This overview report presents findings from all sophomore students participating in the 2002 Sophomore Student Survey. For information about the survey methods and analysis, see "2002 Sophomore Student Survey: Introduction, Methods and Student Demographic Profile." Responses broken down by gender, race/ethnicity, and college, as well as a copy of the survey instrument with exact question wording, are available on the web.
Table of Contents:
Background Information:Knowledge, Skills and Personal Development
Background Information
This section presents background information provided by those who responded to the survey, including plans for degree completion, satisfaction with their choice of NC State, whether they were employed during the academic year, their impressions of the sense of community at NC State, and their involvement with campus activities.
Plans for Degree Completion and Satisfaction with NC State (Table 3-1)
Sophomore�s overall satisfaction with NC State is high. Ninety percent of respondents said they plan to complete their degree at NC State. Only 3.6 percent do not intend to stay. The majority of respondents (73.1%) also stated that they would choose NC State again if they could start over. While most of the others (19.2%) were not sure if they would choose NC State again, a sizeable number (7.7%) said they would not.
Table 3-1: Plans for Degree Completion
| Yes | No | Not Sure | |
| Plan to complete degree at NC State? | 90.1% | 3.6% | 6.3% |
| Would still choose to attend NC State? | 73.1% | 7.7% | 19.2% |
Student Employment (Tables 3-2 and 3-3)
A majority of respondents (59.2%) indicated they were employed during the academic year. Twenty-three percent of employed students worked an average of 20 or more hours per week. Thus, 14 percent of all sophomore respondents worked 20 or more hours per week during the academic year. Among employed students, about 40 percent (40.4%) had jobs that were at least "somewhat related" to their academic major. About 30 percent (29.4%) of those employed in jobs unrelated to their major said that this was "not by choice".
Table 3-2: Average Hours Worked Per Week during the Academic Year
(Among Employed Respondents; n=929)
| N | % | |
| Average hours per week worked | 175 | 18.3% |
| Lt 5 hr/wk | ||
| 5-9 hr/wk | 196 | 20.5% |
| 10-14 hr/wk | 220 | 23.0% |
| 15-19 hr/wk | 147 | 15.3% |
| 20-24 hr/wk | 123 | 12.8% |
| 25-29 hr/wk | 41 | 4.3% |
| 30-34 hr/wk | 27 | 2.8% |
| Gt 34 hr/wk | 29 | 3.0% |
Table 3-3: Job Relation to Academic Major
|
% Saying |
||||||
|
Directly Related |
Somewhat Related |
Not Related |
||||
|
Job's relationship to academic major (N=933) |
14.5% |
25.9% |
59.6% |
|||
|
Yes |
No |
|||||
|
If "Not Related was this by choice (N=545) |
70.6% |
29.4% |
||||
Sense of Belonging at NC State (Table 3-4)
More than 80 percent of respondents stated that it was "very" (41.5%) or "moderately important" (41.2%) to experience a sense of belonging at NC State. Over one-fourth (28.2%) of respondents said they had that experience to a "great extent" and another 49.3 percent experienced it to "some extent".
There is a clear relationship between sophomores� beliefs about the importance of feeling a sense of belonging at NC State and actually having that experience. In general, respondents who believed it was important to experience a sense of belonging while at NC State responded that they achieved that experience to at least some extent. Only 2.2 percent of respondents who thought it was "very important" to experience a sense of belonging did not experience it at all. Conversely, those who saw it as less important generally reported feeling less connected to NC State.
