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North Carolina State University
2005 First-Year Student Survey:
Gender and Racial/Ethnic Comparisons
of Students' Evaluation of the Application Process

This document reports gender and racial/ethnic differences in the respondents' experiences with the application process and factors influencing their decision to attend NC State. For information about the survey and analysis methods see "2005 First-Year Student Survey: Introduction, Methods, and Student Demographic Profile". Exact question wording is available on the web or by clicking on the "Q" next to the table heading.

Number of Schools Applied To | Contacts During the Admissions Process | Factors Influencing Attendance Decision | Most Influential Factor | Satisfaction with Admissions | Virtual Advising Center Rating


Q Number of Schools to Which Respondents Applied
Number of colleges applied to NCSU Women Men AfAm White Other
One % 19.4 14.8 23.1 10.2 21.2 14.1
Two % 22.8 19.8 25.2 17.4 23.5 22.2
Three % 25.1 25.1 25.1 28.2 24.5 26.6
Four % 16.8 19.6 14.5 20.4 16.1 18.4
Five or more % 15.9 20.7 12.1 23.8 14.6 18.7
Total N 3652 1620 2032 362 2921 369
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QContacts During the Admissions Process
Yes, had contact via: NCSU Women Men AfAm White Other
Call from faculty/staff % 19.0% 19.0% 19.1% 40.4% 16.7% 16.5%
Call from current student % 20.4% 21.8% 19.2% 42.9% 17.9% 18.2%
Call from graduate % 5.8% 4.9% 6.6% 9.1% 5.7% 3.5%
Letter from outside Admissions Office % 59.9% 61.5% 58.7% 67.9% 58.9% 60.2%
Total N 3660 1622 2038 364 2927 369
Note: Respondents could report more than one contact.
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QFactors Influencing Decision to Attend NC State

