2011 National Survey of Student Engagement
Trend Comparisons

This report contains trend data for the three most recent waves of the NSSE survey. Asterisks indicate that there is a statistically significant difference between the responses of 2001, 2009 and 2011 respondents (p<.05).

Active & Collaborative Learning (ACL) | Enriching Educational Experiences (EEE) | Level of Academic Challenge (LAC) | Supportive Campus Environment (SCE) | Student-Faculty Interactions (SFI)
Knowledge, Skills & Personal Development (KSPD) | Behaviors | Global Satisfaction

Active & Collaborative Learning (ACL)

	Mean Rating: (4=Very often, 3=Often, 2=Sometimes, 1=Never)
	NSSE01	NSSE09	NSSE11
Asked questions in class or contributed to class discussions	2.75	2.81	2.81
Made a class presentation*	2.37	2.42	2.34
Worked with other students on projects during class	2.41	2.46	2.43
Worked with classmates outside of class to prepare class assignments	2.71	2.81	2.79
Tutored or taught other students (paid or voluntary)	1.85	1.85	1.85
Participated in a community-based project as part of a regular course*	1.31	1.55	1.56
Discussed ideas from your readings or classes with others outside of class*	2.74	2.82	2.72

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Enriching Educational Experiences (EEE)

Encouraging contact among students from different economic, social, and racial or ethnic backgrounds *	NSSE01	NSSE09	NSSE11
Mean Rating	2.32	2.74	2.80
4: Very much	12.1%	24.6%	28.9%
3: Quite a bit	27.9%	34.9%	33.4%
2: Some	40.0%	30.1%	26.4%
1: Very little	20.0%	10.5%	11.4%
Total (N)	405	1,927	1,363

	Mean Rating: (4=Very often, 3=Often, 2=Sometimes, 1=Never)
	NSSE01	NSSE09	NSSE11
Used an electronic medium to discuss or complete an assignment	2.93	2.96	2.96
Had serious conversations with students of a different race or ethnicity than your own	2.71	2.70	2.70
Had serious conversations with students with different religious beliefs, political opinions, personal values*	2.92	2.81	2.74

View frequencies

Practicum, internship, field experience, co-op experience, or clinical assignment	NSSE01	NSSE09	NSSE11
Done	.	35.6%	32.4%
Plan to do	.	48.1%	51.5%
Do not plan to do	.	9.1%	8.4%
Have not decided	.	7.1%	7.7%
Total (N)	.	1,969	1,387

Community service or volunteer work	NSSE01	NSSE09	NSSE11
Done	.	57.3%	59.2%
Plan to do	.	25.7%	23.5%
Do not plan to do	.	8.9%	8.1%
Have not decided	.	8.0%	9.2%
Total (N)	.	1,959	1,381

Participate in a learning community or other formal program	NSSE01	NSSE09	NSSE11
Done	.	23.2%	23.4%
Plan to do	.	14.7%	14.7%
Do not plan to do	.	40.5%	39.4%
Have not decided	.	21.6%	22.5%
Total (N)	.	1,962	1,381

Foreign language coursework	NSSE01	NSSE09	NSSE11
Done	.	40.5%	38.3%
Plan to do	.	14.7%	15.0%
Do not plan to do	.	35.7%	35.2%
Have not decided	.	9.2%	11.5%
Total (N)	.	1,971	1,384

Study abroad	NSSE01	NSSE09	NSSE11
Done	.	8.5%	9.4%
Plan to do	.	27.9%	30.5%
Do not plan to do	.	44.6%	42.2%
Have not decided	.	19.1%	18.0%
Total (N)	.	1,964	1,385

Independent study or self-designed major	NSSE01	NSSE09	NSSE11
Done	.	8.0%	6.8%
Plan to do	.	8.4%	8.9%
Do not plan to do	.	64.7%	64.1%
Have not decided	.	18.9%	20.3%
Total (N)	.	1,959	1,380

