The 2001 National Survey of Student Engagement (NSSE), the most comprehensive assessment of effective practices in higher education, finds that Elon University is performing among the nation’s top colleges and universities on five benchmarks of academic excellence. This is the second year in a row that Elon has been identified by NSSE as a top-performing institution.
The 2001 NSSE report, which is sponsored by The Carnegie Foundation for the Advancement of Teaching and The Pew Forum for Undergraduate Learning, was released Nov. 14. The study provides information to students and parents in the college search process and gives campuses insight into effective teaching and student learning. Full details of the report can be found on the NSSE Web site at: www.iub.edu/~nsse/
More than 71,000 students at 321 four-year colleges and universities participated in the 2001 survey. Over the past two years, about 134,000 students at 470 schools have assessed their experiences related to these benchmarks of quality:
· Level of academic challenge
· Active and collaborative learning
· Student-faculty interaction
· Enriching educational experiences
· Supportive campus environment.
Elon ranks in the top 10 percent of all schools in the survey on each benchmark. Ninety-four percent of Elon students surveyed said their educational experience has been excellent or good, and the NSSE report singles Elon out for its programs that encourage close interactions between faculty and students.
“For several years, Elon has made conscious choices to promote active and engaging academic programs and become a leader in experiential learning,” says Leo M. Lambert, Elon president. “The NSSE report validates our successes and confirms that we are accomplishing our goals. It also forms the basis for an ongoing campus discussion about curriculum, the level of academic challenge and the educational environment. NSSE offers us the best tool yet in measuring the most important benchmarks of quality.”
Elon and NSSE – page two
The NSSE survey asked randomly selected freshmen and seniors a set of 41 key questions about their educational experiences. Below are Elon student responses on selected 2001 survey question results, compared with the average figures from all other schools in the survey:
Survey question Elon University All NSSE schools
Often worked with other students outside of class 76% 49%
Wrote five or more 5-19 page papers this year 71% 45%
Often made a class presentation 61% 45%
Often asked questions/contributed to class discussions 79% 65%
Had done/plan to do volunteer service 89% 67%
Had studied abroad or planned to do so 78% 25%
Had done/plan to do an internship 92% 76%
Feel your school has provided the support you
need to succeed academically 82% 69%
Feel your school has provided the support you
need to thrive socially