Founded in 1948, the Summer Institute in Survey Research Techniques is designed specifically to meet the needs of professionals and graduate students seeking to deepen their expertise in survey methodology and data collection. Offered through the Michigan Program in Survey and Data Science within the Institute for Social Research at the University of Michigan, the program provides a rigorous and flexible curriculum that blends theoretical foundations with practical application — entirely online.

Classes are open for registration.
You do not have to be affiliated with the University to attend.
Registration and payment are required a minimum of two weeks prior to the start of the class.

July 13-17, 2026 (M-F)
10:30am-12:00pm
Integrating Qualitative Methods into Survey Research
Presented by Darby Steiger
Course Fee: $500

This intensive course is designed to introduce novice and intermediate survey researchers to the integration of qualitative methods into survey research. Guided by the literature on mixed methods research, the course will present various motivations and strategies for blending qualitative components into a quantitative study. Students will be introduced to a variety of qualitative methods and the ways each approach can complement a survey, including focus groups, in-depth interviews, asynchronous research, cognitive testing, open-ended survey questions, and multiple methods used across a single study. Through case studies and collaborative exercises, students will explore the potential contribution of each method, as well as the benefits of combined methods to advance and understand specific research questions. Practical considerations will be covered, including study design, sampling, recruitment, data collection, analysis, and integration of qualitative findings into survey reporting. This course is designed for those with a specific research question in mind, as participants will be asked to design multi-method approaches to a research question of their choice. By the end of this course, participants will understand the role qualitative research can play in survey research and how to design and implement a qualitative phase in a multimethod study.

Darby Steiger is Vice President of Innovation & Solutions and Director of Qualitative Research at SSRS. Darby is responsible for spearheading the advancement of the core SSRS research products while driving cutting-edge approaches to the firm’s qualitative and quantitative research divisions. With over 30 years as a qualitative researcher and survey methodologist, Darby has extensive experience conducting qualitative and quantitative research for a wide range of organizations and topics. A national leader in research methods, Darby regularly presents at leading industry conferences and recently served on the Executive Council of the American Association for Public Opinion Research. Darby has three degrees from the University of Michigan.