North Carolina State University
2006 First-Year Student Survey:
Gender and Racial/Ethnic Comparisons of
Goals for Undergraduate Education
This document reports gender and racial/ethnic differences in the respondents' mean rating of their current development of and importance given to general education, personal development, and world view goals. Frequency distributions of responses by gender and race/ethnicity are available in "2006 First Year Student Survey: Frequency Distributions of Survey Item #18 (Goals)." For information about the survey and analysis methods, see " 2006 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.
| General Education Goals | Mean Rating Scale: 5="very high," 4="high," 3="average," 2="low," 1="very low" |
|||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| All | Women | Men | AfAm | White | Other | |
| Good listening skills | 3.74 | 3.82 | 3.67 | 3.88 | 3.72 | 3.76 |
| Apply mathematics skills | 3.70 | 3.50 | 3.86 | 3.63 | 3.70 | 3.71 |
| Plan/carry out project indep. | 3.70 | 3.82 | 3.60 | 3.83 | 3.70 | 3.61 |
| Broad general education | 3.64 | 3.72 | 3.58 | 3.80 | 3.62 | 3.64 |
| Understand diverse cultures | 3.61 | 3.80 | 3.46 | 4.04 | 3.52 | 3.97 |
| Critically analyze info. | 3.60 | 3.58 | 3.61 | 3.68 | 3.59 | 3.57 |
| Develop computer skills | 3.56 | 3.49 | 3.61 | 3.80 | 3.52 | 3.64 |
| Understand scientific influence | 3.56 | 3.37 | 3.72 | 3.61 | 3.54 | 3.67 |
| Good reading comp. skills | 3.50 | 3.54 | 3.47 | 3.73 | 3.49 | 3.38 |
| Communicate ideas orally | 3.44 | 3.44 | 3.45 | 3.68 | 3.43 | 3.37 |
| Apply scientific principles | 3.34 | 3.16 | 3.48 | 3.27 | 3.34 | 3.33 |
| Communicate in writing | 3.28 | 3.37 | 3.20 | 3.45 | 3.26 | 3.22 |
| Personal Development Goals | Mean Rating Scale: 5="very high," 4="high," 3="average," 2="low," 1="very low" |
|||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| All | Women | Men | AfAm | White | Other | |
| Taking responsibility for behavior | 4.21 | 4.34 | 4.11 | 4.36 | 4.20 | 4.22 |
| Acting upon ethical principles | 4.00 | 4.14 | 3.88 | 4.21 | 3.96 | 4.08 |
| Learning as lifelong | 3.99 | 4.13 | 3.89 | 4.18 | 3.97 | 4.03 |
| Function as part of a team | 3.94 | 4.05 | 3.85 | 4.14 | 3.93 | 3.88 |
| Being independent and self-reliant | 3.84 | 3.86 | 3.83 | 3.98 | 3.84 | 3.77 |
| Understanding own abilities and interests | 3.83 | 3.87 | 3.79 | 4.03 | 3.81 | 3.81 |
| Having self-discipline | 3.75 | 3.80 | 3.71 | 3.90 | 3.74 | 3.68 |
| Clarifying personal identity | 3.74 | 3.79 | 3.70 | 4.04 | 3.72 | 3.71 |
| Realizing my potential for success | 3.74 | 3.73 | 3.74 | 4.06 | 3.71 | 3.70 |
| Commitment to health and fitness | 3.68 | 3.70 | 3.67 | 3.80 | 3.69 | 3.53 |
| Having self-confidence | 3.66 | 3.58 | 3.72 | 3.98 | 3.64 | 3.53 |
| Improving leadership/management skills | 3.65 | 3.72 | 3.59 | 3.87 | 3.64 | 3.58 |
| Coping with change | 3.59 | 3.52 | 3.66 | 3.80 | 3.57 | 3.61 |
| Handling stress | 3.46 | 3.28 | 3.61 | 3.60 | 3.45 | 3.46 |
| Involved with public/community affairs | 3.39 | 3.58 | 3.23 | 3.60 | 3.37 | 3.34 |
| Managing my time | 3.29 | 3.35 | 3.25 | 3.30 | 3.31 | 3.14 |
| World View Goals | Mean Rating Scale: 5="very high," 4="high," 3="average," 2="low," 1="very low" |
|||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| All | Women | Men | AfAm | White | Other | |
| Valuing racial equity | 4.23 | 4.38 | 4.11 | 4.52 | 4.17 | 4.43 |
| Valuing gender equity | 4.21 | 4.38 | 4.07 | 4.43 | 4.17 | 4.32 |
| Interact with diverse people | 3.92 | 4.08 | 3.80 | 4.25 | 3.86 | 4.14 |
| Tolerance for different views | 3.83 | 3.94 | 3.74 | 4.08 | 3.79 | 3.95 |
| Appreciation of the arts | 3.48 | 3.69 | 3.31 | 3.79 | 3.45 | 3.53 |
| World problems/issues | 3.41 | 3.33 | 3.47 | 3.62 | 3.37 | 3.53 |
