Bringing Together Survey Results of the UNLV Student Experience Sunny Gittens, Campus Life Assessment Angelina Hill, Academic Assessment Peter Kim, Academic Advising

Bringing Together Survey Results of the UNLV Student Experience National Survey of Student Engagement (NSSE) 2009 Student Satisfaction Inventory (SSI) 2008 Academic Advising Survey 2007 Graduating Senior Exit Survey 2008/2009 Alumni Survey

Overview Key Demographics of UNLV Undergraduates Satisfaction with Academic Experience Impact of Academic Advising Sense of Community/Campus Life

Key Demographics: Undergraduates College/School 2009 Profile UNLV 21,650 100% Allied Health Sciences 1,178 5.4% Business 3,460 16.0% Education 1,348 6.2% Engineering 1,605 7.4% Fine Arts 1,937 8.9% Hotel Administration 2,632 12.2% Liberal Arts 2,981 13.8% Nursing 967 4.5% Public Health 125 0.6% Sciences 2,111 9.7% Urban Affairs 1,877 8.7% Academic Success Center 1,429 6.6% Institutional Analysis & Planning, Current Student Profile

Key Demographics: Undergraduates Gender Female 12,470 54.9% Male 10,238 45.1% Age 24 & Under 16,234 71.5% 25 & Older 6,474 28.5% Average 24 Full/Part Time Full-Time 16,391 72.2% Part-Time 6,317 27.8% Residency Resident 18,233 80.3% Non-Nevada, U.S. 3,286 14.5% International 1,189 5.2% Race/Ethnicity Underrepresented 41.8% Institutional Analysis & Planning, Current Student Profile

Key Demographics: Undergraduates Avg. Credits Attempted Full-Time Students 13.8 Part-Time Students 6.4 Avg. GPA Avg. High school GPA Retention 2.96 3.37 Fall 2008 - 2009 73.2% 41.9% Graduation Rate (Fall 2003 entering fresh) 4 Years or fewer 12.0% 6 Years 39.3% Average time to graduate 5.3 years Employment Full-Time [21+ hours] Part-Time [1 to 20 hours] Not employed 30% 45% 25% (9% on campus) Current Reside Residence Hall Off-campus, alone or with friends Off-campus, with parents Off campus, with spouse / children 6% 29% 63% 2% First Generation Non-traditional Student 35.1% Decision to attend UNLV 1st choice 2nd choice 62% Institutional Analysis & Planning, Current Student Profile Survey data – multiple sources

Key Demographics: Undergraduates Graduate or professional school 36% of undergraduates plan to attend graduate or professional school [SSI] 23.7% of graduating seniors anticipated going to grad or professional school [Exit Survey] 45.0% of alumni reported that they completed or were currently enrolled in grad or professional school [Alumni Survey]

Time Spent Preparing for class Socializing or relaxing Never -- Less than 2% [Graduating Senior Exit Survey, Alumni Survey] Many reported preparing for class a great deal Over 35% of Alumni reported having prepared very often 24% of graduating seniors report preparing at least 11 hours/week Socializing or relaxing Never -- Less than 8% [Graduating Senior Exit Survey, Alumni Survey] More reported socializing a great deal 34% of freshman report socializing at least 16 hours /week [NSSE] 15% of graduated seniors report socializing at least 16 hours/week 15% of alumni reported having socialized very often

Time Spent Work unrelated to major Work related to major Many report never engaging in work unrelated to major 39.8% (Graduating senior exit survey), 34.0% (Alumni Survey) Over 20% of alumni report engaging in work unrelated to major very often (23% of graduating seniors responded > 31 hours/wk) Work related to major More graduating seniors indicated never working related to their major than did alumni Never: 52.5% (Graduating senior exit survey), 28.0% (Alumni Survey)

Time Spent Preparing for class 12.7 14.7 Working 6.5 12.5 Average hours per week spent: Freshman Seniors Preparing for class 12.7 14.7 Working 6.5 12.5 Student organizations 3.7 3.6 Watch TV / Socialize 12.8 11.3 Commuting 7.5 6.6 In the Student Union 4 In the SRWC 4 National Survey of Student Engagement NOTE: Data related to working and student organizations is impacted by percentage of students reporting zero hours.

Overall Experience at UNLV 80% of freshman and 73% of seniors rated their overall UNLV experience as good or excellent 77% of freshman and 68% of seniors would attend UNLV again if they had to make the decision over National Survey of Student Engagement

Academic Experience Quality of Instruction & Program ~ 75% of undergraduates reported satisfaction with each [SSI] ~ 90% of graduating seniors reported satisfaction with each ~ 75% of alumni reported satisfaction with each Alumni gave lower ratings, but out of the 15 services & experiences they were presented, they rated these and their overall academic experience the highest

Academic Experience Quality of Relationships with Faculty ~ 67% of freshman and seniors rated faculty as available, helpful How students rated quality of relationships with faculty was one of the four best predictors of how they rated their overall experience Faculty qualities associated with positive relationships: Provides prompt feedback Interactions outside of class Communicate via email Talk about career plans / educational goals High expectations National Survey of Student Engagement