Table 3-4: Sense of Belonging at NC State
|
How important is it for you to experience a sense of belonging at NC State? |
||||||
|
To what extent do you experience a sense of belonging at NC State? |
% Saying |
|||||
|
Very |
Moderately |
Slightly |
Not at all |
|
Extent |
|
|
Great extent |
49.7%
|
16.3%
|
6.3%
|
0.0%
|
28.2%
|
|
|
Some extent |
38.6%
|
66.6%
|
39.0%
|
17.0%
|
49.3%
|
|
|
Small extent |
9.5%
|
15.3%
|
49.3%
|
18.6%
|
17.6%
|
|
|
Not at all |
2.2%
|
1.2%
|
5.4%
|
64.4%
|
4.8%
|
|
|
|
||||||
|
Importance |
41.5%
|
41.2%
|
13.4%
|
3.9%
|
100.0%
|
|
Involvement with Campus Activities (Table 3-5)
Sophomores were asked in which campus activities they were involved. Respondents were most likely to be involved in intramurals/recreational sports/club teams (38.9%), organizations/clubs related to [their] major (37.9%), and honor/service programs (31.2%). Respondents were least likely to be active in UAB/student media (4.6%), student government (4.1%), varsity athletic teams (3.1%), and student judicial board (1.7%).
Table 3-5: Involvement with Campus Activities
|
N
Yes
|
%
Yes
|
|
| Intramurals/rec sports/club team |
611
|
38.9%
|
| Org/clubs related to major |
594
|
37.9%
|
| Honors program |
489
|
31.2%
|
| Honor/service/prof. fraternity |
320
|
20.4%
|
| Religious/political/issue groups |
318
|
20.3%
|
| Social fraternity/sorority |
223
|
14.2%
|
| Minority student groups |
123
|
7.8%
|
| Visual/performing arts/music group |
118
|
7.5%
|
| Residence hall council |
110
|
7.0%
|
| Other |
103
|
6.6%
|
| UAB/student media |
72
|
4.6%
|
| Student government |
64
|
4.1%
|
| Varsity athletic teams |
49
|
3.1%
|
| Student judicial board |
26
|
1.7%
|
Campus Climate
This section explores students' attitudes toward diversity on campus, including NC State's commitment to helping minority students succeed and to fostering diversity on campus, and how supportive the campus environment is toward various populations.
Student Assessment of Diversity at NC State (Table 3-6)
Respondents were generally satisfied with issues related to diversity at NC State. An overwhelming majority (91.7%) agreed that NC State is committed to helping minorities succeed. About 81 percent agreed that there is visible leadership to help foster diversity on this campus.
Table 3-6: Diversity Issues
| Mean | 4: Agree strongly | 3: Agree somewhat | 2: Disagree somewhat | 1: Disagree strongly | |
| NC State committed to helping minority students | 3.30 | 39.9% | 51.8% | 6.6% | 1.6% |
| NC State leadership fosters diversity on campus | 3.07 | 30.7% | 49.9% | 15.0% | 4.4% |
Campus Climate for Student Groups (Table 3-7)
Respondents were asked their opinion on how supportive the campus is toward different groups of people. Overall, respondents were most likely to report the campus is "very supportive" of men (45.7%), followed by African Americans (39.0%) and women (35.9%). Among the groups asked about, respondents are most likely to report the campus is non-supportive of gay and lesbian students (18.6%).
Table 3-7: Campus Support for Various Groups
| Mean | 5: Strongly supportive | 4: Mildly supportive |
3:
Neutral
|
2: Mildly nonsupportive | 1: Strongly nonsupportive | |
| For women | 4.04 | 35.9% | 35.5% | 25.9% | 2.2% | 0.5% |
| For men | 4.10 | 45.7% | 22.6% | 28.7% | 1.8% | 1.2% |
| For African American students | 4.01 | 39.0% | 28.1% | 28.6% | 3.3% | 1.0% |
| For ethnic minorities | 3.81 | 28.7% | 30.5% | 34.7% | 5.0% | 1.1% |
| For international students | 3.86 | 31.4% | 29.2% | 34.0% | 4.2% | 1.2% |
| For disabled students | 3.73 | 28.0% | 27.2% | 36.6% | 6.6% | 1.6% |
| For gay/lesbian students | 3.20 | 13.5% | 17.5% | 50.4% | 12.4% | 6.2% |
Academic Environment and Faculty Contributions
This section presents respondents� evaluations of the overall learning environment at NC State. Respondents also evaluated eight areas of faculty contribution to students� education, as well as overall.