  Mean Rating
Scale: 5=very strong influence, 4=strong influence, 3=moderate influence,
2=weak influence, 1= very weak influence
All Women Men AfAm. White Other
Academic reputation 4.08 4.08 4.08 4.31 4.06 4.00
Cost 3.01 2.95 3.07 3.01 2.99 3.19
Location 3.62 3.73 3.53 3.73 3.59 3.68
Size 2.98 3.07 2.90 3.19 2.95 2.96
Availability of program 3.74 3.71 3.76 3.81 3.73 3.68
Recommended by friend, etc. 3.36 3.38 3.34 3.32 3.38 3.27
Number of hours transferred/credited 2.18 2.17 2.19 2.31 2.14 2.36
Level of support for my intended major 3.68 3.53 3.80 3.82 3.68 3.54
Facilities and resources available 3.56 3.54 3.57 3.84 3.54 3.42
Scholarships/financial aid available 2.82 2.90 2.75 3.69 2.67 2.97
Campus visit prior to orientation 3.13 3.25 3.02 3.23 3.11 3.17
Contact with a current student 3.05 3.17 2.95 2.98 3.06 3.00
Contact with a faculty/staff member 2.38 2.38 2.38 2.75 2.31 2.54
Contact with a graduate 2.72 2.75 2.70 2.62 2.76 2.44
Letter from someone other than Admissions Office 2.07 2.06 2.07 2.52 1.98 2.17
Attendance at a college fair 2.20 2.25 2.17 2.62 2.12 2.35
Publications from NC State 2.25 2.29 2.23 2.67 2.18 2.42
Extracurricular opportunities 2.91 2.92 2.91 3.31 2.86 2.97
Acceptance into the First Year College program 3.63 3.73 3.53 3.43 3.66 3.59
Campus Recreation programs 2.76 2.72 2.79 3.04 2.72 2.82
Other 4.03 4.26 3.89 3.78 4.09 3.98
View Frequency Distributions
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QMost Influential Factor Influencing Decision to Attend NC State
  NCSU Women Men AfAm White Other
Academic reputation % 23.9 22.5 25.1 25.8 23.4 26.5
Cost % 4.7 4.0 5.4 2.6 4.7 6.9
Location % 11.2 13.0 9.8 9.0 11.0 15.3
Size % 1.4 1.4 1.3 1.6 1.4 0.9
Availability of program % 13.0 12.6 13.3 6.8 14.0 10.9
Recommended % 7.2 7.3 7.1 6.1 7.4 6.9
Number of hours transferred/credited % 0.2 0.0 0.4 0.3 0.2 0.3
Level of support for my intended major % 14.8 12.6 16.5 12.9 15.5 10.9
Facilities and resources available % 2.3 2.5 2.2 2.6 2.3 2.2
Scholarships/financial aid available % 5.5 6.6 4.7 17.1 4.0 6.5
Campus visit prior to orientation % 2.7 3.6 1.9 1.9 2.7 2.8
Contact with a current student % 3.0 3.4 2.7 2.3 3.3 1.9
Contact with a faculty or staff member % 0.6 0.5 0.6 1.0 0.5 0.6
Contact with a graduate % 1.4 1.0 1.8 0.3 1.7 0.3
Letter from someone other than admissions % 0.1 0.2 0.0 0.3 0.0 0.3
Attendance at a College Fair % 0.1 0.1 0.1 0.3 0.0 0.0
Publications from NC State % 0.1 0.1 0.0 0.0 0.1 0.0
Extracurricular opportunities % 1.3 1.1 1.5 2.6 1.2 0.9
Acceptance into First Year College % 2.0 2.9 1.3 0.6 2.3 1.2
Campus recreation programs % 0.2 0.0 0.3 0.0 0.2 0.0
Other % 4.3 4.6 4.0 5.8 4.0 4.7
Total N 3165 1416 1749 310 2534 321
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QSatisfaction with University Admissions
Satisfaction with university admissions NCSU Women Men AfAm White Other
Mean 3.38 3.45 3.33 3.36 3.40 3.31
4: Very satisfied % 47.2 52.0 43.3 49.6 47.7 40.8
3: Moderately satisfied % 45.1 41.6 47.8 38.7 45.1 51.0
2: Moderately dissatisfied % 6.8 5.8 7.6 9.5 6.5 6.3
1: Very dissatisfied % 1.0 0.6 1.3 2.2 0.7 1.9
Total N 3638 1619 2019 357 2916 365
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QSatisfaction with Departmental Admissions
Satisfaction with dept. admissions NCSU Women Men AfAm White Other
Mean 3.36 3.41 3.32 3.33 3.37 3.29
4: Very satisfied % 45.3 50.3 41.3 48.3 45.7 39.4
3: Moderately satisfied % 46.4 41.9 50.0 39.2 46.7 51.1
2: Moderately dissatisfied % 7.2 6.5 7.7 9.6 6.7 8.3
1: Very dissatisfied % 1.1 1.3 1.0 2.9 0.9 1.1
Total N 3517 1558 1959 344 2823 350
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QSatisfaction with Financial Aid Process
Satisfaction with financial aid process NCSU Women Men AfAm White Other
Mean 2.82 2.87 2.79 3.07 2.78 2.84
4: Very satisfied % 24.5 26.6 22.8 34.5 22.5 27.7
3: Moderately satisfied % 42.9 42.5 43.2 45.8 43.1 37.7
2: Moderately dissatisfied % 23.0 22.0 23.9 12.2 24.5 25.3
1: Very dissatisfied % 9.6 8.9 10.1 7.4 9.9 9.3
Total N 2687 1197 1490 336 2062 289
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QVirtual Advising Center Rating
Virtual advising center rating NCSU Women Men AfAm White Other
Excellent % 8.5 9.6 7.7 8.9 8.6 7.9
Good % 20.9 22.3 19.7 17.2 21.3 21.0
Fair % 4.2 3.5 4.7 4.7 3.5 8.7
Poor % 0.8 0.4 1.1 0.8 0.8 0.5
Know about/did not use % 10.0 10.9 9.4 11.4 9.6 12.3
Did not know about % 55.6 53.3 57.4 57.1 56.2 49.5
Total N 3654 1621 2033 361 2927 366

Virtual advising center rating
(among those who have used the website N=1,256)
NCSU Women Men AfAm White Other
Excellent   24.8 26.7 23.3 28.1 25.0 20.7
Good % 60.7 62.3 59.4 54.4 62.3 55.0
Fair % 12.1 9.8 14.1 14.9 10.3 22.9
Poor % 2.3 1.2 3.3 2.6 2.4 1.4
Total N 1256 581 675 114 1002 140
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For more information on the 2005 First-Year Student Survey contact:
Dr. Nancy Whelchel, Associate Director for Survey Research
Office of Institutional Planning and Research
Box 7002
NCSU
Phone: (919) 515-4184
Email: Nancy_Whelchel@ncsu.edu

Posted: February, 2007

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