OIRA Surveys
The 2023 National Survey of Stduent Engageent (NSSE) is being administered now! The survey goes to most first-year students and also those seniors likely to graduate in spring or summer. Check your email and Canvas over the next week for the invitatiom. For more information, see below, or go here.
The Office of Institutional Research and Assessment has developed a comprehensive survey program designed to gather information about student backgrounds, and their experiences while enrolled and after they graduate from American University. In addition, student satisfaction and evaluation information is also collected. Below, there are descriptions of each of the surveys that are a part of the program.
All first-time first years are asked to complete the Summer Transition Survey during their first weeks at American University. The survey asked about students' initial impressions about AU, their decision to come to AU, and their expectations for academic and social life.
The Campus Climate Survey has been conducted by the Office of Institutional Research and Assessment since 1992. The survey is used to collect data about student satisfaction with various aspects of campus life. The survey was substantially revised in 2017, and conducted again in spring 2019. It is currently being administered (February 2023).
The National Survey of Student Engagement (NSSE) asks students at hundreds of colleges and universities to reflect on the time they devote to various learning activities. The topics explored are linked to previous research on student success in college. The survey is administered to new freshmen students and seniors.
What is engagement, according to NSSE?
Student engagement represents two critical features of collegiate quality. The first is the amount of time and effort students put into their studies and other educationally purposeful activities. The second is how the institution deploys its resources and organizes the curriculum and other learning opportunities to get students to participate in activities that decades of research studies show are linked to student learning.
American University participates in NSSE every other year, most recently in Spring 2018. It will be adminstered again in Spring 2023 . You can contact the Office of Institutional Research and Assessment at oira@american.edu for more information, or visit http://nsse.iub.edu.
The Graduation Census is administered to all undegraduate and graduate students who apply for graduation. It asks students for information regarding their employment and graduate school plans. The Graduation Census also asks about the student's level of satisfaction with academic program and overall experience at AU and about their participation in activites like internships, study abroad and community service.
For more detailed results, see the We Know Success, which allows you to filter results at the school and program levels.
Surveys @ AU
The Assistant Provost of Institutional Research and Assessment, Karen Froslid Jones, coordinates survey research activity on campus. If you are interested in surveying members of the AU community, please contact Karen at (202)885-6155 or kfroslid@american.edu as soon as possible prior to conducting your research.
If your survey is for research purposes, as opposed to assessing your services or program, you may need to submit your proposal to the Institutional Review Board (IRB) prior to conducting your research. To learn more about the IRB, what types of research require IRB proposal or to submit a proposal, please go to the Institutional Review Board.