Culminating senior experience (capstone course, senior project/thesis, comprehensive exam, etc.) *	NSSE01	NSSE09	NSSE11
Done	.	20.8%	17.7%
Plan to do	.	33.9%	38.5%
Do not plan to do	.	20.8%	18.3%
Have not decided	.	24.5%	25.5%
Total (N)	.	1,972	1,387

Participating in co-curricular activities	NSSE01	NSSE09	NSSE11
More than 30 hours	1.7%	1.9%	1.0%
26-30	0.7%	0.8%	0.7%
21-25	1.7%	2.0%	1.2%
16-20	4.1%	4.2%	4.2%
11-15	5.9%	7.4%	7.4%
6-10	13.2%	16.4%	16.8%
1-5	41.2%	35.7%	38.4%
0 hours per week	31.5%	31.7%	30.3%
Total (N)	410	1,959	1,378

Attending campus events and activities	NSSE01	NSSE09	NSSE11
Mean Rating	.	2.95	2.93
4: Very much	.	28.5%	28.7%
3: Quite a bit	.	43.3%	40.6%
2: Some	.	22.9%	25.8%
1: Very little	.	5.3%	4.9%
Total (N)	.	1,927	1,358

	Mean Rating: (4=Very often, 3=Often, 2=Sometimes, 1=Never)
	NSSE01	NSSE09	NSSE11
Examined the strengths and weaknesses of your own views on a topic or issue	.	2.69	2.64
Tried to better understand someone else's views by imagining issue from his/her perspective*	.	2.82	2.75
Learned something that changed the way you understand an issue or concept*	.	2.88	2.81

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Level of Academic Challenge (LAC)

	Mean Rating: (4=Very much, 3=Quite a bit, 2=Some, 1=Very little)
	NSSE01	NSSE09	NSSE11
Spending significant amounts of time studying and on academic work	3.17	3.25	3.23
Analyzing basic elements of an idea, experience, or theory*	3.14	3.28	3.26
Synthesizing and organizing ideas/info/experiences into new, more complex interpretations/relationships	2.94	3.04	3.03
Making judgments about the value of information, arguments, or methods*	2.74	2.94	2.94
Applying theories or concepts to practical problems or in new situations*	3.08	3.24	3.24

View frequencies

Worked harder than you thought you could to meet instructor's standards/expectations *	NSSE01	NSSE09	NSSE11
Mean Rating	2.51	2.66	2.64
4: Very often	12.4%	17.8%	15.4%
3: Often	37.0%	37.9%	40.4%
2: Sometimes	40.1%	36.6%	36.8%
1: Never	10.5%	7.8%	7.4%
Total (N)	411	2,015	1,440

Number of assigned textbooks, books, or book-length packs of course readings *	NSSE01	NSSE09	NSSE11
More than 20	8.5%	11.3%	7.6%
11-20	21.2%	18.7%	13.3%
5-10	45.1%	42.8%	49.2%
1-4	23.9%	25.2%	28.6%
None	1.2%	2.0%	1.4%
Total (N)	410	1,997	1,420

Number of written papers or reports of 20 pages or more *	NSSE01	NSSE09	NSSE11
More than 20	1.0%	0.6%	0.2%
11-20	0.2%	1.4%	0.8%
5-10	2.9%	5.3%	2.8%
1-4	25.9%	25.3%	22.0%
None	70.0%	67.4%	74.2%
Total (N)	410	1,998	1,416

Number of written papers or reports between 5 and 19 pages *	NSSE01	NSSE09	NSSE11
More than 20	2.9%	2.3%	1.6%
11-20	10.2%	8.5%	5.5%
5-10	30.9%	33.7%	27.9%
1-4	49.9%	48.6%	56.0%
None	6.1%	7.0%	9.0%
Total (N)	411	1,994	1,420

Number of written papers or reports of fewer than 5 pages *	NSSE01	NSSE09	NSSE11
More than 20	10.5%	9.0%	6.4%
11-20	22.7%	14.0%	12.9%
5-10	33.0%	30.4%	30.7%
1-4	31.1%	42.4%	44.7%
None	2.7%	4.3%	5.2%
Total (N)	409	1,998	1,424

