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SARIS - Student Affaris Research, Information and Systems
Housing Services Survey (S99-A)
Executive Summary: Almost three-quarters of those questioned said they know who their Residence Director (RD) is, while only half said they know the identity of their Assistant Residence Director (ARD). Nearly three-quarters reported that they speak with their RA at least once per week. When asked how consistently residence hall policies are enforced on their floors, more than four-fifths said that enforcement is consistent. Roughly the same proportion of students expressed satisfaction with the way alcohol and drug policy violations are addressed in their residence hall. Nearly one-third reported that they had not attended any residence hall programs or activities this year. Three-quarters of respondents think that their residence hall experience has been helpful in their education on issues of diversity. Four-fifths rated the security system in their residence hall as effective.
On Tuesday, February 9, 1999, Project Pulse conducted a telephone survey for Housing Services investigating quality of life in the residence halls. Pulse interviewers attempted to contact 747 on-campus residents who were randomly selected by computer from the University’s database. Of these, 437 were successfully contacted and 325 (75%) agreed to be interviewed. See Table 1 for the final disposition of the sample and Table 2 for a demographic summary of the respondents. The response rate for the survey was 43.5%. Sampling error is plus or minus approximately five percentage points.
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Table 1: Final Dispositon
of the Sample
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N
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% of Total
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% of Contacted
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| Response rate (In & cooperated) |
325
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43.5
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75.0
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| In, declined interview |
112
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25.0
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25.0
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| Not in |
310
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41.5
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| Totals |
*747
|
100.0
|
100.0
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| * Excludes 12 sampled students with unobtainable phone numbers. | |||
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Table 2: Demographic
Summary of the Responents
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| First-year student |
48.7%
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| Sophomore |
29.9%
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| Junior |
13.2%
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| Senior |
7.9%
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| Graduate student |
0.3%
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| Female |
48.7%
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| Male |
51.3%
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Average age = 19.3 years
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First, all respondents were asked if they had lived in a UMass residence hall
the previous semester. The 10.4% (n=37) who said they had not were asked no
further questions. In addition, thirteen of the remaining 320 respondents reported
that they are currently Resident Assistants. These thirteen students also were
asked no further questions. The remaining 306 students reported having lived
in UMass residence halls for 2.19 semesters on average.
RESIDENCE HALL LIFE
Almost three-quarters of those questioned (74.3%,
n=225) said that they know who their Residence Director (RD) is, while only
50.7% (n=153) said they know the identity of their Assistant Residence Director
(ARD). Nearly three-quarters of respondents (73%, n=222) reported that they
speak with their RA at least once per week. Only 5.3% (n=16) said they never
speak to their RA.
When asked how well the House Council government represents their needs and
interests, one-half (50.7%, n=155) of the students reported having no basis
for judgement. Of the 146 students who were able to respond to this question,
22.6% (n=33) said “very well,” and 46.6% (n=68) said “somewhat
well.”
Students were questioned about the programs and activities scheduled in the residence halls. As illustrated in Figure 1, nearly one-third of the students (31.4%, n=96) reported that they had not attended any residence hall programs or activities this year. The majority of students said they find out about residence hall programs and activities from either their Resident Assistant (RA) (48.8%, n=148) or from fliers or other printed sources (46.9%, n=142). As illustrated in Figure 2, 56.3%(n=168) of students reported that their RA presents social programs very or somewhat often, and 40.7% (n=119) said that educational programs are presented very or somewhat often. Four-fifths (80.7%, n=238) feel that they have an opportunity to give their opinions on the programs and activities planned for their residence hall floors.
Nearly all students (89.5%, n=273) agreed that their responsibilities as floor members “were clearly outlined at the beginning of the semester.” Four-fifths (81.3%, n=161) reported that they feel very or somewhat comfortable confronting other residents if their own rights are being infringed upon. When asked how consistently residence hall policies are enforced on their floors, 83.7% (n=252) said that enforcement is consistent. Roughly the same proportion of students (79.7%, n=235) expressed satisfaction with the way alcohol and drug policy violations are addressed in their residence halls. When asked how helpful they have found the Residence Hall Manual, 14.4% (n=44) of the students said they do not have one or do not use it. Of those who have a manual, one-fifth (19.1%, n=49) said they find it “very helpful,” and 61.9% (n=159) find it “somewhat helpful.”
Four-fifths of the students (82.9%, n=237) agreed either strongly or somewhat that Residence Life staff members “make diversity issues a priority in their work.” As illustrated in Figure 3, the vast majority of students (75.7%, n=224) think that their residence hall experience has been helpful in their education on issues of diversity.
HOUSING ASSIGNMENTS
Students were asked which of two offices they would go to first if faced with a problem with a housing assignment. Slightly more than half of the respondents (53.7%, n=159) said that they would go to the Housing Assignments Office, while slightly more than one-quarter (27.4%, n=81) said Residence Life staff. Nearly one-half of the students indicated having reported problems to the Housing Assignments Office in the past, while a slightly lower proportion said they had reported problems to Residence Life staff. Students who had reported problems were asked to rate the effectiveness of office staff in responding to their problems. As illustrated in Figure 4, nearly two-fifths (39.6%, n=59) of students reported that Housing Assignments Office staff handled their problems ineffectively. Most students (92.6%, n=277) said that Cluster Office staff respond effectively when their assistance is needed with issues such as key checkouts and maintenance requests.
MAIL SERVICES
Slightly more than one-half (54.2%, n=166) of those surveyed reported having had no problems with their mail service. Of the 137 students who had experienced problems with mail service, slightly more than one-third (35.1%, n=48) disagreed with the statement, “Mail service problems you experience are responded to in an appropriate manner.” Nearly one-quarter of all respondents (23.3%, n=71) disagreed with the statement, “You are satisfied with the mail service system currently employed.”
FACILITIES AND MAINTENANCE
Respondents were read a series of statements about the physical condition and maintenance of the residence halls, and were asked to indicate the extent to which they agree or disagree with each (the response categories were “agree strongly,” “agree somewhat,” “disagree somewhat,” and “disagree strongly”). Figure 5 illustrates each statement and the proportion of students who said they “agree strongly" or "agree somewhat.”
SECURITY
When asked to rate the effectiveness of the security system in their residence hall, 80.9% (n=246) of those surveyed said that the system is effective (see Figure 6). The vast majority of those questioned (87.5%, n=266) agreed either strongly or somewhat that night security workers consistently enforce hall access and guest sign-in policies.
Figure 6: Students’ perceptions of the effectiveness of the security system in their residence hall
