Appendix U2014-2015

Staff Survey

Thank you for your interest in sharing your experiences and perspectives of supporting postsecondary student success. We know that your time is valuable and we greatly appreciate your assistance with this project.

Context:Student success is often defined in a multitude of ways that may include students developing a sense of belonging, learning about themselves and their beliefs, gaining the skills and knowledge in their academic field of choice, becoming ready for the workforce, and completing their course of study to earn a credential, among others. Although students enroll in postsecondary institutions for a number of reasons, the overwhelming majority does so with the intention of completing a course of study. From an institution’s perspective, “student success” is often described as retaining students over the course of their studies until they graduate. Thus, retention is a key component of student success. For the purpose of this study, the terms “student success” and “retention” are used interchangeably throughout the survey.

Purpose:This survey examines your awareness, engagement and perception of your institution’s efforts to retain undergraduate students to graduation and credential completion (such as a degree, diploma or certificate) and takes approximately 20 minutes to complete. It asks you to reflect on how your immediate work unit and institution supports undergraduate student retention/success and your contributions to those efforts. Your participation is voluntary and your responses will be kept confidential. No personally identifiable information will be associated with your responses in any reports of these data. You may skip questions or exit the survey at any time without penalty.

Instructions: Please complete the survey only once. If you cannot complete the survey in one sitting you can click on the “save and continue later” button at the bottom of the page. You can bookmark this link or provide your e-mail address to receive a web link that you will use when you are ready to complete the survey. As you finish each page and proceed to the next, your data will be submitted for processing. You can back up and change your answers on the previous page by using the “Back” button on the screen. Please do not use the “Back” button in your browser. Throughout the survey you will see a (?) symbol next to some items. By placing your cursor on the symbol you will see examples/definitions of key terms.

By clicking on “Next” at the bottom of the page, you consent to participate in the survey.

Demographic Questions

1. Identify the nature of your current position during winter 2015.

Staff, I have no for-credit classroom teaching responsibilities.

Staff, but I have some for-credit classroom teaching responsibilities.

Staff, but more than half of my job includes for-credit classroom teaching.

2. How many years have you been employed at this institution? Please include full-timeand non-full-time employment (round to the nearest whole number).

3. Recognizing that the organizational structure of programs and services differs by institution, please identify the primary focus of your current position.

Aboriginal Student Services

Academic Advising – at the program, faculty or institutional level

Accessibility/Disability services

Admissions and Recruitment

Athletics & Recreation

Assessment and Evaluation

Career Services

Communications and Media

Co-op, internship or other work-integrated learning

Counselling & Psychological Services

Ombuds Office

Orientation/Transition and First Year Experience programs

Registrarial Services

Religious and Spiritual Programs

Service-learning and Civic/community Engagement programs

Student Government/organization advising

Student Conduct/Judicial affairs

Technology, including portal development and maintenance

Town-gown Relations

Wellness Programs and Services

11 Additional Options Available…

If the primary focus of your current position was not in the list above, please write it in here:

 

4. How many years have you been at your current position (round to the nearest whole number)?

5. Identify the number of staff (full-time and non-full-time, including student staff) for whom you have direct supervisory responsibility in each of the categories listed below.

Non-union staff (professional/managerial)

 

Unionized staff  

Casual/contract staff  

Volunteers  

Developing Awareness

Postsecondary institutions use a number of different ways to inform faculty and staff about programs and services designed to support undergraduate student success (such as peer mentoring, personal counselling, writing/math centres to name a few). The next set of questions asks you to reflect on how staff and administrators at your institution may have communicated the existence of these programs and services to you.

6. In your most recent orientation (including departmental and institution-wide), how much time was dedicated to sharing about the programs and services in place at your institution designed to support undergraduate student success?

We do not have an orientation

We have an orientation but I did not attend

No time

Less than two hours

2 to 4 hours

More than 4 hours

I don’t recall

7a. Prior to this academic year, rate your familiarity with programs and services designed to support undergraduate student success.

Not at all familiar

Somewhat familiar

Familiar

Very familiar

7b. Thinking about the current academic year (September 2014-present), please indicate how often you have learned about new or existing programs and services that support undergraduate student success through the following ways.

I have not learned in this way

Once this year

Once a term

More than once a term

Informally from students

Informally from student affairs and services staff

Informally from my academic unit staff

Informally from faculty members

During scheduled meetings

From listservs/newsletters (print or online)

From an institutionally-distributed resource manual or handbook

From my own web searches (website and social media)

Professional development events

What other ways have you learned about programs and services at your institution?

