NSSE: National Survey of Student Engagement

Faculty discussions spark some rigorous debates about the validity and reliability of the NSSE... But in the main, we value the information, attend to it, and move to create ways to shore up the soft areas exposed by the reports.

Daryl H. Stevenson, Dean of Academic Administration, Houghton College

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In the News (2006)

ARTICLE	DATE
Agnes Scott keeps its mission to educate women The Atlanta Journal Constitution The mission of women's colleges is supported by NSSE research	December/2006
Campus participation rising at CSUSM while fewer students have jobs North Country Times Cal State San Marcos shares some of its NSSE results	December/2006
Students praise Westminster education in national survey Fulton Sun Westminster College says NSSE "has become one the standards to judge what schools are really doing for the growth of young people"	December/2006
Augie, SAU students give schools guidance Quad-City Times Augie and SAU will try to find out the "why" behind their NSSE results	December/2006
Thinking About Students as Workers Inside Higher Ed "Thinking About Students as Workers"	December/2006
Freshman reflections shown in surveys: Suvery finds 16 percent of WSU freshmen feel more engaged in and around campus. The Daily Evergreen WSU credits their improved NSSE results to their Freshman Focus Program	December/2006
Students to protest tuition fees at Queen's Park Northern Life Students protest against tuition fees based, in part, on NSSE findings.	December/2006
Coker's Self-Assessment Earns Coker College Coker College uses NSSE results to launch "a curriculum-wide initiative that emphasizes writing skills"	December/2006
Academic involvement up at UWO: News Advance-Titan: University of Wisconsin OshKosh UWO uses NSSE to assess the effectiveness of improvement efforts	December/2006
Going the Distance on Engagement: NSSE report shows higher engagement levels for distance ed students University Business "Going the Distance on Engagement: NSSE report shows higher engagement levels for distance ed students"	December/2006
Reveal colleges' quality rankings: STUDENTS HAVE RIGHT TO KNOW VALUE THEY RECEIVE FOR TUITION Mercury News "Reveal colleges' quality rankings: STUDENTS HAVE RIGHT TO KNOW VALUE THEY RECEIVE FOR TUITION”"	November/2006
'Nessie' Data Help Spur Changes at Several Colleges Chronicle of Higher Education "'Nessie' Data Help Spur Changes at Several Colleges"	November/2006
Underrepresented Students Benefit Most From 'Engagement' Chronicle of Higher Education "Underrepresented Students Benefit Most From 'Engagement'”	November/2006
Making Connections The Chronicle of Higher Education Online Colloquy with George Kuh, Director of NSSE	November/2006
Pace University On-Campus Campaign Against Hate Westchester.com Pace University Leads a Campaign Against Hate	November/2006
Accreditation Agencies Warily Eye Agenda for Meeting This Month With Secretary Spellings Chronicle of Higher Education Higher education leaders, including the director of NSSE, comment on the meeting later this month with Secretary Spellings	November/2006
Ontario's universities introduce a new information tool for students, parents and the public CNW Group "Ontario's universities introduce a new information tool for students, parents and the public"	November/2006
Study: UTEP reaching academic goals El Paso Times UTEP excited about NSSE results, which they say confirms their commitment to access and excellence.	November/2006
IU study states engaged learning is effective IDS News NSSE Annual Report provides data that helps institutions improve	November/2006
DePauw Outpaces Peer Schools and National Averages in 2006 National Survey of Student Engagement DePauw University News President of DePauw said that NSSE provides important external affirmation because of its scientific methodology and the areas it explores	November/2006
Should government take a yardstick to colleges? USA Today U.S. Secretary of Education wants institutions to release their NSSE data so that families can compare results across institutions	November/2006
The Engaged E-Learner Inside Higher ed “The Engaged E-Learner”	November/2006
Student activities help 'level the playing field' USA Today "Student activities help 'level the playing field'"	November/2006
College gets lowdown on how students do USA Today Earlham College uses NSSE results to enhance student learning	November/2006
