are always saved ANONYMIZED. All responses are displayed without the name of the feedback giver. No matter what setting you make here, feedback takers will only learn how often an answer was selected by your feedback givers when they access the results. Feedback takers will not learn who gave those answers.

E-mail after survey submission of a participant

ILIAS offers several control options during an ongoing survey.

You want to be notified by email every time someone completes the survey.

1. Open the Settings tab.
2. Check the box under the End survey section under the Single email per completed survey setting.
3. ILIAS adds the text input fields Recipient address and Additional participant data to the page.

• In the Recipient address input field, enter the desired mail address to which the notification should be sent.
• If necessary, enter an introductory text in the Additional participant data input field, which will be entered in the e-mail before the survey results of a participant.

4. Click the Save button.

Note: If several recipients are to be informed, enter all the desired email addresses in the Recipient address input field. For ILIAS to recognize them as individual addresses, separate them with commas.

Competencies for 360° Surveys

You want to create a 360° survey whose questions refer to specific competencies. The survey contains questions that collect assessments of the concrete expression of the competencies in a person. To do this, you link the questions to the competencies.

You want to activate the competence service for your 360° survey.

Prerequisite: The Activate Competency Service option is only displayed if Competency Management has also been activated on your installation. If you do not see the option, contact the responsible office via the Contact Administrator link at the bottom of the page. Explain your concern and ask for global competency management to be enabled. Also, clarify who should deposit the competencies in ILIAS. If the global competence management is activated, you can activate the competence service for this 360° survey as follows:

1. Open the Settings tab of the 360° survey.
2. In the Other section under the Activate competence service setting, activate the checkbox.
3. Click the Save button.

Why can't I change the settings?

You cannot change some survey settings after at least one participant has already answered questions. To make changes to the survey again (add, delete, reword questions, or even change settings), you must first delete the participants' data. This is because ILIAS does not allow editing a survey for which answers have already been entered in order not to corrupt the data already received. Only after you have deleted the participant data, you should be able to edit the survey again.
You want to delete the participant data to make changes to your survey.

1. Click on the Participants tab.
2. Click on the Delete all user data button above the table of participants.
3. ILIAS opens a new page and asks you to confirm that you want to delete the data.
4. Click on the Confirm button.
5. ILIAS opens a new page and reports, "All survey user data has been deleted!"

Note: It is not sufficient to check isolated checkboxes in front of participants and delete them. To edit the survey again, all user data must be removed. After deleting the data, the participants will have the opportunity to participate in the survey again.

Results of the survey

Results - Introduction

You can view, print, and export survey results in the Results tab. Thereby ILIAS offers you different views:

• For 360° surveys only: The Competency Results view prepares the feedback. All competencies to which the questions refer are displayed as axes of a spider web. The third-party and self-assessment data are displayed superimposed. The two assessments are also presented again in tabular form for each competency individually. You can also perform a Gap Analysis, including target values for competency profiles. For the Gap Analysis, the Competence Service must be activated.
• The Overview view provides a tabular overview of the overall survey results.
• The Detailed Results view also provides detailed information for each question. These are output in tabular and graphical form.
• In the Per Participant view, you can see which participants gave which answers and how long they spent on the survey. In the case of anonymous surveys, this data is only available in anonymized form.

Change results view

The Overview and Detailed Results views provide you with a tabular overview of the survey results. You can select which data is displayed to you in tabular form. To do this, change the selection of columns in the view:

You want to change the view of the results output.

1. Click on the Overview or Detailed results sub-tab to get to the desired view.
2. On the right above the table is the ▼ menu Columns. Click on the ▼ menu.
3. ILIAS shows you a selection menu with all the data columns you can display.
4. Select the checkboxes in front of the information you want to include in the table. The following columns are available for selection:
   Question: the complete question text with all answer options will be displayed.
   Question Type: The type of question, for example, single choice or matrix question, is displayed.
   Answered: How many times was this question answered?
   Skipped: How many times was this question not answered but skipped?
   Most frequent choice: The text of the most frequently selected answer is displayed.
   Number of Choices: How many participants gave this most frequent answer is displayed.
   Median: The median of a list of numerical values is the value in the middle position when the values are sorted by size.
   Arithmetic means: Arithmetic means the average of all values. It is more sensitive to outliers than the median. The arithmetic mean is only output for not all question types.
5. Click the Refresh button in the menu.
6. ILIAS will update the table according to your specifications.