Academic Experience Activities associated with student learning and retention: Prompt feedback from faculty Diverse perspectives included in class Put together concepts from different courses Worked hard to meet instructors standards Discussed course concepts outside of class Ask questions in class Class presentations Group projects Service learning projects National Survey of Student Engagement

Academic Experience Students rated Instructional Effectiveness as 6.20 in importance and 4.95 in satisfaction [7 point scale] Nearly all faculty are knowledgeable in their field ~ 76% The instruction within my major field is excellent ~ 75% The quality of instruction I receive in most of my classes is excellent ~ 71% Faculty are usually available after class and during office hours ~ 76% Faculty provide timely feedback about student progress in a course ~ 67% Faculty care about me as an individual ~ 63% Graduate teaching assistants are competent as course instructors ~ 68% Adjunct faculty are competent as course instructors ~ 68% Student Satisfaction Inventory

Academic Experience Students attribute their best UNLV experience to the following: Faculty/Instruction Quality of the Curriculum/Degree Program Campus Community/Fellow Students Students attribute their worst UNLV experience to the following: Parking/Traffic Advising Survey (2007)

Academic Experience The following factors were most related to alumni having an excellent opinion of the university: Overall academic experience Quality of instruction Quality of program Experience with faculty

Academic Experience Alumni rated the following as having the most critical impact on their current overall opinion of UNLV, in addition to value and respect for the degree: Accomplishments of faculty Accomplishments of alumni Accomplishments of students Success of athletic teams was rated as having the least impact.

Experience with Advising Ratings of the quality of academic advising and academic support were two of top four predictors of how students rated their overall experience [NSSE] Academic advising was most related to alumni’s overall opinion of the university in comparison to other services (career, tutorial & remedial, financial aid, library, campus activities, leadership opportunities) [Alumni Survey]

Experience with Advising 65% of freshman and 57%of seniors reported UNLV provides “quite a bit” or “very much” of the support you need to succeed academically. 73% of freshman and 62% of seniors rated the quality of academic advising as good or excellent Amount & type of contact with advisor affected satisfaction ratings. National Survey of Student Engagement

Experience with Advising Students rated Academic Advising as 6.26 in importance and 4.81 in satisfaction [7 point scale] My academic advisor is knowledgeable about requirements in my major ~ 72% My academic advisor is approachable ~ 70% My academic advisor is concerned about my success as an individual ~ 65% My academic advisor helps me set goals to work toward ~ 64% Out of 12 scales in the SSI, Academic Advising rating improved the most between 2005 and 2008. Student Satisfaction Inventory

Experience with Advising Graduating Seniors rated academic advising by faculty and by advising centers very similarly Faculty: 86% satisfied, Advising centers: 87% satisfied Alumni gave lower ratings 61% satisfied

Experience with Advising Student Satisfaction with Academic Advising: Average satisfaction rating = 4.43 (on 6-point scale). Students rated an overall preference for individual advising sessions of 4.88 (on 6-point scale). 72% of UNLV students prefer to see the same Academic Advisor Characteristics of Good Academic Advisors: Communication Professionalism Personal Connection Availability Accurate Information Advising Survey (2007)

Experience with Advising Course Availability and it’s Impact on Advising: Difficulty with full classes Difficulty with days and time of classes Difficulty with availability of required courses Difficulty with number of course selections Graduating seniors were least satisfied with availability of courses than any of the 17 services & experiences they rated. Advising Survey (2007)

Sense of Community / Campus Life Quality of Relationships with other Students ~ 67% of freshman and seniors rated other students as friendly, supportive How students rated quality of relationships with other students was one of other top four predictors of how they rated overall experience Activities linked with positive student relationships: Involvement in student organizations [40% of students] Community service [45% of students] Study groups [70% of students] Group project assignments [85% of students] National Survey on Student Engagement

Sense of Community / Campus Life Students rated Student Centeredness a 5.86 in importance and 4.66 in satisfaction [7 point scale] Enjoyable experience to be a student ~ 69% Students are made to feel welcome ~ 69% Most students feel a sense of belonging ~ 65% I feel a sense of pride about my campus ~ 68% Intercollegiate athletics contributes to strong sense of school spirit ~ 63% Student Satisfaction Inventory

Sense of Community / Campus Life According to the Advising Survey, the level of student connectedness to campus community most attributed to a student’s best UNLV experience. 32% of UNLV students described student activities, student organizations, and the campus community as the reason for their best UNLV experience. Advising Survey (2007)

Conclusion The academic experience is what matters most. Relationships with faculty in & outside the classroom Students consider academic advising and academic support to be key to their overall experience Encouraging students to be a part of the campus community enhances their experience. Academic and social student organizations Group projects, study groups, service projects

Questions? Thanks for attending! Future inquiries can be directed as follows: NSSE & SSI: Sunny Gittens Advising Survey: Peter Kim Alumni Survey: Angelina Hill Graduating Senior Exit Survey: Bea Babbitt, Lindsay Couzens