Intellectual Environment (Table 3-8)
Almost 90 percent of survey respondents characterized the intellectual environment at NC State as either "strong" (70.1%) or "very strong" (19.3%).
Table 3-8: Intellectual Environment
| Mean |
4:
Very strong
|
3:
Strong
|
2:
Weak
|
1:
Very weak
|
|
| Intellectual environment on this campus | 3.08 | 19.3% | 70.1% | 10.1% | 0.5% |
Overall Instruction and Education (Table 3-9)
Respondents were very pleased with the overall quality of instruction and education NC State. Over 80 percent rated NC State as "excellent" or "good" in these two areas. About 30 percent (29.7%) of respondents said that the overall education they were receiving was "excellent".
Table 3-9: Overall Instruction and Education
| Mean |
4:
Excellent
|
3:
Good
|
2:
Fair
|
1:
Poor
|
|
| Overall quality of instruction | 2.99 | 17.2% | 66.2% | 15.3% | 1.3% |
| Overall education at NC State | 3.18 | 29.7% | 59.7% | 10.0% | 0.6% |
Classroom Environment (Table 3-10)
A majority of respondents reported that during their time at NC State they had had at least one class that was too large to learn effectively, or had had an instructor whose spoken English was difficult to understand. Over one-fourth of respondents (27.5%) reported having had three or more classes that were too large to learn effectively. Similar numbers (27.9%) reported having had three or more classes where the instructor�s English was difficult to understand.
Table 3-10: Classroom Environment
|
Four
or more
|
Three
|
Two
|
One
|
None
|
|
| # Classes too large to learn effectively | 12.8% | 15.1% | 27.8% | 16.9% | 27.4% |
| # Classes difficult to understand instructor's English | 12.4% | 15.1% | 28.4% | 27.4% | 16.7% |
Faculty Contributions (Table 3-11)
A majority of respondents gave positive ratings to faculty members� contributions to their educational experience at NC State. When asked for a general evaluation of NC State�s instructors, 83.0 percent of respondents said either "excellent" (14.0%) or "good" (69.0%). More than 85 percent of respondents gave either "excellent" or " good" ratings to instructors for setting high expectations for students to learn (91.4%) and for encouraging students to devote sufficient time and energy to their coursework (87.8%).
Respondents were less positive about faculty-student interaction and teaching methods. About one-third of respondents rated how well faculty members� care about [students�] academic success (35.6%), encourage student-faculty interaction (34.7%), and develop opportunities for cooperative learning (32.0%) as either "poor" or "fair".
Table 3-11: Faculty Contributions
| How well do faculty members... |
Mean
|
4:
Excellent
|
3:
Good
|
2:
Fair
|
1:
Poor
|
| Set high expectations to learn |
3.19
|
27.9%
|
63.5%
|
8.1%
|
0.5%
|
| Encourage devoting time/energy to coursework |
3.17
|
30.3%
|
57.5%
|
11.6%
|
0.6%
|
| Encourage you to be actively involved |
2.90
|
19.1%
|
53.9%
|
25.2%
|
1.9%
|
| Give you frequent and prompt feedback |
2.90
|
18.5%
|
54.9%
|
24.4%
|
2.2%
|
| Respect diverse talents/ways of learning |
2.86
|
15.3%
|
57.9%
|
23.8%
|
2.9%
|
| Opp. to learn cooperatively w/ students |
2.80
|
15.6%
|
52.4%
|
28.1%
|
3.9%
|
| Encourage student-faculty interaction |
2.79
|
17.5%
|
48.2%
|
30.4%
|
4.0%
|
| Care about academic success and welfare |
2.73
|
15.6%
|
48.8%
|
29.2%
|
6.4%
|
| General eval of instructors on 8 items |
2.96
|
14.0%
|
69.0%
|
15.9%
|
1.0%
|
Student Services
This section first examines respondents� perceptions of campus safety. This is followed by a discussion of respondents� ratings of services available outside of the classroom and satisfaction with offices that serve students. Ratings ranged from 1 ("poor") to 4 ("excellent"). �Don�t know" and "did not use" responses are excluded from the analyses.
