2001 National Survey of Student Engagement
Table of Contents

National Survey of Student Engagement:
The College Student Report

NSSE asks about undergraduates' participation in activities that existing research shows are related to positive learning and developmental outcomes of their college experience. The results indicate

• how students use their time,
• the kinds of classwork and homework they experience,
• their relationships with faculty and with other students, and
• the degree to which they feel these experiences contribute to their learning and development.

NC State results are consistent with our being an engineering and technology-intensive research university.

• We differ from similar institutions in that
• our 1^st-year students report more interaction with faculty but less academic challenge, practical application, and emphasis on studying, and
• our seniors report more active and collaborative learning experiences and growth in quantitative, computing, and other work-related skills but less assigned reading.


• These findings are for NC State as a whole. The results from this administration of the survey cannot be broken out for individual colleges, departments, or academic programs.



• NC State students' responses to NSSE questions that are not mentioned on this page and the graphic "dashboard display" are similar to the combined responses from
• all 470 institutions that participated in NSSE 2001,
• the 48 participating Doctoral/Research-Extensive universities, and
• a peer group of 10 other engineering and/or technology-intensive research universities.

Level of academic challenge

• NC State's ratings in this NSSE benchmark category resemble the combined ratings for the other NSSE 2001 Doctoral/Research Extensive universities. They are lower than the overall rating for NSSE respondents as a whole.
• The overall benchmark ratings in this category tend to be dominated by baccalaureate-level liberal arts institutions.
• NC State's rating from 1^st-year students in this benchmark category is also
• lower than was predicted on the basis of our institutional and student characteristics, and
• lower than the average rating for the 10 peer institutions.


• Our 1^st-year students, and those at the other NSSE 2001 Doctoral/Research Extensive universities, are less likely than those at the 10 peer institutions to report
• that their coursework emphasizes applying theories or concepts to new situations or practical problems,
• spending time preparing for class, or
• that the institution emphasizes spending significant amounts of time studying and on academic work.


• Our seniors report fewer assigned textbooks, books, or book-length readings than do NSSE respondents as a whole, those from the other Doctoral/Research Extensive universities combined, and those from the 10 peer institutions. However, they are more likely than seniors at the other Doctoral/Research Extensive universities to report that the institution emphasizes spending significant amounts of time studying and on academic work.

Active and collaborative learning

• NC State's rating from seniors in this benchmark category resembles the overall rating for NSSE 2001 participants. It is higher than those for the other NSSE 2001 Doctoral/Research Extensive universities and for the 10 peer institutions, and higher than was predicted on the basis of on the basis of our institutional and student characteristics. However, our 1^st-year students' rating resembles those for the Doctoral/Research Extensive universities and for the peer institutions, and is lower than the overall NSSE 2001 rating.
• The overall benchmark ratings in this category tend to be dominated by baccalaureate-level institutions.
• Our rating from seniors on this benchmark is noticeably higher than our rating from 1^st-year students.


• Our seniors, and those from the other NSSE 2001 Doctoral/Research Extensive universities combined and from the 10 peer institutions, report
• less participation in class discussion than NSSE respondents as a whole do, and
• less participation in community-based service projects as part of senior-level courses than NSSE respondents as a whole do.


• Our 1^st-year students, and those from the other NSSE 2001 Doctoral/Research Extensive universities combined and from the 10 peer institutions, report making fewer class presentations than NSSE respondents as a whole do. However, our seniors report more presentations than students from the peer institutions.



• Our seniors, and those in the peer institutions, are more likely to work with other students outside of class on class assignments than are NSSE seniors as a whole or seniors from the other Doctoral/Research Extensive universities.

Student interactions with faculty members

• NC State's rating from seniors in this benchmark category resembles those for the Doctoral/Research Extensive universities and for the 10 peer institutions, and is lower than the overall NSSE 2001 rating. However, our rating from 1^st-year students resembles the overall NSSE rating. It is higher than those for the other NSSE 2001 Doctoral/Research Extensive universities and for the peer institutions, and higher than was predicted on the basis of on the basis of our institutional and student characteristics.
• The overall benchmark ratings in this category tend to be dominated by baccalaureate-level liberal arts institutions.
• Estimated benchmark ratings for NC State colleges with the most respondents and for the other colleges combined suggest that the higher-than-expected result for 1^st-year students occurs campus-wide.


