USA Today makes NSSE results public; SMU ranks above national average

WINONA, Minn. — A different kind of college assessment survey shows that Saint Mary's University students are engaged with, and learn more from, their college experience.

Saint Mary's is one of 610 colleges and universities who participated this year in the National Survey of Student Engagement (NSSE). The NSSE, conducted through Indiana University, looks at how actively involved students are with their studies, professors and the campus community. Research shows that the more engaged students are, the more likely they are to learn. NSSE is becoming increasingly recognized as a more authentic indicator of college quality than traditional rankings.

USA Today has partnered with NSSE to publish a guide in print and online to show how NSSE can enhance the college search. Of the 1,000 schools recently surveyed by NSSE, only 257 — including Saint Mary’s — agreed to make their results public. Go online to www.usatoday.com/news/education for NSSE survey stories and college data; go to www.smumn.edu/nsse for Saint Mary's results and the NSSE college guide.

"The NSSE allows colleges to understand what they do especially well, and what they can improve upon, based on comparison with data from other colleges," said Dr. Thomas Mans, SMU vice president for academic affairs.

Mans said NSSE results show that Saint Mary’s provides a distinctive and superior college experience compared with institutions nationally and even with other small, liberal arts colleges in the Midwest. In many important categories, SMU students’ responses were much more favorable than the comparison groups.

Freshman and senior students were asked last spring to answer 85 questions. Their responses were combined to form summary benchmark scores in the areas of academic challenge, student-faculty interaction, supportive campus environment, enriching educational experiences, and active/collaborative learning.

For freshmen, the average Saint Mary's score on four out of the five benchmarks was significantly higher than the national average. (In the category of enriching educational experiences, Saint Mary's scored slightly below the average.) For seniors, the scores on all five benchmark areas were higher than the national sample.

"The scores show that our students are engaged in activities that aid learning, by faculty with whom they interact well, in a setting that supports them," according to Dr. Patrick Barlow, SMU director of college assessment.

Barlow noted that "while the results paint a good picture of the quality of the learning experience at Saint Mary’s, the survey also indicated some areas for further growth — specifically in the areas of freshman appreciation of and experience with diversity. The college community is looking at ways to improve this aspect of our students' learning experience."