All Posts Tagged With: "student surveys"
The Canadian University Survey Consortium’s 2011 results
Survey shows student satisfaction at 25 schools
The annual CUSC survey measures student satisfaction. In 2011, a questionnaire was issued to a random sample of approximately 1,000 undergraduates at each of 25 participating schools. In total, more than 8,500 students responded to questions about everything from academics to support services. Here are the results you’ll want to see if you’re considering one of these schools.
Continue reading The Canadian University Survey Consortium’s 2011 results
Which students work hardest?
Business? Engineering? Arts? You may be surprised.
Courtesy of NSSE. Click to enlarge.
Engineering students have been known to curse friends in other majors. That’s because they often spend hours sitting in their residence rooms sweating over near impossible differential equations while their non-engineering roommates leisurely read a couple chapters and then head out to party.
Then again, ask an arts major how hard they’re working and they’ll start rattling off the number of essays they have due.
But finally, it’s settled. Engineering students study more. The new release of the National Survey of Student Engagement (NSSE) shows that North American Engineering students spend 19 hours per week, on average, preparing for class. Arts, humanities and biology majors study 17 hours per week. Social science and business students study only 14 hours.
But don’t assume all non-engineers are slacking. Business students study the least, but they aren’t socializing any more. Instead, they work seven hours more per week at paying jobs. In fact, if you add jobs and study together, business students work the most—30 hours per week. Social sciences students work the least overall (27 hours). Engineering students are in the middle (28 hours).
NSSE, considered the gold standard of student surveys, involved polling of senior year students at 683 U.S. and 68 Canadian institutions in 2011. It had a response rate of 33 per cent.
2010 Student Surveys: Complete results
In two major surveys, students get the chance to grade their own universities.
There are many ways by which a university can measure its performance, including asking those on the receiving end of an education—the students—what they think. In recent years, a growing number of universities have been doing exactly that. The following pages contain results from two major student surveys: the National Survey of Student Engagement and the Canadian University Survey Consortium—NSSE and CUSC for short. Between them, these surveys examine how involved students are in various academic and extracurricular activities, how satisfied they are with their university and its faculty, and how connected they feel to their school.
Want to know what universities are doing to improve the student experience? Click here.
The findings show that while students are generally happy with their university education, there are key areas of discontent. In particular, a significant number of students feel they don’t fit in at their university, more often in the larger schools than the smaller ones.
Commissioned by the universities, the surveys ask more than 150 questions about the undergraduate experience—inside the classroom and beyond. The answers help each university assess the quality of its programs and services, which in turn can aid in the design and implementation of strategies to improve areas as indicated.
Recognizing that this data can also be useful for prospective students trying to decide which university is right for them, Maclean’s has been publishing CUSC and NSSE results each year since 2006. They provide direct feedback from students on the quality of their education and their general level of satisfaction.
The U.S.-based NSSE began in 1999 and is distributed to first- and senior-year students. Administered by the Indiana University Center for Postsecondary Research, NSSE is not primarily a student satisfaction survey. Rather, it is a study of best educational practices and an assessment of the degree to which each university follows those practices. The survey pinpoints what students are doing while they are in school and on campus.
Research has shown that various forms of engagement are likely to lead to more learning and greater student success. And this link exists not only in the more obvious areas of academic endeavour, such as the number of books read and papers written, but also in curricular extras such as conducting research with a faculty member, community service, internships and studying abroad, as well as in extracurricular involvement with other students.
2010 University Student Surveys: web-exclusive charts
Students tell what they really think about their university, from the quality of their profs to whether they feel they get the runaround.
Here you will find additional results from the Canadian University Survey Consortium (CUSC). The CUSC survey, which was commissioned by the universities, asks more than 100 questions about specific aspects of the undergraduate experience—inside the classroom and beyond—designed to provide universities with data to help them assess programs and services.
Each year, the survey targets one of three student populations: first-year students, graduating students and all undergrads. In 2009, 34 campuses took part, administering an online questionnaire to a random sample of approximately 1,000 graduating students at each university. Institutions with fewer than 1,000 graduating students surveyed them all. In total, more than 12,000 students took part for an overall response rate of 45 per cent.
Each chart lists the universities in descending order of achievement. Responses are ordered according to the percentage of survey participants who chose the highest level of satisfaction (e.g., “very satisfied”).
Complete 2010 University Student Survey results available here.