Print survey results

ILIAS offers you the possibility to record the results in different ways

You want to print the results of the survey.

1. Click on the Overview, Detailed Results, or Per Participant link to get to the view you want.
2. Click the Print button on the far right of the table header.
3. ILIAS creates the print preview and opens the print dialog of your browser.
4. The displayed data will be printed.

Note: Printer dialogs in browsers often differ: trigger the print as you usually would.

Export survey results

ILIAS offers you the possibility to record the results in different ways.

You want to export the survey results to save them outside ILIAS or edit them further. For this purpose, the formats Excel and CSV (e.g., for analysis in statistical programs like SPSS) are available.

1. Click on the link Overview, Detailed results, or Per participant to get to the desired view.
2. Click on the Export button.
3. ILIAS opens a new page.
4. In the first drop-down menu above the list of results, select
   Microsoft Excel
   Comma Separated Values (CSV).
5. Select in the second drop-down menu:
   Labels only, Titles only
   Export titles only
   Labels and titles
6. Click on the Export button.
7. ILIAS exports the results in the desired format and opens the download dialog of your browser.

Note: Typically, you want to export labels and titles: The question title is often supplemented with a label (identification number) concerning processing in SPSS, simplifying processing in statistical programs. The labels must already be assigned when the question is created. The export function exports only the values shown in the columns.

Delete data in the standard survey

Delete data of all participants

ILIAS offers you the possibility to delete different data sets.

You want to delete all participant data.

1. Open the Participants tab.
2. Click on the button Delete all user data.
3. ILIAS asks you to confirm the deletion.
4. Click on the Confirm button.
5. ILIAS deletes all survey results and reports, "All user data of the survey has been deleted".

Note: Now, you can edit the survey again.

Delete data of individual participants.

You can manage your results and remove unnecessary data.

You want to delete the survey results of selected participants.

1. Open the tab Participants in the survey.
2. ILIAS shows you a table of all participants who have already answered questions.
3. Activate the checkbox in front of the name of the user whose results you want to delete.
4. Click on the Delete survey results of selected participants button.
5. ILIAS will ask you to confirm the deletion.
6. Click on the Confirm button.
7. ILIAS deletes the results and reports, "The survey records of the selected participants have been successfully deleted".

Note: You can also select multiple checkboxes to delete the data of multiple users at once. After deleting the data, the participants will have the opportunity to participate in the survey again.

Deleting data in 360° Feedback

Deleting data of all participants

ILIAS offers you the possibility to delete different data sets.

You want to delete all participant data.

1. Open the Participants tab.
2. Click on the Delete all user data button.
3. ILIAS asks you to confirm the deletion.
4. Click on the Confirm button.
5. ILIAS deletes all survey results and reports, "All user data of the survey has been deleted".

Note: Now, you can edit the survey again.

Surveys with access keys

Access keys - Introduction

With the help of access keys, you can conduct a survey anonymously and with external participants. External participants are not registered on ILIAS. Using an access key, anonymous surveys cannot be edited more than once by a participant. However, an interrupted survey can be resumed by the participant without any problems. For your participants registered in ILIAS, access keys are generated automatically and added by the system before the survey starts.

To make the survey available for non-registered persons (internet users without ILIAS access), however, you have to

• set up and place the survey so that non-registered persons can access it,
• then you have to create access keys,
• last you have to send the access keys.

You have the option to export the created access keys and send them yourself.
However, you can also have the access keys sent to non-registered users directly via the ILIAS mail system. To do this, import the external users' mail addresses and then send the keys.

Grant access to external users

The survey function of ILIAS offers you the possibility to send access keys.

You want to send the access key to external participants via e-mail.

1. Click on the tab Participants in the desired survey.
2. Click on the sub-tab Send access key and messages.
3. ILIAS opens a new page with the draft email for your external participants.
   Customize the suggested text in the Subject setting and enter it in the input field.
4. Select the desired group of recipients by activating an option in the Recipients setting:

• To all entered external recipients of access keys, send the e-mail to all external subscribers.
• Send only to new recipients (who have not yet received an email) to send the email to recipients added later.
• To all recipients who have not yet completed the survey (reminder), to reach only participants who have interrupted or not yet completed the survey.
• To all recipients who have already completed the survey, e.g., to inform participants about the further use of the results.
• Enter the content of the email or use the stored default text.
• Activate the checkbox Save message content for further use and enter a title in the input field Title of message content.