Over 80 percent of respondents (83.8%) felt that the campus had taken sufficient steps to ensure their safety.
Table 3-12: Campus Safety
|
Yes
|
No
|
Not
Sure
|
|
| Has this campus taken sufficient steps to ensure your physical safety? |
83.8%
|
3.9%
|
12.4%
|
Services Outside of the Classroom (Table 3-13)
Respondents were asked to rate 35 specific services, divided into 7 categories: new student orientation, academic advising, academic assistance and tutoring, library, technology, career-related, and the campus bookstore. On average, the highest ratings were given to access to the internet (3.8), library�s hours of operation (3.7), access to databases and collections at the library (3.5), hours of operation for computer center labs and help desks (3.5), and access to up-to-date technology facilities (3.5). Lowest average ratings were given to services related to new student orientation and to the bookstore. Specific services related to training (e.g., training to use the library, technology training classes, and access to trained staff for help with technology), also received relatively low ratings.
Library: Overall, respondents were most satisfied with library services. Average ratings were particularly high for hours of operation (3.7) with 75.3 percent rating them as "excellent". Ratings were lowest for training to use the library (2.9).
Technology: Respondents also gave high ratings to technology services available on campus. Access to the Internet received the highest average rating (3.8) with 77.3 percent rating it as "excellent". Students gave the lowest average rating to access to trained staff for help (3.0).
Career-related Services: Various aspects of career-related services were consistently rated positively by respondents. Each of the five aspects asked about received an average rating of about 3.1.
Academic Advising: Respondents also gave positive ratings to most aspects of academic advising. The highest average rating went to access to advisor (3.2), while the lowest average rating went to sufficient time with advisor (2.9) .
Academic Assistance and Tutoring: Respondents generally rated academic assistance and tutoring for different skill areas positively. Assistance and tutoring for science was most likely to be rated as "excellent" (41.4%) while those for reading (23.2%) and study skills (24.3%) were least likely to be rated as "excellent".
New Student Orientation: While still generally positive, respondents gave some of the lowest average ratings to various aspects of orientation for new students. Only one aspect, helpfulness of staff (3.1), had an average rating above 2.9. Less than 20 percent of respondents rated any of the other aspects of new student orientation as "excellent".
Bookstore: About one-fourth of respondents (23.0%) rated to timely availability of course materials at the bookstore as "excellent".