Universities share their own data Ottawa Citizen “Universities share their own data” with students without the use of rankings	November/2006
U of C disputes Maclean's Rankings University of Calgary Gauntlet "U of C disputes Maclean's Rankings"	November/2006
Need for remediation ‘staggering’ Fort Wayne Journal Gazette Director of NSSE says the “Need for remediation is ‘staggering’”	November/2006
The 2006 NSSE results -- Comparing apples and apples Carleton University Carleton University shares their results, reflecting on current initiatives and ways they can continually improve	November/2006
Does ‘Value Added’ Add Value? Inside Higher Ed “Does ‘Value Added’ Add Value?"	November/2006
Out of Step Inside Higher Ed NSSE participates in National Symposium on Student Success	November/2006
Secretary Spellings Delivered Remarks at National Postsecondary Education Cooperative Symposium on Student Success in Washington, D.C. ED.gov Director of NSSE speaks at the National Postsecondary Education Cooperative Symposium on Student Success	November/2006
Making an Art Form of Assessment Chronicle of Higher Education Making an Art Form of Assessment	October/2006
Higher Education at Risk? Inside Higher Ed The “DEEP” project is hailed for providing information about campus practices that encourage student engagement.	October/2006
College Rankings: Fair or Flawed? College Rankings: Fair or Flawed? College Rankings: Fair or Flawed? Collegiate Times Education sector recommends a new ranking system based on NSSE results	October/2006
Mandatory testing implemented The University Leader Fort Hays State University bases their new improvement initiatives on NSSE results	October/2006
The case for women’s colleges The State Once again, NSSE findings are cited to “make the case for women’s colleges”	October/2006
Women's colleges key to leadership The Mercury News President of Mills College hails NSSE findings as imperative for the survival of women’s colleges.	October/2006
FYE to be evaluated Western Courier Western Illinois University uses NSSE to evaluated their First Year Experience program	October/2006
Change of Guard at UBC The Tyee New president of UBC will use NSSE results to try to improve the institution	October/2006
U of C plans undergrad census University of Calgary Gauntlet “U of C has been working hard to improve the quality of education in light of the last NSSE”	October/2006
Yes to women's colleges Boston Globe Citing NSSE results, the president of Simmons College argues that women’s colleges are still needed.	October/2006
Researcher Proposes Basing College Rankings on Students' Success Chronicle of Higher Education “Researcher Proposes Basing College Rankings on Students' Success”	September/2006
Gauging education bang for tuition buck Christian Science Monitor NSSE suggested as a way to gauge “education bang for tuition buck”	September/2006
Mills a big part in the tradition of women's colleges The Mills College Weekly “It is vital to understand the compelling case for women's colleges” given the recent decision of two women’s colleges to become co-ed	September/2006
Stanford needs to brag more The Stanford Review Online A Stanford student believes his institution should participate in NSSE and “welcome the statistical insight of participating”	September/2006
Assessing Learning Outcomes Inside Higher Ed “Technology being used, abused on campuses”	September/2006
Another school goes co-ed: Too bad. Women's colleges do an impressive job of developing leaders Charlotte Observer Educational leaders wonder why another women’s college is going co-ed, especially given NSSE’s findings about single-sex institutions.	September/2006
Letter: Roman Wrong University of Calgary Gauntlet Maclean’s responds to universities denying their survey	September/2006
Women's colleges must be an option The Roanoke Times Citing NSSE results, two presidents of women’s colleges insist that single-sex institutions “must be an option”	September/2006
Universities deny Maclean's Surveys University of Calgary Gauntlet Universities deny Maclean's Surveys	September/2006
Net Generation challenge for universities Western News Universities in Ontario could use NSSE results to address challenges of the “Net” generation.	September/2006
Among college undergraduates, seniors are more likely than freshman to say that they often ask questions in class or contribute to class discussion USA Today Seniors in college are more likely than first-year students to say that they often contribute to class discussion or ask questions in class.	September/2006