Preparing for class (studying, reading, writing, homework, etc.) *	NSSE01	NSSE09	NSSE11
More than 30 hours	6.3%	6.8%	5.4%
26-30	4.1%	6.4%	6.4%
21-25	11.0%	13.1%	13.2%
16-20	13.9%	20.7%	21.7%
11-15	17.6%	22.0%	21.3%
6-10	28.8%	20.3%	20.9%
1-5	17.8%	10.3%	11.0%
0 hours per week	0.5%	0.3%	0.1%
Total (N)	410	1,951	1,379

Extent to which examinations have challenged you to do your best work	NSSE01	NSSE09	NSSE11
Mean Rating	5.57	5.59	5.63
7: Very much	18.0%	19.5%	20.5%
6	37.6%	40.7%	37.8%
5	32.4%	27.0%	30.3%
4	8.5%	8.1%	8.3%
3	2.2%	2.9%	1.8%
2	1.2%	1.2%	1.0%
1: Very little	.	0.7%	0.3%
Total (N)	410	1,997	1,424

Using computers in academic work	NSSE01	NSSE09	NSSE11
Mean Rating	.	3.57	3.54
4: Very much	.	65.5%	63.8%
3: Quite a bit	.	26.9%	27.4%
2: Some	.	7.0%	7.6%
1: Very little	.	0.6%	1.1%
Total (N)	.	1,929	1,365

	Mean Rating: (4=Very often, 3=Often, 2=Sometimes, 1=Never)
	NSSE01	NSSE09	NSSE11
Prepared two or more drafts of a paper or assignment before turning it in	2.50	2.46	2.40
Worked on a paper or project that required integrating ideas or information from various sources*	3.10	3.26	3.17
Included diverse perspectives in class discussions or writing assignments	.	2.73	2.68
Come to class without completing readings or assignments*	2.25	2.12	2.05
Put together ideas/concepts from different courses when completing assignments/class discussions	.	2.80	2.81

View frequencies

Memorizing facts, ideas, or methods from courses/readings for repetition	NSSE01	NSSE09	NSSE11
Mean Rating	2.86	2.88	2.91
4: Very much	26.3%	27.3%	28.7%
3: Quite a bit	38.2%	40.2%	39.5%
2: Some	30.7%	25.7%	26.1%
1: Very little	4.9%	6.9%	5.7%
Total (N)	411	2,011	1,431

Number of problem sets that take you more than an hour to complete	NSSE01	NSSE09	NSSE11
More than 6	.	12.2%	11.5%
5-6	.	9.2%	9.8%
3-4	.	30.6%	32.9%
1-2	.	35.3%	32.8%
None	.	12.8%	12.9%
Total (N)	.	1,998	1,421

Number of problem sets that take you less than an hour to complete *	NSSE01	NSSE09	NSSE11
More than 6	.	11.3%	12.8%
5-6	.	9.1%	8.2%
3-4	.	24.8%	23.5%
1-2	.	35.2%	39.1%
None	.	19.6%	16.5%
Total (N)	.	1,992	1,420

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Supportive Campus Environment (SCE)

	Mean Rating: (4=Very much, 3=Quite a bit, 2=Some, 1=Very little)
	NSSE01	NSSE09	NSSE11
Providing the support you need to help you succeed academically*	2.85	3.13	3.13
Helping you cope with your non-academic responsibilities (work, family, etc.)*	1.82	2.14	2.15
Providing the support you need to thrive socially*	2.09	2.41	2.48

View frequencies

Relationships with other students	NSSE01	NSSE09	NSSE11
Mean Rating	5.76	5.67	5.71
7: Friendly, Supportive, Sense of belonging	28.8%	28.0%	29.4%
6	36.2%	35.6%	34.9%
5	23.4%	21.7%	20.6%
4	6.9%	8.4%	10.1%
3	3.7%	3.6%	2.6%
2	0.5%	2.1%	1.6%
1: Unfriendly, Unsupportive, Sense of alienation	0.5%	0.6%	0.7%
Total (N)	406	1,962	1,382