• Our seniors, and those from the other NSSE 2001 Doctoral/Research Extensive universities combined and from the 10 peer institutions, are less likely to report interacting with faculty outside of class or working with faculty on activities other than coursework or research than are NSSE seniors as a whole.


• Our 1^st-year students talk more often about career plans with faculty or advisors than students from the other NSSE 2001 Doctoral/Research Extensive universities and from the 10 peer institutions.

Enriching Educational Experiences

• NC State's ratings in this benchmark category are similar to the overall rating for NSSE 2001 participants and the rating for the other NSSE 2001 Doctoral/Research Extensive universities combined. They are slightly lower than the average ratings from the 10 peer institutions.


• Our 1^st-year students are more likely to report using electronic media (list-serve, Internet, etc.) for class assignments than are NSSE 1^st-year students as a whole, those from the other Doctoral/Research Extensive universities combined, and those from the 10 peer institutions.

Supportive Campus Environment

• NC State's ratings in this benchmark category resemble those for the Doctoral/Research Extensive universities and for the 10 peer institutions, and are lower than the overall NSSE 2001 rating. However, they are higher than were predicted on the basis of on the basis of our institutional and student characteristics.

NSSE items that are not included in the benchmark groupings

• NC State students
• are more likely than NSSE seniors as a whole, those from the other Doctoral/Research Extensive universities combined, and those from the 10 peer institutions to report that their educational experience contributed to their ability to use computers and information technology, and
• like those in the peer institutions, more likely to communicate with their instructors by email than are NSSE respondents as a whole and students from the other Doctoral/Research Extensive universities.


• NC State seniors are
• more likely than seniors from the other Doctoral/Research Extensive universities and those from the peer institutions to report that their educational experience helped them acquire job- or work-related knowledge and skills and contributed to their ability to work effectively with others, and
• like seniors at the peer institutions, more likely than seniors from the Doctoral/Research Extensive universities in general to report that their educational experience contributed to their ability to analyze quantitative problems.


• NC State 1^st-year students are
• more likely than students from the peer institutions to report that their classwork made them better writers, and
• less likely than NSSE 1^st-year respondents as a whole and those from the Doctoral/Research Extensive universities to report that they had paid jobs on or off campus. They, and our seniors, are also less likely than students at the peer institutions to report paid jobs on campus.


• NC State seniors are less satisfied than NSSE seniors as a whole in their relationships with faculty members. Their responses resemble those of seniors from the other Doctoral/Research Extensive universities and from the peer institutions. Our 1^st-year students, however, are more satisfied with these relationships than are 1^st-year students at the 10 peer institutions.

• The College Student Report questionnaire was administered to a random sample of 500 1st-year students and 500 seniors.
• Students could answer the questions on the Web or on paper.
• NC State's 41% response rate is consistent with the 41% rate for participating Doctoral/Research-Extensive institutions and the 42% rate overall.
• The sample and number of respondents in each college are too low for us to report results by college or by department.

Downloadable Excel files comparing NC State results with the with the Doctoral/Research Extensive group as a whole, and with all NSSE 2001 respondents:

• An easy-to-print version of the "dashboard" display summarizing the comparisons.
• Results in NSSE's benchmark categories.
• Comparisons with the Doctoral/Research Extensive group and all NSSE 2001 respondents.
• Means for each question, with effect sizes for statistically significant differences.
• Frequency distributions.
• Comparisons with the 10 peer institutions:
• Means for each question, with effect sizes for statistically significant differences.
• Frequency distributions.
• "All respondents" were defined differently for the peer comparisons -- see the notes in the spreadsheet about the "National" columns.

NSSE's Web site includes

• General information about the NSSE project, including FAQs (frequently-asked questions) for participating institutions and for students who have been asked to answer the survey questions.
• The College Student Report survey instrument.
• The universities and four-year colleges that participated in NSSE 2000 and 2001. 321 campuses participated in 2001.
• The NSSE 2001 Overview, a downloadable MS Word document with
• information about the Spring 2001 NSSE institutions and respondents,
• selected results from the Spring 2001 respondents (all institutions combined), and
• guidelines for interpreting and using NSSE results.
• Information from benchmark analyses in the NSSE 2000 Report and the NSSE 2001 Report.

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