Talking Students' Heads Off USA Today Although male and female college faculty members spend about the same amount of time testing, men spend almost half of their class time lecturing.	September/2006
The Washington Monthly College Guide Washington Monthly The Washington Monthly College Guide urges schools to release their NSSE data.	September/2006
Grading: Is Honesty the Best Policy? FOX News In response to claims of grade inflation at Ivy League Schools, George Kuh argues that well-prepared students “are going to do well in whatever setting they are.”	August/2006
Education Reform: Tackling the Missing Link Century Foundation NSSE highlighted as a means of reform for performance assessment	August/2006
College rankings: Do they matter? Roanoke Times Director of data research at U.S. News and World Report would like to include NSSE data in its college rankings	August/2006
Prestige Panic Newsweek “Selective schools don't systematically employ better instructional approaches than less-selective schools.”	August/2006
UD again high on U.S. News list Delaware Online NSSE may capture aspects of the educational experience some rankings do not.	August/2006
Rank Colleges, but Rank Them Right New York Times NSSE highlighted as a “worthy effort” in measuring how students learn	August/2006
Hollins vows it will remain women's school Roanoke Times Women’s college commits to remaining a single-sex institution based, in part, on NSSE findings.	August/2006
Report Calls for New Assessment Tools, but Not Tests, to Foster Accountability The Chronicle of Higher Education "Report Calls for New Assessment Tools, but Not Tests, to Foster Accountability” in response to potential recommendations of the Commission on the Future of Higher Education.	August/2006
Tiny college earns big reputation Milwaukee Journal Sentinel Alverno College is recognized for its commitment to DEEP learning	August/2006
‘Engagement’ and the Underprepared Inside Higher Ed What NSSE results suggest about ‘engagement’ and the underprepared	August/2006
Off the Beaten Path New York Times Some colleges and universities that are “Off the Beaten Path” provide quality education by focusing on undergraduate teaching and rising scholarship, even though their standardized test scores may not be as high as more prestigious, well-known institutions.	July/2006
The best education may be single-sexed The News and Advance What NSSE results suggest about learning at women’s colleges.	July/2006
Conference examines transition from high school to college University of Connecticut Advance “Greater attention must be paid to the factors that lead to student success” at both the high school and college level	July/2006
Helping college freshmen make the leap Chron.com The University of Houston is looking to design summer sessions for freshmen to have a smoother transition into school, and they looked at NSSE results to help guide them.	July/2006
Saving the Soul of Public Research Universities Inside Higher Ed Using NSSE results would be very beneficial when looking at student learning, reports Inside Higher Ed.	July/2006
New study finds women’s colleges are better equipped to help their students Indiana University “New study finds women’s colleges are better equipped to help their students”	July/2006
Accountability Proposal Evolves Inside Higher Ed “Many institutions also already have good information on the “learning climate” through the National Survey of Student Engagement”	July/2006
Women Working Harder Than Men at Colleges AACRAO Transcript Another piece on the NSSE findings that men are lagging behind women in degree completion.	July/2006
At Colleges, Women Are Leaving Men in the Dust New York Times In a series titled “The New Gender Divide”, the New York Times mentions NSSE data in the education article “At Colleges, Women Are Leaving Men in the Dust”.	July/2006
classified local shopping newspaper ads coupons Communities Ahwatukee Chandler Gilbert Glendale Mesa Northwest Valley Peoria Pinal County Phoenix Scottsdale Southwest Valley Surprise Tempe ¡Extra! Sunday Sections A&E CareerBuilder Travel & Explore Viewpoints Weekly Features Food & Drink Home/Real Estate Movie Preview Wheels Yes Communities Sunday Monday Tuesday Wednesday Thursday Friday Saturday NEWS online print edition Print Article Email Article Most Popular Bigger Type Smaller Type Phone Alerts RSS Feeds Too many A's, B's at colleges? The Arizona Republic Is grade inflation real? Bob Gonyea, associate director of NSSE, answers.	July/2006
