Executive Summary: Eighty-five percent of the ALANA students surveyed said they are “somewhat” or “very” satisfied with their "University experience." Four-fifths reported satisfaction with their "academic progress." Two-fifths expressed dissatisfaction with the academic advising they have received from University faculty. Over one-half of the respondents are “very” or “somewhat” dissatisfied with the services provided by the Financial Aid Office and with their financial aid package. Eighty-four percent of the students surveyed agree with the statement, “Most students at UMass are treated like numbers, not people.” Slightly more than two-thirds agree that "Administrators at UMass do not seem to care about students." One-half of the students surveyed said they think racial harassment is a problem at UMass this year at least to some extent.

On Wednesday, March 5, 1997, Project Pulse conducted a survey for Rick Townes, Assistant Vice Chancellor for Student Affairs. The survey investigated ALANA (African, Latino, Asian and Native American) students' satisfaction with campus life and a variety of University services. The majority of items utilized in this survey are from the UMass Cycles Survey, which is conducted each Spring using a random sample of undergraduates. Project Pulse interviewers attempted to contact 1051 undergraduate students who had been randomly selected from the ALANA student population on the University’s student database. Pulse interviewers successfully contacted 361 students and 323 (89.5%) agreed to participate in the survey. The response rate for the survey was 36%. The final disposition of the calling list is presented in Table 1. The average age of the respondents was 20 years with 51% male (n=187) and 49% (n=181) female. Additional demographics of the respondents are shown in Table 2.

Initially, students were asked how satisfied they are this semester with five general issues: their university experience, academic progress, academic experience, residential experience and social life. Students were most satisfied with their social life and least satisfied with their academic experience (See Figure 1). African-American students were more likely than Asian or Latino students to report dissatisfaction with their academic experience (35.1% vs. 15.4% and 17.1%, p=.003).

Figure 1: Student satisfaction with their “university experience,” “academic progress,”
“academic experience,” “social life,” “residential experience.”
(Percent reporting “satisfied” or “very satisfied”)

Next, Pulse interviewers questioned students on their satisfaction this semester with specific aspects of their University experience. When asked how satisfied they have been with the accessibility of faculty, almost 30% (27.8%, n=95) of the students surveyed indicated that they are either “very” or “somewhat” dissatisfied (See Figure 2). Additionally, forty-one percent (n=134) of the students surveyed reported that they are “very” or “somewhat” dissatisfied with the academic advising they have received from University faculty.

Figure 2: How satisfied have you been with the accessibility of faculty?

Over fifty-percent (55.5%, n=172) of the students reported that they are “very” or “somewhat” dissatisfied with the services provided by the Financial Aid office (see Figure 3) and fifty-two percent (n=162) of the students reported that they are “very” or “somewhat” dissatisfied with their financial aid package. Over three-quarters (78.6%, n=253) of those surveyed said they are “very” or “somewhat” satisfied with the security on campus and seventy-four percent (n=231) said they are “very” or “somewhat” satisfied with programmed social activities such as movies or concerts.

Figure 3: How satisfied have you been with the services provided by the Financial Aid office?

Students who live on campus (n=294) were asked three questions about their satisfaction with their residence halls. Seventy-nine percent (n=179) said they are “very” or “somewhat” satisfied with their professional live-in housing staff, while eighty-three percent (n=229) reported that they are “very” or “somewhat” satisfied with their student, live-in housing staff. Finally, eighty-two percent (n=232) of the on-campus students surveyed indicated that they are “very” or “somewhat” satisfied with the security in the residence halls. African-American students were more likely to report being “very” or “somewhat” dissatisfied with the security in the residence halls than Asian or Latino students (30.1% vs. 11.4% and 8.5%, p=.0114).

The next battery of questions asked students to comment on how much they feel they have made progress in seven personal and professional areas. These seven areas areas follows: 1) acquiring applicable knowledge and skills for a career, 2) becoming aware of different philosophies, cultures, and ways of life, 3) understanding one’s abilities, interests, personality, and self, 4) developing an ability to learn independently and pursue ideas, 5) developing an understanding and enjoyment of art, music and drama, 6) developing leadership skills, 7) working effectively in groups. Table 3 displays the percentages of students who feel they have made “very little,” “some,” “quite a bit,” or “very much” progress in each of the seven areas.

Students were read four attitudinal statements pertaining to the University, and were asked to report their level of agreement or disagreement with each. Four-fifths (81.4%, n=297) of the students surveyed agreed either "strongly" or "somewhat" that "UMass is a good place to find out who you are." Eighty-four percent (n=307) agreed that "Most students at UMass are treated like numbers, not people." Approximately two-fifths (42.1% (n=154) disagreed that 'Faculty members at Umass are concerned about undergraduates' academic progress." Finally, slightly more than two-thirds (67.4%, n=241)agreed that "Administrators at UMass do not seem to care about students."

Interviewers also collected information on students’ perceptions of discrimination, harassment, ethnic diversity, and alcohol and drug use at UMass. When asked, “In your view, to what extent is discrimination on the basis of social class a problem at UMass this year?” forty percent (n=142) said “to some extent,” fifteen percent (n=51) said “to a great extent,” and ten percent (n=34) said “to a very great extent.” Figure 4 displays the responses to the question, “In your view, to what extent is racial harassment a problem at UMass this year?”

Figure 4: In your view, to what extent is racial harassment a problem at UMass this year?

Students also were asked about the extent to which they think lack of racial or ethnic diversity is a problem at UMass. Almost two-thirds (63.3%, n=231) of the students reported that they think a lack of racial or ethnic diversity is a problem at least “to some extent.” (See Figure 5.)

Figure 5: In your view, to what extent is lack of racial or ethnic diversity a problem at UMass this year?

Thirty-eight percent (n=137) of the students said they believe alcohol use is a problem at UMass “to a very great extent,” and one-third (32.6%, n=114) indicated that they think drug use is a problem “to a very great extent.”

Finally, students were asked to think about additional personal experiences at UMass. Figure 6 shows the responses to the question, “During this semester, have you considered withdrawing for any reason from the University?” Students also were asked about how lonely they have felt this semester. Over one-quarter (28.2%, n=102) said they have felt lonely at least “to some extent.”

Figure 6: During this semester, have you considered withdrawing for any reason from the University?

Students who reported feeling lonely "to a great extent" or "to a very great extent" were more likely to have considered withdrawing than students who did not experience loneliness (45% vs. 24%, p=.0156). Similarly students who reported dissatisfaction with their academic experience were more likely to have considered withdrawing than students who reported satisfaction with their academic experience (44.3% vs. 22.6%, p=0001).

Item-by-Item