Commuter Student Survey Fall 2013 Assessment Brown Bag: With Whitney Brown and David Murdoch February 5, PM – 1 PM Lyla Richards Conference Room

Your role in the Assessment Process: U SE THE DATA TO INFORM DECISIONS AND PRACTICES SurveyReviewRespondInform

Commuter Students 0 Students not living in institutionally –owned campus housing (Barbara Jacoby 2000).

Maslow

About the 2013 Survey 0 WHAT? Commuter Student Survey 0 WHO? 343 UAA Commuter Students (11.44% response rate) 0 Sample: Sent to a 2,998 student representative sample of UAA Anchorage-campus commuters on the basis of race & class standing 0 WHY? Campus Climate Study/Needs & Interest Assessment 0 WHERE? Administered electronically with Campus Labs 0 HOW? Completion incentive of a free beverage at the Union Station Cafe 0 WHEN? November 8, 2013 – December 1, 2013

About the 2010 Survey 0 WHO? 1098 UAA Commuter Students (19.35% response rate) 0 Sample: Sent to a 9,540 commuter students 0 WHERE? Administered electronically with Campus Labs 0 HOW? Completion incentive 0 First 200 students receive a free 6 inch sub at the Subway in the Student Union 0 Students receive a free beverage from the Student Union Information Desk 0 Four grand prizes will be randomly selected for $100 gift card to one of the following locations: Moose Tooth, Best Buy, Target or Fred Meyer 0 WHEN? January 22, 2010 – March 20, 2010

About the respondents…

Living Arrangements 2013 Survey 0 58% live in personal or family owned property 0 43% live with a spouse or partner

Living Arrangements 2010 Survey

Living Arrangements 0 66% of commuter students have supportive living situation.

Living Arrangements 90% of commuter students never lived in UAA housing.

78% travel 20 miles or less one way to get to UAA for classes. BUT… 12% travel 41 miles or MORE one way to UAA. 0 More students drive their own car to campus than in 2010

70% of students study or do class work during free time on campus. 55% of students usually study in the Library. 0 Other locations include Cuddy Hall, Aviation Building, Engineering Building, and other academic buildings.

77% of UAA students work during the academic year. 0 Over two-thirds of those who work, work more than 20 hours per week.

Food 0 40% bring lunch from home 0 32% Subway 0 15% Kaladi at Library 0 16% Cuddy 0 10% Mein Bowl 0 8% Fireside

Food 0 81% don’t eat UAA food because of prices and lack of variety.

Belonging 0 15% feel connected to campus life. 0 35% moderately connected to campus life. 0 50% slightly or not at all connected to campus life.

Belonging 0 50% feel welcomed on campus.

Involvement 30% of commuter students don’t attend UAA events because they don’t want to go alone.

Involvement 0 Most of my friends are other UAA students?

Involvement Attend Campus events (speakers, concerts, theatre etc) 31% never attend events 48% attend events once to three times per semester 21% attend events several per month or weekly

Involvement UAA Athletic events 67% never attend athletic events

Involvement 0 71% not in a club or organization 0 29% in a club or organization

What they want ….. or don’t want. Extremely – Moderately Interested Slightly – Not at all Interested 0 Advising to stay on track for graduation (60%) 0 Information about Anchorage events (59%) 0 Professional networking events (58%) 0 Car maintenance (51%) 0 Information about on-campus involvement (50%) 0 Outdoor gear rentals (50%) 0 Tutoring (49%) 0 Furniture recycling (54%) 0 Stress management (55%) 0 Homeownership (59%) 0 Renter’s rights (62%) 0 Cycling (62%) 0 Public bus (63%) 0 UAA Shuttle (64%) 0 Help meeting other students (67%) 0 Ride-share programs (67%) 0 Support finding housing (67%) 0 Commuter student newsletter (70%) 0 Family-friendly on campus programs (71%) 0 Blackboard training (76%) 0 Speed roommate matching (80%) 0 Car rentals (82%) 0 Affordable childcare (84%)

What do you feel is your biggest challenge as a student due to living off campus? 0 “Access to services outside of the 8am-5pm hours.” 0 “Finding parking when I get to campus and getting to class on time due to traffic and parking issues” 0 “As a commuter student I feel like I have lost a sense of community and belonging that I would have if I lived on campus. I go to my classes and then I am done like most of my friends and return home. If I lived on campus I would be part of the community, but the cost is too high and it would be foolish finically for me to do so as I can save money living at home. Saving money was one of the main reasons I stayed in Alaska + the APS.” 0 “Not knowing about a good portion of the events that are goin on at the campus.”

What should we do now? 0 Evaluate the accessibility of support services and amenities available to students on the weekends since 18% of students travel to campus on Saturdays and 12% on Sundays. 0 One third of UAA students are 30 years old or older. Are we promoting our programs or services in a way that is appealing or welcoming to this demographic? 0 Focus on areas of interest: Advising to stay on track for graduation (60%); Information about Anchorage events (59%); Professional networking events (58%).

What should we do now? 0 41% of students don’t participate in events or programs on campus because they are not well informed about what’s happening. 0 Promote programs and events via (58%), UAA website (52%), and posters on-campus (41%). 0 Only 21% prefer to learn about campus events through the Green & Gold Daily. 0 45% of students don’t participate because the events aren’t scheduled at convenient times for them. 0 Focus programming resources at times that are better for students. The best times to schedule programs, meetings, or activities are the evenings 7PM or late (57% agree) and late afternoons (51%) agree.

What should we do now? 0 Consider if we are using the right language to appeal to the values of our students. 0 Low sense of connectedness (approximately 20% or less to campus life at UAA, faculty, staff, and students) and low sense of belonging (43%), but … 0 Relatively high sense of welcome (50%) and pride (52%) 0 55% know at least one faculty or staff member well 0 62% find it an enjoyable experience to be a student at UAA

Action 0 Living Arrangements  Variety of living situations  Housing finders helps 0 Food  More microwaves and kitchen areas.  Reduced food prices 0 Involvement  Develop friendships with UAA students  Keep creating “niche” “face to face” programs  Funnel students to clubs and organizations 0 Belonging  More hearth spaces on campus  A radical ridiculous hospitality and referral system Gather data and use data to provide programs and services.