UTSA has new tactics to boost its grad rates My San Antonio A look at increasing graduation rates and how NSSE has been analyzed to examine a subset of the student population.	June/2006
Onward Christian Scholars The Conservative Voice What does NSSE tell us about “spiritually enhancing activities?”	June/2006
Real World 101: Colleges Teach Dining, Taxes, Life Chicago Tribune George Kuh is quoted in this article about college life.	June/2006
U students make efforts to volunteer The Minnesota Daily What the University found out about student volunteering from their NSSE results.	June/2006
Is getting an A too easy at the U? TwinCities.com Pioneer Press The University of Minnesota is looking closer at grade inflation and using their NSSE data to help.	May/2006
WAMC Listen to George Kuh discuss Higher Education topics on the Best of Our Knowledge interviews with Glenn Busby which aired May 8 and 15.	May/2006
Student evaluations helpful but limited as teaching tool Western News Murray suggests supplementing student evaluations with results from other performance indicators such as the National Survey of Student Engagement -which Western participates in - or even colleague evaluations.	May/2006
College plan Assuages Federal Panel The Guardian The National Association of State Universities and Land-Grant Colleges calls the NSSE survey a “study that produces results that allow officials to pinpoint and improve problems.”	May/2006
Etownian The National Association of State Universities and Land-Grant Colleges calls the NSSE survey a “study that produces results that allow officials to pinpoint and improve problems.”	May/2006
Double Take: Should the government regulate information colleges provide to prospective students? Etownian Should the government regulate information colleges provide to prospective students? NSSE is mentioned.	April/2006
Deaf and Dizzy Lawmakers Inside Higher Ed An interesting piece on accountability, Doug Bennett discusses how Earlham College uses NSSE data for re-accreditation and institutional improvement.	April/2006
George Kuh receives lifetime achievement award Indiana University IU recognizes George Kuh, the recipient of the Lifetime Achievement Award from the American College Personnel Association.	March/2006
Comparing Colleges Hendrix College Hendrix participates in NSSE, and here’s why they do.	March/2006
Graduate academic experience on target University of Toronto “The 2005 Graduate and Professional Student Survey also allows for comparison with the National Survey of Student Engagement”	March/2006
OU seniors report more involvement than freshmen, peers The Post Online An overview of Ohio University’s NSSE results.	March/2006
Pick-a-Prof provides advice, reviews at Iowa State U. TMCnet This article explores how Iowa State is using the NSSE Benchmarks to create an interesting program titled “Pick-a-Prof.”	March/2006
Students get their say University Affairs A comprehensive look at how Canadian institutions are using the NSSE survey in many different ways.	March/2006
Barriers to Student Retention and Success on College Campuses Student Success Student Success in College: Creating Conditions That Matter describes policies, programs, and practices employed by a diverse group of high-performing American colleges and universities to enhance student achievement.	March/2006
Reforming Selective College Admissions Inside Higher Ed The author discusses how selective institutions need to address their admissions policies: “Work on a way to provide more meaningful comparative information about your schools. The National Survey of Student Engagement sounds like an intriguing start.”	February/2006
Auburn takes part in national surveys on student life, academics The Auburn Plainsman A brief overview of the NSSE survey and how Auburn plans to use the results.	February/2006
What high schoolers need: Cheat sheet on universities USA Today NSSE is mentioned in this USA Today article highlighting the difficulty finding institutions who exceed in quality educational practices.	February/2006
story image 1 Students give high marks to educational experience in national surveys Georgia State University After analyzing their 2005 NSSE findings, the University System of Georgia found their “institutions rate highly with their key customers: USG students.”	February/2006
A glance at the winter issue of Liberal Education: How faith affects education Chronicle of Higher Education A glance at the winter issue of Liberal Education: How faith affects education	February/2006
