What is a response rate?
Response rate is simply the percentage of students in the sample that complete the survey. The NSSE institutional average has been about 40%, with institutional rates ranging from the low 20s to the mid 80s.
Click a category below to see a breakdown of average response rates in the NSSE 2005 survey administration by different institutional types.
Carnegie Classification-
Institutional Types Number of Institutions Average Response Rate Doctoral-Extensive 53 33% Doctoral-Intensive 40 32% Master's 225 36% Baccalaurate Liberal Arts 93 49% Baccalaurate General Colleges 69 39% - Institutional Control (Public/Private)
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Institutional Types Number of Institutions Average Response Rate Public 240 33% Private 278 45% - NSSE Administration Mode
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Institutional Types Number of Institutions Average Response Rate Paper 172 35% Web Only 167 42% Web Plus 189 39% - Barron's Selectivity Rating (Noncompetitive to Most Competitive)
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Institutional Types Number of Institutions Average Response Rate Noncompetitive 32 32% Less Competitive 73 34% Competitive 197 36% Competitive Plus 26 38% Very Competitive 107 42% Very Competitive Plus 23 51% Highly Competitive 39 43% Highly Competitive Plus 17 52% Most Competitive 14 55% - Institutional Locale (Large City to Rural)
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Institutional Types Number of Institutions Average Response Rate Large City 100 38% Mid-size city 159 39% Urban fringe of large city 91 38% Urban fringe of mid-size city 38 36% Large town 22 36% Small town 93 42% Rural 25 40% - Region
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Institutional Types Number of Institutions Average Response Rate New England 49 40% Mid East 96 38% Great Lakes 76 41% Plains 55 44% Southeast 137 38% Southwest 34 30% Rocky Mountains 12 40% Far West 52 38% Canada 10 43% - Total Undergraduate Enrollment
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Institutional Types Number of Institutions Average Response Rate Less than 500 12 52% Between 501 and 1000 43 50% Between 1001 and 2000 123 43% Between 2001 and 3000 69 42% Between 3001 and 5000 88 39% Between 5001 and 10000 88 32% Between 10001 and 20000 80 32% More than 20000 25 31% - Full-time Student Percentage
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Institutional Types Number of Institutions Average Response Rate More than 90% Full-time 202 44% Between 80% and 90% Full-time 139 36% Between 60% and 80% Full-time 128 35% Less than 60% Full-time 49 34% - Female Student Percentage
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Institutional Types Number of Institutions Average Response Rate More than 90% Female 17 55% Between 70% and 90% Female 34 39% Between 60% and 70% Female 157 38% Between 50% and 60% Female 243 38% Between 30% and 50% Female 52 37% Less than 30% Female 15 53%