| Present as it relates to history | 3.33 | 3.24 | 3.41 | 3.59 | 3.30 | 3.36 |
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Q Goal Importance
| General Education Goals | Mean Rating Scale: 5="very important," 4="important," 3="moderately important," 2="of limited importance," 1="not important" |
|||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| All | Women | Men | AfAm | White | Other | |
| Plan/carry out project indep. | 4.42 | 4.57 | 4.29 | 4.61 | 4.39 | 4.45 |
| Good listening skills | 4.38 | 4.51 | 4.26 | 4.58 | 4.34 | 4.49 |
| Broad general education | 4.36 | 4.49 | 4.26 | 4.59 | 4.33 | 4.46 |
| Communicate ideas orally | 4.35 | 4.49 | 4.24 | 4.62 | 4.30 | 4.51 |
| Critically analyze info. | 4.27 | 4.36 | 4.20 | 4.51 | 4.24 | 4.31 |
| Apply mathematics skills | 4.26 | 4.20 | 4.32 | 4.45 | 4.24 | 4.29 |
| Good reading comp. skills | 4.26 | 4.40 | 4.15 | 4.62 | 4.21 | 4.40 |
| Develop computer skills | 4.22 | 4.22 | 4.21 | 4.51 | 4.19 | 4.18 |
| Understand diverse cultures | 4.14 | 4.41 | 3.91 | 4.60 | 4.06 | 4.36 |
| Understand scientific influence | 4.11 | 4.04 | 4.17 | 4.27 | 4.08 | 4.22 |
| Communicate in writing | 4.07 | 4.27 | 3.90 | 4.41 | 4.01 | 4.23 |
| Apply scientific principles | 4.01 | 3.93 | 4.07 | 4.16 | 3.98 | 4.08 |
| Personal Development Goals | Mean Rating Scale: 5="very important," 4="important," 3="moderately important," 2="of limited importance," 1="not important" |
|||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| All | Women | Men | AfAm | White | Other | |
| Managing my time | 4.63 | 4.77 | 4.52 | 4.76 | 4.61 | 4.67 |
| Taking responsibility for behavior | 4.60 | 4.73 | 4.49 | 4.78 | 4.58 | 4.64 |
| Having self-discipline | 4.59 | 4.73 | 4.48 | 4.79 | 4.57 | 4.63 |
| Having self-confidence | 4.56 | 4.67 | 4.46 | 4.75 | 4.53 | 4.58 |
| Being independent and self-reliant | 4.55 | 4.70 | 4.43 | 4.71 | 4.54 | 4.56 |
| Handling stress | 4.55 | 4.70 | 4.43 | 4.71 | 4.53 | 4.56 |
| Realizing my potential for success | 4.50 | 4.63 | 4.40 | 4.78 | 4.47 | 4.53 |
| Understanding own abilities and interests | 4.47 | 4.61 | 4.36 | 4.69 | 4.45 | 4.48 |
| Acting upon ethical principles | 4.45 | 4.61 | 4.31 | 4.63 | 4.43 | 4.49 |
| Improving leadership/management skills | 4.45 | 4.57 | 4.35 | 4.64 | 4.43 | 4.45 |
| Commitment to health and fitness | 4.43 | 4.57 | 4.32 | 4.56 | 4.42 | 4.41 |
| Function as part of a team | 4.42 | 4.52 | 4.35 | 4.61 | 4.40 | 4.44 |
| Clarifying personal identity | 4.40 | 4.58 | 4.24 | 4.68 | 4.36 | 4.41 |
| Learing as lifelong | 4.40 | 4.53 | 4.30 | 4.57 | 4.38 | 4.45 |
| Coping with change | 4.36 | 4.54 | 4.21 | 4.62 | 4.34 | 4.34 |
| Involved with public/community affairs | 4.12 | 4.34 | 3.92 | 4.39 | 4.09 | 4.12 |
| World View Goals | Mean Rating Scale: 5="very important," 4="important," 3="moderately important," 2="of limited importance," 1="not important" |
|||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| All | Women | Men | AfAm | White | Other | |
| Valuing racial equity | 4.50 | 4.66 | 4.36 | 4.78 | 4.46 | 4.58 |
| Valuing gender equity | 4.47 | 4.64 | 4.32 | 4.69 | 4.43 | 4.56 |
| Interact with diverse people | 4.40 | 4.60 | 4.23 | 4.66 | 4.36 | 4.47 |
| Tolerance for different views | 4.35 | 4.54 | 4.18 | 4.59 | 4.31 | 4.41 |
| World problems/issues | 4.28 | 4.43 | 4.16 | 4.54 | 4.25 | 4.37 |
| Present as it relates to history | 4.02 | 4.09 | 3.96 | 4.30 | 3.98 | 4.07 |
| Appreciation of the arts | 3.95 | 4.19 | 3.74 | 4.29 | 3.91 | 3.98 |
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Scatterplots: Comparisons of Goal Ratings
Scatterplot Comparing Goal Development and Goal Importance Ratings (All Respondents)
| 1 Valuing racial equity | 19 Improving leadership/management skills |
| 2 Taking responsibility for behavior | 20 Broad general education |