Table 3-13: Rating of Services Outside of the Classroom
| Mean |
4:
Excellent
|
3:
Good
|
2:
Fair
|
1:
Poor
|
|
| New Student Orientation | |||||
| Length of orientation session | 2.83 | 15.5% | 56.3% | 23.3% | 4.9% |
| Quality of orientation programs | 2.77 | 14.0% | 53.5% | 28.2% | 4.3% |
| Helpfulness of orientation staff | 3.12 | 29.8% | 53.5% | 15.3% | 1.3% |
| Orientations accomodations | 2.88 | 17.1% | 57.0% | 22.8% | 3.1% |
| Overall effectiveness of orientation | 2.91 | 18.1% | 58.9% | 18.9% | 4.1% |
| Academic Advising | Mean |
4:
Excellent
|
3:
Good
|
2:
Fair
|
1:
Poor
|
| Access to advisor | 3.20 | 41.8% | 39.9% | 14.6% | 3.7% |
| Sufficient time with advisor | 3.05 | 37.0% | 37.9% | 18.4% | 6.7% |
| Accurate info on degree reqs/course sequencing | 3.12 | 40.6% | 36.7% | 16.4% | 6.3% |
| Advisor knowledge of policies/procedures | 3.08 | 35.9% | 41.5% | 17.4% | 5.2% |
| Academic advising services overall | 3.12 | 38.2% | 40.2% | 16.5% | 5.1% |
| Academic assistance or tutoring if you needed help in� | Mean |
4:
Excellent
|
3:
Good
|
2:
Fair
|
1:
Poor
|
| Writing | 3.11 | 32.1% | 49.9% | 15.1% | 3.0% |
| Reading | 2.94 | 23.2% | 52.1% | 20.6% | 4.1% |
| Mathematics | 3.13 | 32.4% | 51.4% | 13.4% | 2.9% |
| Study skills | 2.93 | 24.3% | 50.0% | 20.7% | 5.1% |
| Foreign language | 2.99 | 30.6% | 43.7% | 19.4% | 6.3% |
| Computer science | 2.96 | 25.8% | 51.4% | 15.9% | 6.9% |
| Science | 3.27 | 41.4% | 46.1% | 10.8% | 1.8% |
| Academic help services overall | 3.16 | 30.1% | 57.3% | 11.1% | 1.4% |
| Library | Mean | 4: Excellent | 3: Good | 2: Fair | 1: Poor |
| Library hours of operation | 3.72 | 75.3% | 21.8% | 2.4% | 0.5% |
| Access to databases and collections | 3.54 | 59.9% | 34.9% | 4.6% | 0.6% |
| Training to use library | 2.89 | 29.9% | 37.5% | 24.0% | 8.6% |
| Library services overall | 3.49 | 52.8% | 43.7% | 3.2% | 0.4% |
| Technology | Mean | 4: Excellent | 3: Good | 2: Fair | 1: Poor |
| Access to the Internet | 3.75 | 77.3% | 20.8% | 1.8% | 0.1% |
| Hrs of operation for comp center labs and help | 3.50 | 57.3% | 36.4% | 5.8% | 0.5% |
| Access to up-to-date facilities | 3.46 | 52.9% | 40.7% | 5.7% | 0.7% |
| Access to trained staff for help | 3.02 | 30.1% | 45.3% | 20.8% | 3.8% |
| Technology training classes | 3.08 | 31.7% | 47.0% | 18.5% | 2.8% |
| Technology services overall | 3.43 | 47.2% | 49.1% | 3.3% | 0.4% |
| Career-related services |
Mean
|
4:
Excellent
|
3:
Good
|
2:
Fair
|
1:
Poor
|
| Opportunity for career assistance | 3.10 | 31.0% | 51.1% | 14.5% | 3.5% |
| Info. on internships/co-op/other | 3.08 | 33.2% | 46.0% | 16.4% | 4.4% |
| Resources to explore career options | 3.06 | 30.5% | 48.7% | 16.8% | 4.0% |
| Info. avail through computers/Internet | 3.17 | 35.7% | 48.7% | 13.0% | 2.7% |
| Career-related services overall | 3.10 | 29.1% | 54.4% | 13.9% | 2.5% |
| Bookstore |
Mean
|
4:
Excellent
|
3:
Good
|
2:
Fair
|
1:
Poor
|
| Availability of books/supplies at bookstore | 2.92 | 23.0% | 51.1% | 20.9% | 5.0% |
Non-Academic Service Areas (Tables 3-14 and 3-15)
Respondents were asked to rate various non-academic service areas, and when relevant, the responsiveness of the staff connected with these services. Average ratings of services varied widely. Extra-curricular activities (3.2), campus health services (3.0), registration (3.0), and [personal] counseling services (3.0) received the highest average ratings. Campus food services received the lowest average rating (2.5).
With few exceptions respondents� ratings of staff responsiveness were generally similar to the relevant service. Staff responsiveness for health services had the highest average rating (3.1), and food service staff the lowest (2.6). However, unlike other service areas, ratings given to food services staff were notably higher than those given to food services.
