EXECUTIVE SUMMARY: Nearly nine-tenths of entering students felt that the New Students Program was very or somewhat helpful in preparing them for their University experience. Two out of three entering students attended at least part of the Convocation ceremony. Half of the new students attended at least one of the Day One activities. Over three-fifths reported that they are very satisfied with their current course schedule. Almost one-third of the new students who received financial aid said it was difficult for them and/or their parents to understand their financial aid award. Nearly nine out of ten students felt that the information they received in the mail from UMass was either somewhat or very helpful in preparing them to start school. Seven out of ten students who live on-campus expressed satisfaction with the time it took the Housing Assignment Office to notify them of their assignment. Almost nine-tenths of the incoming students are satisfied with their current housing.
On Tuesday, September 19, 1995, Project Pulse conducted its "Annual Opening" telephone survey for the New Students Program. The survey investigated students' reactions to the opening of school, as well as their satisfaction with the New Students Program, Convocation, and "Day One" activities. Interviews were conducted with a sample of first-year students, as well as a sample of returning students. This report pertains only to the data collected on the sample of first-year students. Final dispositions for the first-year sample are presented in Table 1. The average age of students surveyed was 18, with 48% (n=163) female and 52% (n=174) male. Survey results for the sample of returning students are available, upon request, from SARIS.
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Table 1: Final Disposition
of Sample
|
|||
|
N
|
% of Total
|
% of Contacted
|
|
| In & Cooperated |
338
|
57.3
|
94.7
|
| Contacted, but refused |
19
|
3.2
|
5.3
|
| Not contacted |
194
|
32.9
|
|
| Unobtainable phone no. |
37
|
6.3
|
|
| Ineligible |
2
|
0.0
|
|
| Totals |
590
|
100.0
|
100.0
|
Next, respondents were asked if they attended the Convocation ceremony. Nearly two-thirds of the respondents attended (Figure 2). Ninety-seven percent (n=205) said the ceremony made them feel very or somewhat welcome to the University. Respondents were then asked if they attended any Day One programs or activities. Half (50.3%, n=170) of the respondents did not attend any of these events (Figure 3).
Students answered questions regarding course registration and their correspondence with the University prior to the start of the semester. Almost nine-tenths (87.6%, n=196) felt that the information they received in the mail from UMass was either somewhat or very helpful in preparing them to start school (Figure 4). Upon receiving their registration packet, 44.1% (n=149) of the new students were very satisfied with their initial course schedule; an additional 34.0% (n=115) were somewhat satisfied.
A large majority of respondents used the telephone add/drop system to change their schedule (70.9%, n=238). More than one-quarter (28.7%, n=46) encountered difficulty when trying to change their schedule. Students also were asked how satisfied they are with their current course schedule. Almost all respondents are at least somewhat satisfied with their schedule (Figure 5).
Ninety-seven percent (n=328) of the respondents live on-campus. Over two-thirds (69.8%, n=229) of them were very or somewhat satisfied with the amount of time the Housing Assignment Office took to notify them of their housing assignment. Eighty-six percent of the respondents are satisfied with their current housing situation (Figure 6).
Next, students were asked, "How did you solve any problems you may have had at the start of the semester?" Nearly half (42.9%, n=144) of the students said they did not have any problems. Of those who reported having problems, more than half (53.6%, n=103) said they "visited an office," while more than a third (36.4%, n=70) said they solved their problems over the phone.
Nearly one-third (29.2%, n=70) of the students who received a financial aid award said it was either very or somewhat difficult for them and/or their parents to understand the award. Fewer than one-quarter (23.1%, n=77) of all respondents found the procedure for paying their bill either very or somewhat difficult. Only 10.9% (n=37) of the first-year students had difficulty finding their way around the University.
During the summer, over half (52.6, n=174) of the respondents called the University's toll-free 800 number with questions pertaining to housing, their bill, or financial aid. Four-fifths (82.2%, n=139) of those who used the 800 number found it very or somewhat helpful.
Students were read a list of offices they might have visited during the first few weeks of school and were asked to report how friendly or unfriendly they found the staff in each office (Figure 7).
Students were asked how knowledgeable they felt they were about campus safety and security issues. Almost nine out of ten (87.2%, n=298) felt very or somewhat knowledgeable. When asked how safe they felt walking around campus at night, seventy-eight percent said either very or somewhat safe.
Students were asked whether or not they had participated in First Week Activities. First Week programs were sponsored by the Student Activities Office and included a fall poster sale, reggae dances, the Jeep-Eagle Fitness Fair, and virtual reality. Sixty percent (n=204) reported that they attended one or two of these events, while thirty-two percent (n=109) said they did not attend any of these events.
Over two-thirds (71.9%, n=238) of the respondents said that they would be more likely to attend UMass football games if the opponents included teams from Division I-A schools such as Syracuse, Boston College, Notre Dame and Penn State. First-year students were asked how influential the success of the men's basketball team was in their decision to attend UMass (Figure 8).