5. Click on the Send button.
6. ILIAS sends the emails and reports, "Your mail has been sent".
7. In the overview of access keys, all persons to whom a mail was sent are now automatically marked with a checkmark at Sent.

Note: Before you send access keys, check again personally whether you have completed all the necessary preparatory work:

• The survey is complete and set to online.
• The survey is located in a repository that can be accessed by the role "Anonymous," This role has the right "View and Read" in the survey itself.
• You have created access keys for your participants.

The easiest way to check the requirements is to generate one of the access keys for yourself, send it to yourself, and go through the process once wholly. Log out before you start the trial run so that you can find errors. When you are sure that everything is well prepared, then send the access keys to your external participants.

Please note that the use of the placeholder code in the message text is mandatory. ILIAS will automatically replace it with the access key of the participant. In addition, it is useful also to use the placeholder "URL" to provide participants with a direct link to the survey. Optionally, you can use the placeholders "First name, Last name".

Saved message content can be accessed under the Available message texts setting in a ▼ menu. However, this section is only displayed if at least one message content has already been saved. To insert the desired content, click the Insert message text button at the top or bottom of the page.

Creating access keys in ILIAS

You have several options for creating access keys for your external participants:

You want to generate access keys to survey with external participants who are not registered in ILIAS. The survey will be conducted without collecting the names of the external participants because otherwise, the participants would have to register to collect their data.

1. Open the desired survey.
2. Click on the tab Participants.
3. Click on the Access keys sub-tab.
4. Under the New access keys for the survey setting, enter how many access keys you want to create in the input field.
5. Click on the Create button.
6. ILIAS generates the desired number of access keys.
7. Enter the data of the external participants in the input fields behind the generated access keys.
8. Click on the Save button.
9. ILIAS will redirect you to the sub-tab Access Keys, where you will see a table with the access keys and the corresponding status.

Note: You can also create access keys without specifying an email address and send them by other means. To mark that you have done so, then check the Sent checkbox after the generated code. You can generate additional access keys at any time and do not have to generate them all at once.

Generate access keys from file.

You have several options for creating access keys for your external subscribers.

You want to create access keys, using Excel, for the survey for external users.

Prerequisite: You have created a file with the user data in a spreadsheet program. Your file contains the columns.

• Email,
• First name,
• Last name.

For the import to work, the Email column must contain data. You have saved your file as a CSV (delimited) file.

1. Click on the Participants tab in the desired survey.
2. Click on the Access Key sub-tab.
3. ILIAS opens a new page.
4. Click on the Import key button.
5. Click on the Select file button.
6. Select your prepared file
7. Click on the Import button.
8. ILIAS imports the recipient addresses and displays the data in the External Recipients of Access Keys page,

Note: Name like Select file may vary depending on your internet browser.

Create access keys from the text.

You have several options for creating access keys for your external participants:

You want to create access keys for the survey for external users. This way, you type the data one after the other.

1. Click on the Participants tab in the desired survey.
2. Click on the sub-tab Access keys.
3. ILIAS opens a new page.
4. Click on the button Import user data from a text.
5. ILIAS shows you an input field with sample data.
6. Enter your data according to the sample. Do not leave any spaces. Separate the data with a semicolon/comma. Write each record on a separate line. If you want to import a list of email addresses without recipient names, leave only the entry "email" in the first line, followed by one email address per line.
7. Click on the Import button.
8. ILIAS imports the recipient addresses and reports "External recipients have been imported".

Note: Please leave the first line ("email; first name; last name") in the input field. It is needed. You can delete the example data of Ralf König and Ute Goldschmidt; they are only for illustration.

Send access key by e-mail.

The survey function of ILIAS offers you the possibility to send access keys.

You want to send the access key to external participants by e-mail.