Table 3-14: Evaluation of Non-Academic Service Areas
|
Mean
|
4:
Excellent
|
3:
Good
|
2:
Fair
|
1:
Poor
|
|
| Service Area: Opps. in Ex-Curric Act. |
3.16
|
34.0%
|
50.8%
|
12.4%
|
2.8%
|
| Service Area: Registration Process |
3.12
|
30.1%
|
53.9%
|
13.9%
|
2.2%
|
| Service Area: Health Services |
3.10
|
32.8%
|
48.6%
|
14.7%
|
3.9%
|
| Service Area: Counseling (personal) |
3.05
|
29.3%
|
52.1%
|
12.6%
|
6.0%
|
| Service Area: Opps to Dev Leadership Skills |
2.93
|
25.0%
|
48.0%
|
22.2%
|
4.9%
|
| Service Area: Business Services/Cashier |
2.90
|
19.9%
|
55.7%
|
19.0%
|
5.5%
|
| Service Area: Opps. in Commun Serv Projs |
2.87
|
22.0%
|
48.5%
|
24.4%
|
5.1%
|
| Service Area: Financial Aid Disbursement |
2.81
|
22.3%
|
46.9%
|
20.6%
|
10.2%
|
| Service Area: Financial Aid Application/Award |
2.80
|
22.1%
|
45.9%
|
21.8%
|
10.1%
|
| Service Area: Residence Life Programs |
2.74
|
15.5%
|
51.7%
|
24.0%
|
8.8%
|
| Service Area: Food Services |
2.47
|
8.9%
|
43.3%
|
34.2%
|
13.6%
|
Table 3-15: Evaluation of Non-Academic Services� Staff Responsiveness
|
Mean
|
4:
Excellent
|
3:
Good
|
2:
Fair
|
1:
Poor
|
|
| Staff Resp: Health Services |
3.09
|
35.0%
|
44.4%
|
15.9%
|
4.8%
|
| Staff Resp: Registration Process |
2.98
|
24.1%
|
53.7%
|
18.2%
|
4.1%
|
| Staff Resp: Counseling (personal) |
2.96
|
30.4%
|
43.9%
|
16.7%
|
9.0%
|
| Staff Resp: Business Services/Cashier |
2.85
|
21.9%
|
48.7%
|
22.0%
|
7.5%
|
| Staff Resp: Residence Life Programs |
2.80
|
20.6%
|
47.5%
|
22.6%
|
9.2%
|
| Staff Resp: Financial Aid Application/Award |
2.76
|
21.9%
|
43.5%
|
24.0%
|
10.7%
|
| Staff Resp: Financial Aid Disbursement |
2.75
|
20.1%
|
46.0%
|
23.4%
|
10.6%
|
| Staff Resp: Food Services |
2.65
|
15.3%
|
45.4%
|
28.1%
|
11.2%
|
Financial aid (Tables 3-16 and 3-17)
More than half of respondents (54.7%) said they had received some type of financial aid (e.g., scholarships, grants, loans, work-study) while at NC State. Almost one-third of them (31.8%) reported being "very satisfied" with their aid package. Less than 15 percent were "dissatisfied" with their aid. Majorities of those receiving aid gave positive ratings to the customer service skills of the financial aid staff. Highest average ratings went to advisor staff (3.0), followed by reception staff (2.9) and phone staff (2.8).