| 3 Valuing gender equity | 21 Understand diverse cultures |
| 4 Acting upon ethical principles | 22 Critically analyze info. |
| 5 Learning as lifelong | 23 Coping with change |
| 6 Function as part of a team | 24 Understand scientific influence |
| 7 Interact with diverse people | 25 Develop computer skills |
| 8 Being independent and self-reliant | 26 Good reading comp. skills |
| 9 Tolerance for different views | 27 Appreciation of the arts |
| 10 Understanding own abilities and interests | 28 Handling stress |
| 11 Having self-discipline | 29 Communicate ideas orally |
| 12 Clarifying personal identity | 30 World problems/issues |
| 13 Good listening skills | 31 Involved with public/community affairs |
| 14 Realizing my potential for success | 32 Apply scientific principles |
| 15 Plan/carry out project indep. | 33 Present as it relates to history |
| 16 Apply mathematics skills | 34 Managing my time |
| 17 Commitment to health and fitness | 35 Communicate in writing |
| 18 Having self-confidence |
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Scatterplot Comparing Goal Development and Goal Importance Ratings (By Gender)
| 1 Valuing racial equity | 19 Improving leadership/management skills |
| 2 Taking responsibility for behavior | 20 Broad general education |
| 3 Valuing gender equity | 21 Understand diverse cultures |
| 4 Acting upon ethical principles | 22 Critically analyze info. |
| 5 Learning as lifelong | 23 Coping with change |
| 6 Function as part of a team | 24 Understand scientific influence |
| 7 Interact with diverse people | 25 Develop computer skills |
| 8 Being independent and self-reliant | 26 Good reading comp. skills |
| 9 Tolerance for different views | 27 Appreciation of the arts |
| 10 Understanding own abilities and interests | 28 Handling stress |
| 11 Having self-discipline | 29 Communicate ideas orally |
| 12 Clarifying personal identity | 30 World problems/issues |
| 13 Good listening skills | 31 Involved with public/community affairs |
| 14 Realizing my potential for success | 32 Apply scientific principles |
| 15 Plan/carry out project indep. | 33 Present as it relates to history |
| 16 Apply mathematics skills | 34 Managing my time |
| 17 Commitment to health and fitness | 35 Communicate in writing |
| 18 Having self-confidence |
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Scatterplot Comparing Goal Development and Goal Importance Ratings (By Race)
| 1 Valuing racial equity | 19 Improving leadership/management skills |
| 2 Taking responsibility for behavior | 20 Broad general education |
| 3 Valuing gender equity | 21 Understand diverse cultures |
| 4 Acting upon ethical principles | 22 Critically analyze info. |
| 5 Learning as lifelong | 23 Coping with change |
| 6 Function as part of a team | 24 Understand scientific influence |
| 7 Interact with diverse people | 25 Develop computer skills |
| 8 Being independent and self-reliant | 26 Good reading comp. skills |
| 9 Tolerance for different views | 27 Appreciation of the arts |
| 10 Understanding own abilities and interests | 28 Handling stress |
| 11 Having self-discipline | 29 Communicate ideas orally |
| 12 Clarifying personal identity | 30 World problems/issues |
| 13 Good listening skills | 31 Involved with public/community affairs |
| 14 Realizing my potential for success | 32 Apply scientific principles |
| 15 Plan/carry out project indep. | 33 Present as it relates to history |
| 16 Apply mathematics skills | 34 Managing my time |
| 17 Commitment to health and fitness | 35 Communicate in writing |
| 18 Having self-confidence |
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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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