UPEI students to have their say in the National Survey of Student Engagement
For the second time in three years, first- and fourth-year students at UPEI are being given the opportunity to have a direct impact on their university education through the National Survey of Student Engagement (NSSE), a national study that asks about the student experience inside and outside the classroom.
UPEI is one of three dozen Canadian universities that take part in the survey. In 2006, 42% of UPEI first- and fourth-year students participated in the first NSSE survey on the campus. The survey is used by UPEI administrators as an indication of what the university is doing well, and what it might do better, in areas of curriculum, student services and campus life.
This year more than 1.4 million undergraduate students at 774 schools in the United States and Canada will receive invitations to participate in NSSE. Since the survey began in 2000, the sample size and number of colleges and universities participating in this effort have increased. This is the ninth full survey since its inception.
The aggregated results (i.e., no individual
student’s response would be identified) from the first NSSE at UPEI were
presented to the Senate, ARPC, APFC,
Student Council, and each faculty, as well as at a public meeting, provoking
campus-wide discussions surrounding student engagement.
According to two of UPEI’s deans, survey results from two years ago have had a considerable impact on the way things are being done at UPEI. “For example, retention issues, particularly of first-year students, are the focus of our attention,” says Dr. Richard Kurial, Dean of Arts. “We are endeavouring to discover why folks leave and what can be done to make them consider otherwise. Essentially, we're having a whole new look at what it is we do, and what it is students want from a university education.”
Dr. Christian Lacroix, Dean of Science, agrees. “As a result of the NSSE survey results, we implemented the Science Help Centre last fall. This ‘students helping students’ model in various disciplines (Biology, Chemistry, Physics, Family and Nutritional Sciences) is working well and addressing some of our retention/engagement issues.”
“Another aspect that my office has concentrated on this year is making time for regular meetings with Science student societies to keep the lines of communication open and making sure our students are heard,” says Lacroix. “To address engagement issues further, we also plan to develop a cohort model for our lab sections for the next academic year. This means that groups of Science students will be in the same labs (in Chemistry, Physics, Biology) throughout their first year. We're very excited about all of those initiatives because they enhance our level of connection with our students.”
Other outcomes have included the creation of an Equity Outreach Office in Student Services, the inaugural Student Leadership Symposium held last October, and the implementation of a campus-wide overhead monitor system to communicate with students.
The confidential survey is administered online for first- and fourth-year students. It is not mandatory, but students who complete the survey will receive a $10 gift certificate for the UPEI Bookstore.
For further information about the NSSE Survey, please contact the Webster Centre for Teaching and Learning at (902)566-0743, or the NSSE office at (812) 856-5824, or online at http://nsse.iub.edu/index.cfm.
