Igor Chirikov is the Director of the Student Experience in the Research University (SERU) Consortium and Senior Researcher at CSHE. SERU Consortium is an academic and policy research collaboration based at Center for Studies in Higher Education at the UC Berkeley working in partnership with Etio and member universities. The Consortium is a group of leading research-intensive universities that increase student success by generating and analyzing comparative data on the student experience.
As SERU Consortium Director Igor Chirikov has broad responsibilities for overall SERU Consortium coordination, research and development. This includes coordinating the SERU North American and International Divisions, directing the SERU research priorities and development projects, and exploring new approaches to the use of data to assess the student experience.
Throughout his career, he has successfully balanced research, teaching, and senior leadership roles in higher education. He has experience in designing and implementing large-scale international research projects in higher education, including randomized controlled trials. His research involves student experience and learning outcomes, the use of technology in universities and international comparative higher education. His papers were published in Science Advances, Nature Human Behaviour, PNAS, Studies in Higher Education, Educational Researcher and other journals.
Key Publications
- Chirikov, Igor., Smirnov, Ivan., and Kizilcec, Rene. 2026. Generative AI use and misuse call for assessment reform in higher education. Science 392, 818-820.
- Chirikov, Igor. 2026. Artificial Intelligence and Grade Inflation. CSHE Higher Education Working Paper Series. Vol 26-3.
- Chirikov, Igor and Rothstein, Jesse. 2026. The Impact of Nutrition Assistance on College Student Success. CSHE Higher Education Working Paper Series, Vol. 26-2.
- Chirikov, Igor. 2026. How Instructors Regulate AI in College: Evidence from 31,000 Course Syllabi. CSHE Higher Education Working Paper Series, Vol. 26-1.
- Chirikov, Igor., Douglass, John A., Thomson, Gregg. 2025. The Multi-Engagement Model: Understanding Diverse Pathways to Student Success at Research Universities.
- Chirikov, Igor. 2023. Does conflict of interest distort global university rankings? Higher Education, 86(4), 791-808.
- Loyalka, Prashant, Ou Lydia Liu, Guirong Li, Elena Kardanova, Igor Chirikov et al. 2021. "Skill levels and gains in university STEM education in China, India, Russia and the United States." Nature Human Behaviour.
- Chirikov, Igor, Tatiana Semenova, Natalia Maloshonok, Eric Bettinger, and René F. Kizilcec. 2020. “Online Education Platforms Scale College STEM Instruction with Equivalent Learning Outcomes at Lower Cost.” Science Advances 6(15).
Student Experience and Success, Learning Outcomes, Technology in Higher Education, International Comparative Higher Education
