The Evaluators’ Institute

What The Evaluators’ Institute does

The Evaluators' Institute (TEI) is a professional training organization specializing in program evaluation education, founded in 1996 by Dr. M. F. "Midge" Smith as the first entity of its kind dedicated to this discipline. TEI is now housed within the Claremont Evaluation Center at Claremont Graduate University in Claremont, California, operating as a non-profit academic division rather than an independent commercial entity. The institute delivers a portfolio of four stackable professional certificates — the Certificate in Evaluation Practice (CEP), Certificate in Advanced Evaluation Practices (CAEP), Certificate in Analytic Evaluation Methods (CAEM), and the portfolio-based Master Evaluator Certificate — supported by a catalog of more than 40 short intensive courses spanning evaluation foundations, theory and methods, approaches and techniques, capacity building, and analytic approaches.

Courses run in three scheduled program cycles per year (Spring, Summer, Fall) and are delivered synchronously online via Zoom teleconferencing. Registration is handled through the Cvent self-service event platform, enabling global participant enrollment. TEI generates revenue through per-course fees paid by individual participants, multi-course certificate program enrollments, and customized Corporate Education contracts for organizations that train cohorts of staff.

TEI's customer base spans U.S. federal agencies (DOJ, State, Education, IRS, NIH, CDC, FDA, and military branches), large foundations and NGOs (Gates Foundation, Red Cross, AARP, Heifer International), 126 universities and academic think-tanks, and multilateral institutions including the World Bank and IMF. Over 10,000 professionals from 58 countries have been trained since 1996, with 600+ organizations sending groups in the past five years. The teaching faculty includes globally recognized evaluation scholars and practitioners such as Michael Quinn Patton, Stewart Donaldson, John Bryson, Mark Lipsey, and Tiffany Berry. TEI also publishes a blog, maintains an email newsletter via the e2ma platform, and administers the TEI Social Betterment Award recognizing contributions to the field.

Name

The Evaluators’ Institute

Legal name

The Evaluators' Institute

Website

https://tei.cgu.edu

Company type

Private

Founded year

1996

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

51–100 employees

Short description

The Evaluators' Institute delivers professional training and stackable certificates in program evaluation, serving individual practitioners, U.S. federal agencies, NGOs, universities, and multilateral organizations worldwide. Founded in 1996 and hosted within Claremont Graduate University.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Professional Evaluation Training and Education

NAICS

Professional and Management Development Training (611430)

SIC

Services-Educational Services (8200)

akta.pro primary industry

Certification & Exam Prep eLearning Modules (EDAGAEAL)

akta.pro secondary industry

Assessment-Integrated eLearning & Practice Modules (EDAGAEAE)

Keywords

• Professional evaluation training
• Program evaluation certificates
• Evaluation capacity building
• Corporate evaluation education
• Evaluation methods courses

Headquarters

HQ city

Claremont

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Technology or R&D, Others

Revenue model

1. Professional Training Courses: TEI generates revenue through course fees charged for professional training courses in evaluation. Courses vary in length from one to three days and participants can enroll in multiple courses to build towards professional certificates.
2. Certificate Programs: Revenue generated from certificate programs including Certificate in Evaluation Practice (CEP), Certificate in Advanced Evaluation Practices (CAEP), Certificate in Analytic Evaluation Methods (CAEM), and Master Evaluator Certificate.
3. Corporate Education: Customized training programs delivered to organizations seeking to build evaluation capacity among their staff.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels1 record

Marketing channels3 records

Core offering

The Evaluators' Institute provides intensive professional training courses and credentialing programs in program evaluation, delivered online via Zoom. Its offerings include one- to three-day short courses across five areas of study, four professional certificates (CEP, CAEP, CAEM, and the portfolio-based Master Evaluator Certificate), and customized Corporate Education for organizations building internal evaluation capacity. The curriculum is taught by world-renowned evaluation theorists and practitioners, with programs scheduled three times per year (Spring, Summer, Fall).

Product overview

The Evaluators' Institute (TEI) is a professional training organization that provides capacity building for evaluators through a portfolio of certificate programs and short intensive courses. The core offerings include four professional certificates: Certificate in Evaluation Practice (CEP), Certificate in Advanced Evaluation Practices (CAEP), Certificate in Analytic Evaluation Methods (CAEM), and the Master Evaluator Certificate (a portfolio-based credential). These certificates build upon a foundation of professional training courses that cover evaluation fundamentals, theory and methods, analytic approaches, and specialized techniques. TEI operates three programs per year (Spring, Summer, and Fall), with courses delivered online via Zoom teleconferencing platform since 2020. The institution also offers Corporate Education for organizations seeking customized training.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Professional Training Courses
• Certificate in Evaluation Practice (CEP)
• Certificate in Advanced Evaluation Practices (CAEP)
• Certificate in Analytic Evaluation Methods (CAEM)
• Master Evaluator Certificate
• Corporate Education

Quantifiable outcome

• Trained over 10,000 professionals since 1996
• +2 more outcomes

Named customers5 records

Segments4 records

Ideal customer profiles4 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Partnerships

One partnership is on record.

• Claremont Graduate University (Claremont Evaluation Center)coreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 1996TEI operates as part of the Claremont Evaluation Center at Claremont Graduate University. Founded by Dr. M.F. 'Midge' Smith in 1996, TEI continues its vision in its new home at CGU. The partnership provides academic infrastructure, accreditation through CGU's WSCUC accreditation, and institutional support for program delivery.

Scale indicators6 records

Recent moves7 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Others

• EvalPartners: A global partnership to strengthen evaluation capacity, particularly in developing countries. Closely aligned with TEI's mission of professional evaluation capacity building, though not a direct commercial competitor.
• UNICEF Evaluation Office: UN agency that provides evaluation guidance, training resources, and certification programs for national evaluation capacity development. Comparable audience segment (international evaluators) but operates as a UN system initiative rather than a commercial training provider.
• UNEG (United Nations Evaluation Group): Inter-agency professional network that sets evaluation standards and provides competency frameworks for UN evaluators. While not a training provider, it shapes the global evaluation capacity-building landscape that TEI serves.

Broad incumbents

• American Evaluation Association (AEA): The largest professional association for evaluators offers training and learning opportunities through annual conferences, eLearning, and topical workshops. Compared to TEI's specialized certificate model, AEA is a broader membership body that provides overlapping but less intensive training content.

Emerging players

• Better Evaluation: An open online resource with structured guidance on evaluation methods and approaches. While not a certificate-granting institution, it competes for the attention of evaluators seeking skill development and overlaps with TEI's foundational curriculum.
• Preskill & Associates: Evaluation consulting and training firm founded by Hallie Preskill, offering workshops and capacity-building services. Comparable to TEI's professional training offering but with a smaller scale and narrower course portfolio.

Direct peers

• Western Michigan University Evaluation Center: A university-based evaluation training and research center offering graduate programs and professional workshops. Comparable to TEI in evaluation training focus, but delivered through a degree-granting institution rather than short-format certificates.
• IPDET (International Program for Development Evaluation Training): The World Bank-affiliated evaluation training program offers intensive courses in development evaluation. While TEI is more practice-focused and IPDET leans toward development policy, both target the same evaluator customer with multi-day intensive certificates—making them the closest direct competitor in the niche.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks1 record

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/the-evaluators-institute

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles5 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

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M&A

Investments

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Frequently asked questions about The Evaluators’ Institute