Highlights
BC Diploma, Associate Degree, and Certificate Student Outcomes (DACSO) Survey
Satisfaction
Ninety-five per cent of former students surveyed said they were satisfied or very satisfied with their college education—the same percentage as in the 2006 and 2007 surveys. Eighty-four per cent found the quality of instruction to be good or very good, and 83 per cent rated the helpfulness of instructors as good or very good.
In a similarly positive vein, a large majority of former students said their programs were effective in helping them to develop a range of skills. The percentages of respondents below reported that their programs did well or very well in helping to develop the following skills:
Analyse and think critically 83%
Work effectively with others 82%
Read and comprehend material 81%
Learn on one’s own 81%
Resolve issues or problems 76%
Write clearly and concisely 73%
Speak effectively 73%
Employment
Overall, 80 per cent of respondents were employed at the time of the survey; 62 per cent were employed full-time.
There are marked differences depending on whether students had been enrolled in applied programs—programs designed to lead to employment in specific fields— or arts and sciences programs—programs that often lead to further studies. Not surprisingly, a greater number of former applied students were working full-time. Eighty-five per cent of students who were enrolled in applied programs were employed (72 per cent full-time) as opposed to 66 per cent of former arts and sciences students (31 per cent full-time).
Fifty per cent of employed arts and sciences students had the same job they had while they were in school. Only 26 per cent of this group considered their occupation to be related to their studies. It is likely that many arts and sciences students choose part-time work to help finance further studies. Meanwhile, among the employed group of former applied students, 81 per cent of respondents said their employment was training related; 86 per cent of this group said the knowledge and skills gained from their studies was very or somewhat useful in performing their jobs.
Further Studies
Further education is the priority for many arts and sciences students. Eighty-two per cent of respondents from arts and sciences programs pursued further studies as compared to about one-third of former applied students.
Highlights
Ontario Colleges Key Performance Indicators Survey
The 2008 Key Performance Indicators survey found generally high levels of satisfaction among Ontario college graduates, their employers and college students.
Among the findings:
• 93.3 per cent of employers were satisfied with how Ontario colleges had prepared their graduates for the workforce
• 88.9 per cent of 2007-2008 Ontario college graduates were employed within six months of graduation (down slightly from 90.5 per cent in the previous year)
• 82.7 per cent of graduates were satisfied with the usefulness of their college education in achieving their goals after graduation
• 78.4 per cent of students were satisfied with the overall quality of services, programming and resources available at Ontario colleges
GO TO:
How it was done
Ontario Colleges Key Performance Indicators Survey
In 1998, the Ontario government mandated the province’s 24 colleges to collect data for Key Performance Indicators in five areas: graduation rate, employment rate, graduate satisfaction, employer satisfaction and student satisfaction. The purpose of the annual study is to provide college administrators with feedback on the quality of their programs, as well as to provide accountability information to the government and other post-secondary stakeholders in Ontario. The KPI results for graduate employment, graduate satisfaction and employer satisfaction are used to distribute performance funding to the colleges. In addition, the results of these surveys provide prospective students with valuable information when making their post-secondary choices.
GO TO:
Graduates are contacted by telephone and asked for their comments about their college programs and their experiences since leaving college. In order to interview grads six months after graduation, surveys are conducted at three points during the year, each period lasting for eight weeks. If graduates give their consent, their employers are also contacted. A four-week Employer Satisfaction Survey is conducted by phone shortly after each graduate survey. Employers are questioned about how well they feel the college has prepared its graduates to meet their needs as an employer. They are not asked to evaluate the graduate. In the 2008 survey, more than 39,350 graduates completed interviews out of a total graduate population of 59,235. Nearly 8,000 employers took part in the survey.
Meanwhile, student satisfaction surveys are paper based and conducted each February with results tabulated by an external survey consultant. All students beyond first semester are surveyed. More than 109,000 college students completed the latest survey in February 2009. In addition, surveys may be conducted in advance for students in co-op and clinical placements who are unavailable to be surveyed in February and for students who are approved for such non-traditional program delivery options as online or weekend courses.
Note: When displaying the survey results, Maclean’s has ordered the colleges in descending order according to the percentage of survey participants who chose “Very Satisfied/Satisfied” as a response. For the Graduation Rate indicator, colleges are listed in order of those that had the highest percentages for graduation. The Graduate Employment Rate indicator is displayed alphabetically, however, as many factors in addition to post-secondary training can affect employment rates. For its part, Colleges Ontario advises that when considering the survey data “college-to-college comparisons (ranking) could produce misleading results, because of college size, local employment conditions, program mix and graduate demographics. The data from each college should be considered on its own.”