Table 3-16: Satisfaction with financial aid package
| Mean | 4: Very satisfied | 3: Moderately satisfied | 2: Moderately dissatisfied | 1: Very dissatisfied | |
| Satisfaction with financial aid package (among those who received aid, n= 831) | 3.14 | 31.8% | 53.4% | 11.4% | 3.4% |
Table 3-17: Customer service skills of financial aid staff
|
Mean
|
4:
Excellent
|
3:
Good
|
2:
Fair
|
1:
Poor
|
|
| Financial aid reception staff | 2.92 | 24.3% | 50.9% | 17.0% | 7.8% |
| Financial aid phone staff | 2.82 | 23.4% | 45.0% | 21.8% | 9.9% |
| Financial aid advisor staff | 3.02 | 31.9% | 44.8% | 17.0% | 6.3% |
Knowledge, Skills, and Personal Development
This final section of the overview report focuses on respondents� perceptions of how well NC State has contributed to their academic and personal development. First, it explores beliefs about the extent to which the university met their needs in general. This is followed by a discussion of how well respondents thought NC State contributed to their knowledge, skill, and personal development of general education, personal development, and world view goals.
NC State Meeting Student Needs (Table 3-18)
A majority of respondents were satisfied with how well NC State met their needs in general. More than three-fourths the respondents reported that their needs for intellectual growth (90.1%), personal growth (80.7%), and career training (76.3%) had been met "very well" or "adequately" by NC State.
Table 3-18: Student Needs
| How well have your needs been met for � |
Mean
|
4:
Very Well
|
3:
Adequately
|
2:
Somewhat adequately
|
1:Poorly
|
| Intellectual growth needs | 3.34 | 45.9% | 44.2% | 8.5% | 1.4% |
| Career training needs | 3.05 | 34.1% | 42.2% | 18.8% | 4.9% |
| Personal growth needs | 3.14 | 37.6% | 43.1% | 14.6% | 4.7% |
Knowledge, Skills, and Personal Development (Table 3-19)
Respondents were asked to rate the extent to which their college had contributed to their development of various educational goals. The 35 goals listed related to either personal development, general education, or world views. The colleges� contribution was rated on a scale of 1 ("not at all") to 4 ("very much"). "Don�t know" responses were excluded from the analyses.
General Education Goals:
Overall, respondents were satisfied with the extent to which NC State colleges met their general education goals. Eleven of the12 questions in this category received an average rating of 3.1 or higher. NC State fared better, however, on ratings of its contribution to the development of goals related to more technical or analytic skills than to skills related to communication (e.g., listening, writing, and speaking). Average ratings were highest for the extent to which NC State contributed to respondents' ability to enhance analytic skills (3.4), ability to do projects independently (3.4), and develop computer skills (3.4). More than half of respondents said NC State contributed "very much" to the development of these skills. Ratings were lowest for speaking skills (3.0). More than one-fourth of respondents said NC State had contributed "very little" (19.9%) or "not at all" (5.7%) to the development of their speaking skills.
Personal Development Goals:
Respondents also gave high ratings to the extent to which NC State met their personal development goals. All but one aspect, exercising public responsibility and community service, received an average rating above 3.1. Average ratings were highest for independence and self-reliance (3.5), with 63.4 percent saying NC State had contributed "very much" to their development of this goal. In addition to exercising public responsibility and community service (2.9), respondents also gave lower average ratings to NC State�s contribution to the development of recognizing and acting on ethical principles (3.1), and commitment to personal health and fitness (3.1).
World View Goals:
Respondents gave some of the lowest ratings to questions pertaining to NC State�s contribution to their world view goals. Average ratings were highest for the ability to work with people from diverse backgrounds (3.3) and developing a tolerance for divergent views (3.2). Average ratings for NC State�s contribution to all other world view goals, however, were 3.1 or lower. Ratings were lowest for advancing appreciation of the arts (2.8) with 10.5 percent rating NC State�s contribution to this goal as "poor".
