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The first comprehensive survey of U-M’s graduating class in more than a dozen years offers a profile of students who are ready for a global world of work (or further study), committed to the larger community, and greatly satisfied that the University has prepared them well for whatever life brings.
“The survey gives us insight into the range of activities of our undergraduate students, and how they feel their lives have been enriched by their Michigan experiences,” says Provost Teresa Sullivan, whose office conducted the study. “The information gathered through this comprehensive survey will help us across the University in our ongoing evaluation of existing offerings and programs, and as we consider new ways to enhance the undergraduate experience.”
And, says Ben van der Pluijm, co-investigator on the research, some of the responses about how the students spent their undergraduate years yielded a few encouraging surprises.
“Among the most startling outcomes was that more than 80 percent self-reported a community engagement activity. When people look for the Michigan Difference, that might very well be it,” van der Pluijm says.
In fact, 83 percent of the Class of 2008 respondents said they have participated in community service or an outreach activity. While many of these were through U-M courses or organizations, a large number of students were involved with outside groups, and many initiated their own service experiences.
van der Pluijm says this is a group of students who were admitted to U-M by demonstrating a well-roundedness that often included community service, but to see that so many kept up their commitments while faced with the rigors of university life was a pleasant surprise.
“This shows that it is a mindset. It is part of their character to continue the engagement,” he says. “It also allows us to think of how we can further capitalize on that aspect of student life and make their experiences more valuable.”
Some 4,950 graduating seniors were asked to participate in the online survey before leaving in April — 1,673 responded. They were asked about career and graduate school plans, the cost of their education and resulting debt, skills gained at U-M, and participation in research, community service and international experiences.
The latter was of particular interest to van der Pluijm, who serves as senior counselor to the provost for University accreditation. He encouraged the survey, the first since 1996, in part to get first-hand information on student international experiences. U-M, under his guidance, is exploring the question of what it means to be an international university as it seeks re-accreditation from the Higher Learning Commission of the North Central Association.
The survey found some 70 percent of students reported studying a foreign language at U-M, and 51 percent indicated they had traveled abroad as undergraduates. One in five (21 percent) of those who traveled did so through formal study-abroad programs, with nearly as many in English as in non-English-speaking countries (excluding Canada). Their other reasons for travel included recreation (40 percent), cross-cultural experiences (17 percent), volunteer or work experiences (14 percent), and short-term academic experiences (9 percent).
Ninety-three percent of students indicated they had interacted with international students in classes, and many reported such involvement socially, in other learning situations, or through volunteer, intern or work experiences.
Responses, including numerous comments in the survey, showed that students value diversity and “enjoy interaction with people from different cultures,” van der Pluijm says, adding that the information gathered in the survey is invaluable to the Accreditation Working Groups appointed by Sullivan that are exploring the question of what it means to be an international university.
“We want to be more of a university that looks at the whole world,” he says.
“Five years from now I hope we’ll make the barriers so low that we’ll have many more students reporting an international experience. But we have to do more research to find out what’s limiting them today.”
Another area that provided surprising results for Karen Zaruba, survey co-investigator and senior institutional research analyst in the Office of Budget and Planning, was in the area of research interactions.
About 45 percent of students reported having a collaborative research experience with faculty. A third of these were involved in the Undergraduate Research Opportunity Program.
“So many people found ways to participate in research projects in addition to UROP. Students showed real initiative in getting involved, and researchers and faculty are doing a good job getting students involved in research.”
Experiences in the area of research included lab work (53 percent), summarizing research (26 percent), field research (19 percent), statistical analysis (18 percent), creative activity (10 percent), and library work (9 percent).
The survey used was one that U-M and a number of other research universities collaborated on through the American Association of Universities so they could compare experiences between institutions. But what van der Pluijm and Zaruba like most about the instrument is that it encourages universities to customize and ask institution-specific questions.
In addition to U-M-specific questions on engagement, undergraduate research and international experiences, they added a number of open-ended questions that allowed students to comment. Staff in OBP then categorized the responses to come up with common themes.
Students wrote that they valued the variety of social and academic opportunities that the University offers, took pride in their accomplishments, appreciated the friendships they had made, and found the campus environment stimulating and engaging.
On the down side, they reported some difficulty adjusting to college in their first year or two, expressed regrets at not learning more from and about their professors, and they struggled to find balance.
“Students want to graduate with a well-rounded education,” Zaruba says. “But that can conflict with their desire to specialize and pursue advanced knowledge within their major. It’s a challenge for students to balance the dual goals of study-in-depth and study-in-breadth.”
Some of the more unique comments that eluded categorization were: setting an example to those back home who had not gone to school, enjoyment of the political debating that took place across the University and being able to practice the organ at Hill Auditorium.
The co-investigators say the results not only will inform the accreditation process but will be used across campus to determine how to build upon student experiences. While considering a repeat survey in a few years, they first plan to conduct a similar query of alumni this spring.
A summary of the survey results, “The Michigan Experience: Perspectives from the Class of 2008”, is available on the provost’s Web site (www.provost.umich.edu/accreditation2010/).
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