Who took part
Ontario Colleges Key Performance Indicators Survey
Each year, 24 Ontario colleges survey current students, recent graduates and their employers to collect data for Key Performance Indicators (KPI) in five areas: graduation rate, employment rate, graduate satisfaction, employer satisfaction and student satisfaction. The 2008 survey reflects the views of more than 109,000 college students, 39,350 graduates and almost 8,000 employers.
GO TO:
Student Satisfaction: Quality of Services
Ontario Colleges Key Performance Indicators Survey
How satisfied are you with the overall quality of the services in the college?
* Source: Colleges Ontario
Student Satisfaction: Quality of Facilities/Resources
Ontario Colleges Key Performance Indicators Survey
How satisfied are you with the overall quality of the facilities/resources in the college?
* Source: Colleges Ontario
Student Satisfaction: Quality of Learning Experiences
Ontario Colleges Key Performance Indicators Survey
How satisfied are you with the overall quality of the learning experiences in this program?
* Source: Colleges Ontario
Student Satisfaction: Usefulness of Knowledge and Skills
Ontario Colleges Key Performance Indicators Survey
How satisfied are you that, overall, your program is giving you knowledge and skills that will be useful in your future career?
* Source: Colleges Ontario
Student Satisfaction Rate
Ontario Colleges Key Performance Indicators Survey
This table represents the average of four capstone questions on student satisfaction relating to issues of resources, services and the learning experience.
* Source: Colleges Ontario
Employer satisfaction rate
Ontario Colleges Key Performance Indicators Survey
Employers who hired 2007-2008 college graduates were asked how well they felt the college had prepared its graduates to meet their needs as an employer. They were not asked to evaluate the graduate.
* Source: Colleges Ontario
Graduate satisfaction rate
Ontario Colleges Key Performance Indicators Survey
Six months after graduation, respondents were asked how satisfied they were with the usefulness of their college education in achieving goals after graduation.
* Source: Colleges Ontario
Graduate employment rate
Ontario Colleges Key Performance Indicators Survey
Survey of 2007-2008 graduates six months after graduation:
* Source: Colleges Ontario
Graduation rate
Ontario Colleges Key Performance Indicators Survey
The 2008-2009 Key Performance Indicators Graduation Rate is based on students who started one-year programs in 2006-2007, two-year programs in 2004-2005 and three-year programs in 2002-2003, who went on to graduate by 2007-2008.
* Source: Colleges Ontario
Satisfaction With Aspects of the Program: Textbooks and Learning Materials
B.C. Diploma, Associate Degree, and Certificate Student Outcomes Survey
Student level of satisfaction with aspects of the program:
Thompson Rivers University – OL stands for the school’s Open Learning program.
Score: A higher value indicates a more favourable rating.
Institution as % of B.C. Average: To allow for a more accurate and fair comparison among different types of institutions, the DACSO survey takes the scores from the left-hand column and adjusts them to account for the different program mixes at each school. Each school’s percentage result shows how it would have placed if all institutions in the survey had its program mix. One hundred percent equals the provincial adjusted score; 101% is 1% above the provincial adjusted score; 99% is 1% below.
Satisfaction With Aspects of the Program: Quality of Computers and Software
B.C. Diploma, Associate Degree, and Certificate Student Outcomes Survey
Student level of satisfaction with aspects of the program:
Thompson Rivers University – OL stands for the school’s Open Learning program.
Score: A higher value indicates a more favourable rating.
Institution as % of B.C. Average: To allow for a more accurate and fair comparison among different types of institutions, the DACSO survey takes the scores from the left-hand column and adjusts them to account for the different program mixes at each school. Each school’s percentage result shows how it would have placed if all institutions in the survey had its program mix. One hundred percent equals the provincial adjusted score; 101% is 1% above the provincial adjusted score; 99% is 1% below.
Satisfaction With Aspects of the Program: Helpfulness of Instructors Outside Class
B.C. Diploma, Associate Degree, and Certificate Student Outcomes Survey
Student level of satisfaction with aspects of the program:
Thompson Rivers University – OL stands for the school’s Open Learning program.
Score: A higher value indicates a more favourable rating.
Institution as % of B.C. Average: To allow for a more accurate and fair comparison among different types of institutions, the DACSO survey takes the scores from the left-hand column and adjusts them to account for the different program mixes at each school. Each school’s percentage result shows how it would have placed if all institutions in the survey had its program mix. One hundred percent equals the provincial adjusted score; 101% is 1% above the provincial adjusted score; 99% is 1% below.