1. Click on the tab Participants in the desired survey.
2. Click on the sub-tab Send access key and messages.
3. ILIAS opens a new page with the draft email for your external participants.
4. Customize the suggested text in the Subject setting and enter it in the input field.
5. Select the desired group of recipients by activating an option in the Recipients setting:

• To all entered external recipients of access keys, send the e-mail to all external subscribers.
• Send only to new recipients (who have not yet received an email) to send the email to recipients added later.
• To all recipients who have not yet completed the survey (reminder), reach only participants who have interrupted or have not yet completed the survey.
• To all recipients who have already completed the survey, e.g., to inform participants about the further use of the results.

6. Enter the content of the email or use the stored default text.

• Activate the checkbox Save message content for further use and enter a title in the input field Title of message content.

7. Click on the Send button.
8. ILIAS sends the emails and reports, "Your mail has been sent".
9. In the overview of access keys, all persons to whom a mail was sent are now automatically marked with a checkmark at Sent.

Note: Before you send access keys, check again personally whether you have completed all the necessary preparatory work:

• The survey is complete and set to online.
• The survey is located in a repository that can be accessed by the role "Anonymous," This role has the right "View and Read" in the survey itself.
• You have created access keys for your participants.

The easiest way to check the requirements is to generate one of the access keys for yourself, send it to yourself, and go through the process once wholly. Log out before you start the trial run so that you can find errors. When you are sure that everything is well prepared, then send the access keys to your external participants.

Please note that the use of the placeholder code in the message text is mandatory. ILIAS will automatically replace it with the access key of the participant. In addition, it is useful also to use the placeholder "URL" to provide participants with a direct link to the survey. Optionally, you can use the placeholders "First name, Last name".
Saved message content can be accessed under the Available message texts setting in a ▼ menu. However, this section is only displayed if at least one message content has already been saved. To insert the desired content, click the Insert message text button at the top or bottom of the page.

Sending access keys by mail and mail merge

The survey function of ILIAS offers you the possibility to send access keys.

You would like to export the access keys in the form of a text file for further processing in a mail merge program and organize the sending of the access keys to external users by paper mail yourself.

Prerequisite: You have completed all the necessary preliminary work:

• The survey is complete. And set to online.
• The survey is located in a repository that can be accessed by the role "Anonymous,". This role has the right "View and Read" in the survey itself.
• You have created access keys for your participants.

1. Open the Participants tab in the desired survey.
2. Open the sub-tab Access keys.
3. ILIAS shows you a list with the created access keys.
4. Click the Export all access keys button above or below the table to export all keys.
5. ILIAS generates a text file with the access keys. You can process this to a serial letter with a suitable program.

You want to export only specific access keys and not all of them.

1. In the table, activate the check boxes of the keys you want to export.
2. Open the ▼ menu above or below the table.
3. Select the entry in the ▼-Export menu.
4. Click on the Execute button.
5. ILIAS generates a text file with the access keys you selected.

Note: The easiest way to check the requirements is to generate one of the access keys for yourself and send it to yourself, going through the process once wholly. Log out before starting the trial run so that you can find errors. When you are sure everything is well prepared, send the access keys to your external participants.

Delete access keys

You can remove access keys that you do not need.

You want to delete one or more access keys.

1. Click on the Participants tab in the survey.
2. Click on the Access keys sub-tab.
3. Select the checkboxes of the keys you want to delete.
4. In the ▼ menu above or below the table, select the entry in the ▼ menu Delete.
5. Click on the Execute button.
6. ILIAS deletes the access keys.

Note: Deleting the access keys does not delete any given feedback provider response data.

Competencies

Competencies in 360° Feedbacks - Introduction

You want to map the survey feedbacks to competencies:

• You design the questions so that the questions ask about different aspects of the competencies.
• You map the questions to competencies.
• The answer options for the questions are assigned points. You determine how many points are needed to attribute a particular competency.

Participants are ranked in the different competencies based on the feedback. A spider web graph is created with the different competencies and expressions.

To perform a gap analysis, you must also store competency profiles (target requirements) in Competency Management and assign users to these profiles.

Prerequisite: You can only use the competencies if you have also previously activated them in the Settings tab under the Activate Competency Service setting.
To assign questions to competencies, you must first create competencies and their proficiencies.

Assigning questions and competencies

ILIAS allows you to classify your questions after they have been created.

You want to assign the questions of your 360° survey to specific competencies.

Prerequisite: You can only use the competencies if you have previously activated them in the Settings tab under the Activate competency service setting.
To assign the questions to the competencies, you must first create competencies and their proficiencies.

