UNTSCD-New Student Survey
University of North Texas System Center at Dallas
Fall 2000
Introduction and Summary
As of September 11, 2000 there were 96 "new students," undergraduates and graduates, for the fall 2000 semester enrolled at the University of North Texas System Center at Dallas. A survey was given as part of the required new student orientation attended by 110 students. Fifty-four of these new students completed the survey during the on-site registration process. The remaining 56 students were given the survey as part of their packet. Because they also had the opportunity to respond, they are included in the total number of surveys administered. Therefore, the response rate is 49%.
The survey used here is the same instrument used for the new students entering the University of North Texas’ main campus in Denton. Four questions were added and some minor changes made on several questions as to make this instrument specific to the System Center. This is the first time any version of this survey has been administered to new students at the System Center so there is no historical comparison. Nor is there a comparable group of "new students" students at the main campus that has taken the same survey to which the students at the System Center can be compared. (For fall 2000, the transfer students are only now receiving their surveys. The deadline for collecting those results has not passed.)
About the population. This survey does not report any sex, ethnic, or age demographic information since its intended use is as a supplement to the CIRP survey being used this year, for the first time, by the University of North Texas. So a program that accesses the student the database was used to gather the information on the System Center population. "New students" enrolled for fall 2000 at the UNT System Center are 55% undergraduates and 45% graduates, 69% female and 31% male, and 41% are either African-American (30%) or Hispanic (11%). This population is significantly different from the student population at the University of North Texas campus in Denton. (See Exhibit 1.) Among new System Center students, 69% are enrolled "only" at the System Center and 31% are also enrolled elsewhere in the UNT System, 29% are enrolled full time and 71% are enrolled part time. The average age is 32.8 years.
About the sample.1 This survey was administered during the new student orientation at the System Center. Of the students responding to the survey, 91% say they are enrolled only at the System Center. Therefore, in comparison to the System Center population, the sample in this survey over-reports those enrolled only at the System Center and under-reports those who are also enrolled elsewhere in the UNT system. This is important in that it may under represent the Hispanic population of students at the System Center, which is significantly higher in proportion than the Hispanic population at the main campus. Likewise, part time students are probably over-represented in this sample.
What is it about UNT that influenced your decision to attend? The single greatest influence on the decision to attend UNT at the System Center was its proximity to home, 89%. Other influences are "accreditation from national organizations for UNT programs" and "Close to where I work," both receiving mention by 39% of the respondents. "Advertisement about the System Center" was mentioned by 31%. On the low end are "advice from a teacher," 2%, "advice from current or former UNT student," 4%, and "one or both parents of my attended UNT," 4%. The lower ranking influences are considered to be consistent with the System Center’s targeted population of non-traditional students.
Education of parents and family. Only one student reported to have a parent ("mother") that attended UNT. One-third (33.3%) of respondents report having a sibling who has earned a 4-year degree.
Exhibit 1. Enrollment percentages by general demographics, classification, status and residence.
Description |
Group | University Enrollment |
System Center Enrollment |
||
Headcount |
N |
27,133 |
378 |
||
Ethnicity |
White |
73% |
57% |
||
African-Am |
9% |
30% |
|||
Hispanic |
8% |
11% |
|||
Asian-Am |
4% |
2% |
|||
Am-Native |
1% |
0% |
|||
Intl |
5% |
1% |
|||
Gender |
Female |
56% |
69% |
||
Male |
44% |
31% |
|||
Status |
Full time |
68% |
29% |
||
Part time |
32% |
71% |
|||
Classification |
Freshmen |
19% |
0% |
||
Sophomore |
16% |
5% |
|||
Junior |
17% |
20% |
|||
Senior |
26% |
29% |
|||
Graduate |
22% |
46% |
|||
Did you take a college course while in high school? Eighty percent of students report that they took "no college courses during high school," 4% took a college course from a "community/junior college," and 17% took a college course from a "senior college/university."
Years to complete degree. The majority of students expect to complete their degree in "4 years or less," 85%, while 6% plan to complete their degree in "5 years" and 2% expect to take "6 years." The remaining 7% either had "no response" or "do not plan to graduate from UNT."
Spring enrollment elsewhere. Only 28% of new students indicated they would be registering someplace other than at UNT in the spring 2001 semester. Those who listed the other institutions named DCCCD schools (Cedar Valley, Mountain View, Eastfield) and TCCCD schools. Also mentioned were two other 4-year institutions, Paul Quinn and UT-Arlington.
Distance from System Center. As mentioned earlier, the single greatest influence on the decision to attend UNT at the System Center was its proximity to home. The average distance from home to the System Center for new students is 12 miles, with 50% living within 10 miles.
Areas where help is perceived as needed. Although "adjustment to college" was only reported as a need by 15% of the respondents, "advising" (87%), "study skills" (42%) and "time management" (35%) indicate that adjustment to college, or rather "readjustment" to college, is indeed the most important area of need. Next was "career planning" with 33%. Least reported as a need was "chemical abuse support," 0%, followed by "life planning services," 6%, and "communication skills" and "child care" both with 7%. Again, these reflect a non-traditional student population, with the probable exception of "child care."
Impression of UNT student services. (Percentages based on total number of students expressing and opinion) New System Center students "strongly agree" or "agree" that "UNT Admissions responded to my request for information in a timely manner" (90%), that the "admissions procedures were easy" (90%), that "my major department at UNT responded to my request for information in a timely manner" (83%), and that "new student orientation was helpful" (84%). Also, 76% "agree" or "strongly agree" that the "registration and fee payment processes were easy to understand," and only 84% agreed that "Financial Aid at the System Center responded to my request for information in a timely manner."
Other Information. Only 61% of new students gave an opinion on the UNT System Center Web site. Of them, 76% rated the web site as "excellent" or "outstanding." Fifty-two percent of new students would like to join a student organization. As for enrollment in courses, 13% have taken classes at the main campus in Denton, 9% are doing so along with their enrollment at the System Center, and almost two-thirds say they would not have "enrolled in this class if it was not offered at the System Center," (65%).
What can we do to help achieve your educational goals? The general theme seems to be offer more classes and in more disciplines. Another good suggestion was to offer more evening classes.
A list of the survey items, with response frequencies and percentages, is provided on the following pages.
1 Report: R7NTSC2A, Office of Institutional Research and Accreditation
Back
Institutional Research and Accreditation