Relationships with faculty members	NSSE01	NSSE09	NSSE11
Mean Rating	5.19	5.24	5.28
7: Available, Helpful, Sympathetic	12.3%	15.6%	16.3%
6	31.3%	31.5%	31.1%
5	31.8%	27.2%	28.8%
4	16.3%	17.1%	15.6%
3	5.2%	5.1%	5.0%
2	2.5%	2.2%	2.6%
1: Unavailable, Unhelpful, Unsympathetic	0.7%	1.2%	0.6%
Total (N)	406	1,961	1,381

Relationships with administrative personnel and offices	NSSE01	NSSE09	NSSE11
Mean Rating	4.57	4.73	4.77
7: Helpful, Considerate, Flexible	6.7%	11.3%	12.0%
6	23.2%	23.3%	20.9%
5	24.4%	24.3%	26.4%
4	25.9%	22.4%	23.0%
3	10.1%	9.0%	10.5%
2	6.4%	6.2%	5.0%
1: Unhelpful, Inconsiderate, Rigid	3.4%	3.4%	2.1%
Total (N)	406	1,959	1,382

Evaluate the quality of academic advising you have received at your institution *	NSSE01	NSSE09	NSSE11
Mean Rating	2.80	3.06	3.09
4: Excellent	24.4%	36.0%	37.8%
3: Good	41.1%	40.9%	39.8%
2: Fair	24.4%	16.3%	15.8%
1: Poor	10.0%	6.8%	6.6%
Total (N)	409	1,907	1,342

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Student-Faculty Interactions (SFI)

	Mean Rating: (4=Very often, 3=Often, 2=Sometimes, 1=Never)
	NSSE01	NSSE09	NSSE11
Discussed grades or assignments with an instructor*	2.71	2.69	2.62
Talked about career plans with a faculty member or advisor*	2.27	2.46	2.31
Discussed ideas from readings/classes with faculty members outside of class*	1.76	1.89	1.81
Received prompt written or oral feedback from faculty on academic performance	2.66	2.72	2.71
Worked with faculty members on activities other than coursework*	1.49	1.73	1.70

View frequencies

Work on a research project with a faculty member outside of course or program requirements	NSSE01	NSSE09	NSSE11
Done	.	16.5%	14.0%
Plan to do	.	25.9%	28.9%
Do not plan to do	.	33.2%	32.9%
Have not decided	.	24.3%	24.2%
Total (N)	.	1,972	1,384

Used e-mail to communicate with an instructor *	NSSE01	NSSE09	NSSE11
Mean Rating	3.23	3.42	3.39
4: Very often	42.9%	54.2%	53.8%
3: Often	37.8%	33.5%	32.2%
2: Sometimes	19.1%	12.0%	13.6%
1: Never	0.2%	0.3%	0.4%
Total (N)	413	2,057	1,469

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Knowledge, Skills & Personal Development (KSPD)

	Mean Rating: (4=Very much, 3=Quite a bit, 2=Some, 1=Very little)
	NSSE01	NSSE09	NSSE11
Acquiring a broad general education*	3.10	3.23	3.25
Acquiring job or work-related knowledge and skills*	2.85	3.04	3.03
Writing clearly and effectively*	2.85	3.01	3.00
Speaking clearly and effectively*	2.64	2.84	2.82
Thinking critically and analytically*	3.16	3.36	3.32
Analyzing quantitative problems*	2.96	3.23	3.20
Using computing and information technology	3.30	3.33	3.32
Working effectively with others*	3.02	3.18	3.18
Voting in local, state, or national elections*	1.93	2.56	1.97
Learning effectively on your own*	3.00	3.11	3.03
Understanding yourself	2.83	2.84	2.81
Understanding people of other racial and ethnic backgrounds	.	2.65	2.67
Solving complex real-world problems	.	2.91	2.87
Developing a personal code of values and ethics*	2.53	2.66	2.68
Contributing to the welfare of your community*	2.10	2.54	2.48
Developing a deepened sense of spirituality	.	1.94	1.90

