assessment Archives - Ruffalo Noel Levitz Blog: Higher Education Enrollment, Student Retention, and Student Success

How many of your second-year students haven’t settled on a major yet?

September 6, 2011 by Jo Hillman Leave a Comment

The above data show 17 to 24 percent of second-year college students nationally haven’t settled on a major as their second year gets under way, based on our 2011 National Pilot Study: The Attitudes of Second-Year College Students, released earlier this year (see page 18 of the report).

As the above charts show, these students are either thinking about switching majors, are actively selecting a major for the first time, or haven’t gotten serious enough yet to begin exploring majors or even to give the selection of a major much thought.
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How committed to college are your new students?

August 19, 2011 by Shannon Cook 1 Comment

National data show how committed students are to attending college

Click on the image to enlarge.

In an ideal world, it would be nice to think that every entering first-year student wants to be in college.

However, the data at the top of this table shows at least some of these students wish they were doing something else. (These data are from our 2011 National Freshman Attitudes Report released earlier this year or were drawn from the same data set). Specifically, we see that between 11 and 17 percent of the students surveyed (the inverse of the 83 to 89 percent shown at top) are not convinced from the “get-go” that going to college is the most satisfying option for them. But what’s also interesting is that even though they might rather be doing something else, approximately 95 percent of first-year students indicate they are strongly dedicated to finishing college as they begin their college careers, no matter what obstacles get in their way (see bottom of table).

As it turns out, the first-year students who wish they were doing something else aren’t alone in holding that sentiment. National data also show that only 83 percent of continuing, second-year students agreed with the statement, “Of all the things I could do at this point in my life, going to college is definitely the most satisfying,” as reported earlier this year in our 2011 Pilot Study: The Attitudes of Second-Year College Students.

Are you seeing this on your campus, too? If so, how can you address the underlying attitudes of these students who are not convinced that college is their most satisfying choice, and prevent other students from adopting a similar view?

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Community college students cite academic advising among their schools’ top challenges

December 13, 2010 by Julie Bryant, Associate Vice President for Retention Solutions, RNL 2 Comments

The 2010 National Student Satisfaction and Priorities Report focuses on community college students, assessing their satisfaction in areas such as academic advising and the quality of learning.

Click to download the National Student Satisfaction and Priorities Report

The 2010 National Student Satisfaction and Priorities Report is now available.

The year’s report contains results from more than 745,000 students nationwide at more than 1,000 institutions, detailing how satisfied they are with their college experiences, as well as what their top priorities are. The 2010 Executive Summary focuses on the satisfaction levels of community college students and these findings stand out:

Sixty-nine percent of students at community colleges are likely to say the institution they are attending is their first choice, a key indicator in student satisfaction.
Students 25 years of age and older are more satisfied than traditional-age students with their experience at community colleges nationally.
Students cite the quality of instruction and campus climate as strengths for community colleges. They listed academic advising and the availability of classes as challenges.

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Improving student satisfaction by communicating with students

October 15, 2010 by Julie Bryant, Associate Vice President for Retention Solutions, RNL Leave a Comment

When it comes to assessing student satisfaction, campuses naturally pay a great deal of attention to the assessments themselves: getting students to complete them, analyzing the results, and so on. But communicating those results to students, faculty, and staff is one key step that is sometimes overlooked.

After receiving your annual or biennial satisfaction assessment results, it is important to have a communication plan to share the data with campus personnel and students. Colleges should communicate around areas that are performing well (areas of high priority that demonstrate high student satisfaction) so that everyone can join in the celebration. Colleges will also want to identify the priority areas for improvement and share planned next steps to improve upon the situation.

Communication can also be used to actually improve satisfaction by adjusting students’ perceptions of issues. Sometimes students don’t understand the logic behind campus policies or organization, or they don’t know the broader context. By sharing additional information with students, you can improve satisfaction without investing large amounts of money.

I encourage colleges to have a plan to close the feedback loop with students and with the campus community regarding the actions that have been taken in response to the issues identified in satisfaction assessments. Don’t assume that everyone will know that a change has been made or why it was made. Tell students you care about their experience on your campus and that you have responded to their priority concerns.

Inside the mind of a future helicopter parent

October 4, 2010 by Julie Bryant, Associate Vice President for Retention Solutions, RNL 1 Comment

Julie Bryant is an expert on student retention. She is the Vice President of Retention Solutions at Noel-Levitz, Inc.

Julie Bryant of Noel-Levitz explains why knowing what parents expect is important to the college experiences of their children.

I’m realizing I may soon be a helicopter parent. The signs are all there: Regular contact with my teenager by texting and phone calls; the desire to help her navigate through life on the best educational path; and the belief that I know what is best for her. Currently, my daughter is a sophomore in high school, but she has begun her college search process and already, I can feel myself hovering! I want to direct her to particular college Web sites; I want to open the packets of information that come in the mail before she does; I want to begin arranging college visits and suggesting what questions she should be asking. Where is the line between assisting and managing? How much will I keep hovering over the next seven years? How similar am I to the parents of your students?

What are today’s parents thinking?

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