Table 3-19: Knowledge, Skills, and Personal Development
Extent of college contribution to �
| General Education |
Mean
|
4:
Very Much
|
3:
Somewhat
|
2:
Very Little
|
1:
Not at all
|
| Enhancing analytical skills |
3.44
|
52.1%
|
40.9%
|
5.9%
|
1.1%
|
| Ability to do projects independently |
3.42
|
51.6%
|
39.8%
|
7.0%
|
1.5%
|
| Developing computer skills |
3.37
|
52.7%
|
34.1%
|
10.7%
|
2.6%
|
| Ability to analyze ideas/info |
3.36
|
46.0%
|
45.4%
|
7.4%
|
1.2%
|
| Understand sci/tech influence |
3.34
|
46.9%
|
42.7%
|
8.3%
|
2.1%
|
| Using math skills |
3.34
|
50.2%
|
36.6%
|
10.5%
|
2.7%
|
| Applying sci inquiry |
3.30
|
46.0%
|
40.1%
|
11.7%
|
2.2%
|
| Comprehension skills |
3.30
|
43.0%
|
45.8%
|
9.2%
|
2.0%
|
| Listening skills |
3.26
|
43.2%
|
43.1%
|
10.4%
|
3.3%
|
| Understanding of diverse values |
3.20
|
41.7%
|
41.1%
|
12.6%
|
4.6%
|
| Writing skills |
3.11
|
31.8%
|
51.3%
|
13.6%
|
3.3%
|
| Speaking skills |
2.98
|
29.5%
|
44.9%
|
19.9%
|
5.7%
|
| Personal Development |
Mean
|
4:
Very Much
|
3:
Somewhat
|
2:
Very Little
|
1:
Not at all
|
| Independence and self-reliance | 3.53 | 63.4% | 28.3% | 5.8% | 2.4% |
| Realizing my potential for success | 3.49 | 58.1% | 34.2% | 5.9% | 1.8% |
| Personal growth | 3.47 | 58.2% | 33.4% | 6.1% | 2.4% |
| Taking responsibility for behavior | 3.43 | 57.4% | 32.1% | 6.9% | 3.6% |
| Self discipline | 3.43 | 55.8% | 33.9% | 7.7% | 2.6% |
| Coping with change | 3.43 | 55.4% | 34.8% | 6.9% | 2.9% |
| Valuing learning as lifelong | 3.42 | 52.7% | 38.4% | 6.5% | 2.3% |
| Time mangement | 3.36 | 52.1% | 35.0% | 9.7% | 3.3% |
| Ability to function as part of a team | 3.31 | 45.1% | 43.2% | 9.4% | 2.2% |
| Sense of personal identity | 3.30 | 48.7% | 37.2% | 9.6% | 4.5% |
| Ability to handle stress | 3.25 | 47.1% | 35.7% | 12.7% | 4.5% |
| Self-confidence | 3.25 | 44.2% | 40.9% | 11.0% | 3.9% |
| Ability to lead/guide others | 3.17 | 37.2% | 46.5% | 12.8% | 3.6% |
| Commitment to fitness | 3.12 | 37.4% | 42.3% | 15.1% | 5.3% |
| Recognizing and acting ethical | 3.10 | 35.5% | 44.8% | 13.8% | 5.9% |
| Public responsibility & comm. service | 2.89 | 22.7% | 50.3% | 19.8% | 7.2% |
| World View |
Mean
|
4:
Very Much
|
3:
Somewhat
|
2:
Very Little
|
1:
Not at all
|
| Ability to work w/ diverse bckgrnds | 3.27 | 44.1% | 42.8% | 9.3% | 3.9% |
| Developing tolerance for divergent views | 3.24 | 42.7% | 43.4% | 9.5% | 4.4% |
| Understanding world issues | 3.10 | 32.4% | 48.8% | 15.1% | 3.6% |
| Appreciating gender equity | 3.07 | 34.6% | 44.3% | 14.8% | 6.3% |
| Appreciating racial equity | 3.06 | 34.3% | 44.0% | 15.0% | 6.7% |
| Understand present as it relates to history | 2.96 | 27.0% | 47.5% | 19.5% | 6.0% |
| Advancing appreciation of arts | 2.81 | 26.0% | 39.3% | 24.2% | 10.5% |
For more information on the 2002 Sophomore 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: October, 2002
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