MCG scores high in national education survey Medical College of Georgia “The Medical College of Georgia is performing higher than the state and national averages in several key areas of student engagement, according to a recent national survey.”	February/2006
Majority of first-time freshmen and seniors at Valdosta State University rate their experience 'good' or 'excellent' Valdosta State University VSU gives an overview of a successful NSSE 2005 administration at their institution.	February/2006
Faculty: UB must determine where it stands on general education The Spectrum Trustees at the University at Buffalo are calling for an assessment of general education and the institution will be using the NSSE survey as a gauging tool.	February/2006
2006-07 Tuition and Fees to Increase by Less Than 5% DePauw University News A general overview of how DePauw is using NSSE data and their success with the survey.	February/2006
The Indiana Lawyer “A national survey of law school students suggests they all but slack off in their third-year and that the first two years of law school are much more demanding.”	January/2006
Colloquium held to engage students Imprint Online “On January 17, the University of Waterloo welcomed Prof George Kuh, author of Student Success in College: Creating Conditions that Matter, to speak at the Presidents' Colloquium on Teaching and Learning.”	January/2006
Red and Black President Michael Adams of the University of Georgia discusses the balance between class work and extra curricular activities. NSSE results are discussed about how the system is countering this balance.	January/2006
De Pauw University De Pauw discusses how the NSSE findings show how “students at DePauw University enjoy significantly more academic challenges, interactions with faculty, collaborations with others and enriching educational experiences than students at peer institutions and the national average at all colleges and universities.”	January/2006
Chron.com A student’s journal and how it relates to the 2005 NSSE findings on transfer students.	January/2006
Indiana Daily Student The article focuses on the 2005 LSSSE findings, indicating “that (third-year) students aren't spending as much time and effort in trying to be prepared and involved in class (as first-years)."	January/2006
Bowling Green News An examination of the NSSE 2005 findings and anecdotal testimonies from around the area.	January/2006
Contracts Prof Blog The Law Professors Network has a blog examining the 2005 LSSSE findings.	January/2006
Law Career Blog Another blog and their take on the LSSSE 2005 findings.	January/2006
Corante A quick blurb on results from the 2005 LSSSE survey and what the findings reveal about the third-year law student.	January/2006
Accepted Admissions Almanac A quick blurb over-viewing the 2005 LSSSE findings and the relation to senioritis.	January/2006
Wall Street Journal Online The Newly launched Wall Street Journal Law Blog asks the question, “Didn’t we already know this?”	January/2006
Legal Ease Blog Another interesting online blog assessing the 2005 LSSSE findings.	January/2006
Chronicle of Higher Education The Chronicle examines 2005 LSSSE findings indicating third-year law students work less hard generally than their first- and second-year counterparts.	January/2006
Inside Higher Ed This article examines the apparent third year slump law students appear to have, as found by the Law School Survey of Student Engagement.	January/2006
Fort Wayne News Sentinel Interaction is important in law school, as this article stresses, analyzing the new LSSSE 2005 findings.	January/2006
Inside Indiana Business Another interesting article discussing the first two years of law school and how the third may be different for some students. LSSSE 2005 data was analyzed.	January/2006
Virtual Chase A quick alert on research news, including the 2005 LSSSE survey findings.	January/2006
DocuTicker “LSSSE 2005 results revealed several noteworthy themes that characterize the law student experience.”	January/2006
Channel 22 WSBT Channel 22 WSBT of Indiana has a quick reference to the 2005 LSSSE findings.	January/2006
Merlot The Multimedia Educational Resource for Learning Online and Teaching (MERLOT) is a digital library and an online community of faculty who are collaborating to increase the quantity of high-quality web-based, interactive teaching and learning materials. NSSE has been included in this database.	January/2006