UNC Asheville Students Engaged in the Right Stuff;
National Survey Affirms UNC Asheville's Approach to Teaching and Learning

UNC Asheville has earned high marks in the National Survey of Student Engagement, released November 15, 2004. The survey gives participating schools an idea of how well students are learning and what students put into and get out of their college experience. Some 163,000 first-year and senior students at 472 U.S. colleges and universities participated in the survey, conducted this past spring.

The results for UNC Asheville show that the university is clearly meeting its mission as an institution focused on teaching and learning, close student-faculty interaction, and community service, said Mark Padilla, UNC Asheville Provost and Vice Chancellor for Academic and Student Affairs.

The survey results are reported for five key areas, all of which measure the time and energy that students put into activities that lead to better learning, critical thinking, civic involvement, and other benefits. Among the first-year students surveyed, UNC Asheville was in the top 20 percent nationally for level of academic challenge, and in the top 30 percent nationally for student-faculty interaction, enriching educational experience, supportive campus environment, and active and collaborative learning. Among the seniors surveyed, UNC Asheville was in the top 30 percent nationally for level of academic challenge, student-faculty interaction, enriching educational experience, and supportive campus environment, and in the top 40 percent for active and collaborative learning.

“UNC Asheville is delighted to learn that this objective measure of our progress in creating a nurturing and academically challenging environment confirms that our students are, in fact, developing intellectual and moral awareness, educational skill sets, and community-building values.  The National Survey of Student Engagement is a clear affirmation of our collective dedication to become a premier liberal arts college, one that performs impressively on the national stage,” said Padilla.

Many specific items on the survey point to UNC Asheville’s focus on teaching and learning. For example, 51 percent of first-year students and 76 percent of seniors often put together ideas or concepts from different courses when completing assignments or during class discussions. Similarly, 79 percent of first-year students and 86 percent of seniors report that their coursework emphasizes synthesizing and organizing ideas, information, or experiences “quite a bit” or “very much.”

Other survey results demonstrate UNC Asheville’s emphasis on close student-faculty interaction. For example, 69 percent of first-year students and 84 percent of seniors at UNC Asheville reported discussing ideas from classes with faculty members outside of class; 51 percent of first-year students and 68 percent of seniors reported working with faculty members on activities other than coursework; and on a scale of 1 to 7 that rates the quality of  relationships with faculty members, with 7 being the best, the average rating given by first-year students was 6.04 and by seniors was 6.03.

Additional survey items point to success in civic engagement and community service.  Seventy-eight percent of first-year students and 66 percent of seniors participated in a community-based project as part of a regular course; 57 percent of first-year students and 70 percent of seniors participated in community service or volunteer work with additional students planning to do so before graduating; and 39 percent of first-year students and 37 of percent seniors report that UNC Asheville contributed “very much” or “quite a bit” to their voting in local, state and national elections.

The National Survey of Student Engagement, an initiative of The Pew Charitable Trusts, is designed to survey undergraduates directly about their educational experiences. Colleges and universities have been participating in growing numbers since its inception in 2000. Survey items represent “good practices” in undergraduate education and reflect behaviors by students and institutions that are associated with desired outcomes of college.

“Engagement is a critical factor in the educational process because the more time and energy students devote to desired activities, the more likely they are to develop habits of the mind that are key to success after college, including participating in civic affairs,” said George Kuh, the National Survey of Student Engagement director and Indiana University-Bloomington professor of higher education. “In addition, engagement is linked to grades and graduation, outcomes that everyone agrees are important.”

Media Contact:

• Merianne Epstein, UNC Asheville Public Information director, 828/251-6676