1. Open the tab Competencies of the desired survey.
2. ILIAS shows you a table of all questions of the survey.
3. Click on the action link Assign competency at the end of the row of the question you want to assign to a competency.
4. ILIAS shows you the navigation tree of the competencies you can select.
5. To select a competency or to open a category, click on the title.
6. ILIAS assigns the competency to the question and shows you the table of your questions again.
7. Repeat steps 3 through 6 until you have assigned competencies to all the questions you want.

Note: Next, you need to assign thresholds to the competencies. You can unassign a competency by clicking the Remove Competency link in the row of the question.

Assigning thresholds

ILIAS offers you the possibility to assign your answers to specific thresholds. This allows you to categorize the given answers, compare them with each other, and determine if they meet certain requirements.

You want to assign threshold values to the competencies.

1. Open the Competencies tab.
2. Click on the Competency Threshold sub-tab.
3. ILIAS displays the competencies to which you previously assigned the questions.

• For each competency, it shows how many questions are assigned
• For each competency, it displays how many points in total could be scored in these questions.
• In the column "Up to x points," the proficiencies of the competence are listed.

4. Click on the Edit button.
5. ILIAS displays the proficiencies for the selected competency.
6. Enter the desired proficiency in the respective input fields and the number of points a user should be assigned to this proficiency.
7. Click on the Save button.
8. Click on the Back button to return to the competence tab.

Creating branched questionnaires

Branches - Introduction

Branches allow you to ask participants in a survey more in-depth questions if they have previously selected a specific answer.
Branches or filter questions allow you to connect specific answers to a question with more in-depth questions. The answer you choose then determines how the survey proceeds. The following question types can be used for branching:

• Metric questions
• Single choice questions
• Multiple choice question

Note: No branching rule can be set for the first question of a survey.
Only entire blocks can be placed under a branching rule when using blocks of questions.

Setting branches between questions

ILIAS offers you various design options for your survey. For example, these can be placed dependent on each other.

You want to add a branching rule to a question or a question block.

1. Click on the tab Branching rule in the desired survey.
2. Activate the checkbox of the question to which you want to add a branching rule.
3. Click on the Add branching rule button.
4. ILIAS opens a new page.
5. Check the option under the Show page setting.

• If every condition is met, make the question appear only if every condition you specify is met.
• If a condition is met, make the question appear already if at least one of your specified conditions is already met.

6. In the ▼-Menu under Step 1: Select a previous question, and select the question whose answers will serve as a branching rule.
7. Click the Next >> button.
8. In the ▼-Menu, under Step 2: Select a relation, select the relation on which the condition is based. This relation is represented mathematically with the characters > (greater than), < (less than), = (equal to), and corresponding combinations. The example below is this case.
9. Click on the Next >> button.
10. In the ▼-Menu under Step 3: Set value, select the answer or the value to which the relation refers.
11. Click the Next >> button to add the branching rule.

Note: A branching rule cannot be set for the first question of a survey. Matrix questions cannot be used as a starting point for branching rules, but a branching rule can certainly refer to a matrix question. Questions whose answers serve as a branching rule do not necessarily have to come immediately before the conditional question.

Example of a branching rule

Branching rules allow asking filter questions. The following example can illustrate how branching works:

You ask participants to give an overall rating at the end of a course: "How helpful was the course overall?" The following response options are available:

1 - Very helpful 2 - Helpful 3 - Moderately helpful 4 - Not helpful

Participants who select answers 3 or 4 would like to ask you for constructive criticism. To do this, create an open-text question, "What do you think could be improved to make the course more helpful?"
To ensure that this additional question only follows answers 3 or 4, create the following precondition for this:

1. Open the Branching Rule tab.
2. Check the checkbox of the open text question, "What do you think could be improved to make the course more helpful?"
3. Click the Add Branching Rule button.
4. ILIAS opens a new page.
5. Check the option under the Show page when a condition is met setting. In the ▼ menu under Step 1: Select a previous question, and select the question, "Overall, how helpful was the course?”
6. Click the Next>> button.
7. In the ▼ menu, under Step 2: Select a relation, select the relation >=.
8. Click the Next>> button.
9. In the ▼-menu under Step 3: Set value, select answer 3.
10. Click the Next>> button to add the branching rule.
11. ILIAS would display the open text question only if the participant selected the answer "3 - Moderately Helpful" or "4 - Not Helpful" for the previous question.

