Programmatic assessment is something that most departments of physics are accustomed to doing, typically on an annual basis. Oftentimes, programmatic assessment is thought of as a mandatory exercise required at the institutional level, one more item on a long list of service tasks performed by faculty. However, when done consistently with the aim of improving student learning, assessment can become part of a department’s routine, yielding useful information regarding the overall physics program. Certainly, the nature of the assessment can vary greatly from institution to institution, sometimes depending on the accrediting body. It is our contention that assessment can be used to have a positive influence on curricular and programmatic adjustments in physics as well as in broader Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics (STEM) departments. This paper aims to provide an updated look at how assessment can be used to inform and guide curricular and programmatic changes and adjustments and to address the question “are we still making the grade?” With a focus on the learning outcomes developed for the physics major, an additional goal of this paper is to provide examples of how curricular assessment is linked to overall program assessment and ultimately to the enhancement of student learning. This paper will also address how the recent pandemic affected student learning and curricular and programmatic assessment efforts. To that end, we present a discussion of how changes to the curricular and programmatic assessment efforts were made, with an emphasis on how these efforts have served to inform assessment activities during and post-pandemic.