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Behaviors

Number of books read for personal enjoyment or academic enrichment (not assigned)	NSSE01	NSSE09	NSSE11
More than 20	3.9%	3.4%	2.7%
11-20	3.9%	4.6%	3.3%
5-10	13.7%	15.2%	13.7%
1-4	53.4%	53.7%	52.9%
None	25.1%	23.0%	27.4%
Total (N)	410	1,998	1,420

	Mean Rating: (4=Very often, 3=Often, 2=Sometimes, 1=Never)
	NSSE01	NSSE09	NSSE11
Attended an art exhibit, play, dance, music, theater, or other performance	.	2.06	2.00
Exercised or participated in physical fitness activities	.	3.07	3.08
Participated in activities to enhance your spirituality (worship, meditation, prayer, etc.)	.	2.15	2.12

View frequencies

Working for pay on campus	NSSE01	NSSE09	NSSE11
More than 30 hours	0.5%	0.9%	0.3%
26-30	0.2%	0.3%	0.2%
21-25	0.7%	0.5%	0.7%
16-20	1.5%	2.8%	2.3%
11-15	3.9%	3.1%	3.9%
6-10	6.9%	5.9%	6.1%
1-5	5.1%	3.2%	3.0%
0 hours per week	81.1%	83.4%	83.5%
Total (N)	408	1,948	1,374

Working for pay off campus	NSSE01	NSSE09	NSSE11
More than 30 hours	4.9%	2.7%	3.5%
26-30	2.2%	2.0%	1.6%
21-25	6.1%	3.8%	4.2%
16-20	5.9%	6.8%	5.2%
11-15	7.1%	6.8%	5.4%
6-10	7.6%	6.0%	5.6%
1-5	5.2%	4.6%	4.9%
0 hours per week	60.9%	67.3%	69.5%
Total (N)	407	1,950	1,379

Relaxing and socializing (watching TV, partying, etc.) *	NSSE01	NSSE09	NSSE11
More than 30 hours	7.5%	4.7%	4.5%
26-30	4.4%	2.7%	2.4%
21-25	8.3%	6.0%	5.8%
16-20	13.6%	13.6%	13.4%
11-15	20.2%	24.0%	20.6%
6-10	28.2%	30.6%	30.3%
1-5	16.8%	17.8%	22.2%
0 hours per week	1.0%	0.6%	0.8%
Total (N)	411	1,950	1,377

Providing care for dependents living with you	NSSE01	NSSE09	NSSE11
More than 30 hours	2.2%	1.5%	1.9%
26-30	0.7%	0.5%	0.3%
21-25	1.0%	0.4%	0.5%
16-20	1.0%	0.5%	0.7%
11-15	2.9%	2.3%	1.3%
6-10	3.7%	3.1%	3.0%
1-5	6.3%	8.0%	8.2%
0 hours per week	82.2%	83.7%	84.2%
Total (N)	410	1,945	1,373

Commuting to class (driving, walking, etc.)	NSSE01	NSSE09	NSSE11
More than 30 hours	.	0.5%	0.3%
26-30	.	0.2%	0.1%
21-25	.	0.3%	0.2%
16-20	.	1.3%	1.0%
11-15	.	4.4%	3.8%
6-10	.	17.0%	18.0%
1-5	.	72.6%	71.7%
0 hours per week	.	3.8%	5.0%
Total (N)	.	1,950	1,376

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Global Satisfaction

Evaluate your entire educational experience at this institution *	NSSE01	NSSE09	NSSE11
Mean Rating	3.26	3.37	3.38
4: Excellent	36.1%	47.1%	47.8%
3: Good	55.0%	43.7%	44.1%
2: Fair	7.9%	7.9%	6.7%
1: Poor	1.0%	1.3%	1.4%
Total (N)	404	1,904	1,344

If starting over, would you go to the same institution? *	NSSE01	NSSE09	NSSE11
Definitely yes	42.9%	56.2%	56.8%
Probably yes	43.8%	34.4%	33.7%
Probably no	9.9%	6.9%	7.4%
Definitely no	3.4%	2.5%	2.1%
Total (N)	406	1,911	1,345

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