Edit branching rules

Within the survey function, ILIAS allows you to redesign your created survey.

You want to edit an already-defined branching rule.

1. In the desired survey, open the Branching Rule tab.
2. Click on the Edit link behind the desired branching rule.
3. ILIAS opens a new page.
4. Make the desired changes.
5. Click on the Next>> button.
6. ILIAS applies the changes.

Delete branching rules

Within the survey function, ILIAS allows you to redesign your created survey.

You want to delete a branching rule.

1. Open the tab Branching Rules.
2. Activate the checkbox of the branching rule you want to delete.
3. Click the action link behind the branch rule you want to delete.
4. ILIAS asks you to confirm the deletion.
5. Click on the Confirm button.
6. ILIAS deletes the branch rule and reports, "The rule has been deleted".

Put on the Personal Desktop

Put it on the personal desk.

You increase the visibility of your survey if you link it to the Personal Desktop of potential participants. Your participants only need one click to open the survey: They don't have to find the survey independently. This usually increases the number of people who take the survey.

You want to put the survey on the desk of selected users.

1. Open the Participants tab in the desired survey.
2. Click on the sub-tab. Put the survey on a personal desktop.
3. Activate the desired option under the settings. Put it on your desktop.

• Do not put it on anyone's desk if you want to make the survey available to participants by other means.
• Put it on the desk of all registered users if you want to put it on the personal desk of all users of your ILIAS installation.
• Put selected users on the desk if you want to put the survey on the personal desk of all members of certain groups, courses, or roles or desired individual users.

4. Click on the Save button.
5. ILIAS accepts the change and reports "Change saved".

Note: Putting the survey on the desk only works if 'My offers' is activated as the middle column on the desk, not 'My groups and courses'. Take a quick look at your desk. The option to Put all registered users on the desk may have to be activated by an administrator of your ILIAS installation.

Put group members on the desktop.

You want to survey the personal desk of members of a course, a group, or everyone assigned to a specific role.
All these people can then conveniently open the survey with just one click.

Prerequisite: You must have previously selected the Put selected users on the desk option in the Participants tab in the Put survey on personal desk link.

1. Click on the Search users button.
2. ILIAS opens a new page.
3. Select one of the following options:
   Search for role members
   Search for course members
   Search for group members
4. Enter the name of the course, group, or role in the text entry field.    
   Note: You can also search for an incomplete name.
5. Click on the Search button.
6. ILIAS will show you the list of search results.
7. Select the checkbox in front of the course, group, or role you searched for.    
   Note: You can also select multiple checkboxes.
8. Click the List Users button.
9. ILIAS lists all associated users.
10. Select some or all of the users in the list and click the Add button.
11. ILIAS places the survey on the desk of the selected users and reports, "x users have been invited".

Put individual users on the desk.

You can manually decide which users your survey will put on the desk.

You want to add a direct link to the survey to the personal desktop of a single user.

Prerequisite: You must have previously selected the Put selected users on the desk option in the Participants tab in the Put survey on desk link.

If you know the name of the user:

1. Enter the user's name in the User input field.
2. Click the Put on personal desk button.
3. ILIAS places the survey on the selected user's desk and reports, "x users have been invited".

If you do not know the name of the user (completely):

1. Click on the Search user button.
2. ILIAS opens a new page.
3. Activate the Search for users option.
4. Enter the name or the beginning of the name of the user you want to invite in the input field.
5. Click on the Search button.
6. ILIAS opens a new page with a table of search results.
7. Check the checkbox in front of the name of the user you want to invite.
8. Click on the Add button.
9. ILIAS puts the survey on the selected user's desk and reports, "x users have been invited".

Remove the survey from the desk.

You can manually decide which users your survey will be placed on the desk.

You want to remove a user's survey from their Desktop.

1. Click on the desired survey in the Participants tab.
2. Click on the sub-tab. Put the survey on the personal desk.
3. Go to the table with the heading Selected users.
4. Select the checkbox in front of the name of the user you want to unload.
5. Click the Unload button.
6. Activate the checkboxes in front of the names of the people you want to take the survey from the desk.
7. Click the Take from desk button above or below the table.
8. ILIAS takes the survey from the user's Desktop and reports "User unloaded".