Harcum Junior College (Pennsylvania) continuously engages in institutional self-study through its comprehensive Institutional Research (IR) program. The IR Office conducts both decision-oriented research, where the problem is defined by the decision-maker, and conclusion-oriented research, where the items studied are selected by the researcher. Harcum uses a program area checklist to outline the scope of topics to be included in the research effort and to give direction to both the scheduled, cyclical research conducted for long-range trend analysis and planning, and the short-term inquiries conducted for immediate decision-making purposes. Staff and faculty suggest additional timely topics. In the past 15 years, survey research, involving the collection of data by questionnaires or interviews, made up 38% of the 661 research documents written; experimental research, employing experimental manipulation of selected independent variables, made up 60%; and historical research, involving the use of historical data to answer specific questions, made up 12%. IR reports are routinely disseminated through formal research reports, monthly newsletters, and bulletins to students, staff, faculty, alumnae, parents, and high school counselors. The IR effort has been of practical value to Harcum by filling information gaps and enabling effective self-evaluation. (DD)