Planning is possibly the most important step of the assessment process. This article presents a four-tiered approach to designing and implementing a general education institutional assessment plan. Categorizing the measures you use to assess established learning outcomes helps you prioritize your general education assessment initiatives and keep them manageable and on pace. A productive general education assessment plan utilizes both direct and indirect measures of learning outcomes achievement. However, the amount of time and effort extended on the available measures must be carefully thought out and considered to maximize effectiveness.