8. The next three sections of this question asks about your awareness of and referrals to a set of programs and/or services in the current academic year.

I'm unaware

of this

Unavailable at my

institution

Available at my institution but

I have not referred

I rarely refer

I occasionally

refer

I regularly

refer

Aboriginal Student Services

Academic Advising – at the program, faculty or institutional level

Accessibility/Disability Services

Athletics & Recreation

Career Services

Co-op, Internships, and other Work-Integrated Learning

Counselling & Psychological Services

Equity Offices and Programs

Financial Aid, Bursaries, Emergency Loans

First-Generation Student Services

Food Bank

Health Services

Housing & Residence Life

International Student Services, including Study Abroad

Learning Support Services 

Leadership Development Programs

Library

Ombuds office

8. ContinuedI'm

unaware of this

Unavailable at my institution

Available at my institution but I have not

referred

I rarely refer

I occasionally

refer

I regularly

refer

Orientation (includes Academic, FROSH, Specific Program/Services)

Registrarial Services 

Religious, Multi-Faith and Spiritual Programs

Service-Learning and Community/Civic Engagement

Student Clubs and Organizations

Student Conduct / Judicial Affairs

Undergraduate Research Opportunities

What other programs and services have you referred students to?

Engaging Across Campus

In addition to being aware of and making referrals to programs and services that support undergraduate student success, faculty may partner with other faculty and with staff members who work in a host of areas across campus. Partnering may take many different forms, including working together to streamline administrative processes for students, being part of an event coordinated by this area, inviting staff or faculty to make a presentation, or developing a new initiative through ongoing collaboration.

Please recall, for the purpose of this study, the terms “student success” and “retention” are used interchangeably throughout the survey.

9. Indicate your level of agreement with the following statements.

Strongly disagree

Disagree

Neither agree nor disagree

Agree Strongly agree

I regularly refer undergraduate students to speak to their faculty members.

I work closely with faculty to support undergraduate students’ success.

I value faculty members’ expertise as it relates to undergraduate students’ success.

I feel most of the faculty with whom I work value my expertise.

I work closely with student affairs and services staff in ways that promote students’ success.

I regularly refer a student to other administrative staff with relevant expertise to ensure the student’s success.

I value student affairs and services staff members’ expertise.

When I see a student in crisis, I know whom to contact to support the student.

In times of crises, I feel staff and faculty from across the institution pull together to support the student.

I feel I contribute to the institution’s efforts to support student success.

10. Indicate if you have been involved in some form of partnership with any of the areas listed below.

I have never partnered with

someone from this area.

I have partnered in this area in the past but not

this academic year.

I have an ongoing partnership with

someone from this area.

Academic Services *

Administrative Services 

Alumni or Development

Experiential/Career Education 

Personal Well-Being 

Student Life 

Services for Specific Populations of Students 

Community Outreach 

Individual Faculty Member or Course

An Academic Program/ Department

10b. Of the partnership(s) you identified in the previous question, select the one you find the most important for supporting student success and describe the goal of the partnership and the outcome?

* In the on-line survey, examples of selected areas were presented in a hover format using the (?) symbol.

11. Identify the extent to which the following people have encouraged you to partner with areas across your institution.

Strongly discouraged

Discouraged

Not discouraged but not

encouraged

Encouraged Strongly encouraged

Students

Student affairs and services colleagues

Direct supervisor

Academic program, department or faculty staff

Faculty members

Academic program coordinators or directors

Senior administrative leaders

11b. Describe how you have been encouraged/discouraged to partner with others from across the institution to support undergraduate student success.

Your Perceptions of Supporting Student Success

The next set of questions asks you to share your perceptions regarding your immediate work unit’s efforts to support undergraduate student retention as a part of student success. By immediate work unit, we refer to your closest colleagues that you work with daily.

12. Indicate your level of agreement with the following statements. Overall, I feel my immediate work unit does a good job of:

Strongly disagree

Disagree Neither agree nor disagree

Agree Strongly agree

Not my unit’s role

Keeping me informed about the academic support services where I can refer students who are having difficulties.

Keeping me informed about the personal support services where I can refer students who are having difficulties.

Conveying to students the sense that, if they make the effort, they can succeed here.

Conveying to students the sense that they “belong” here.

Facilitating students’ involvement in the institution’s academic activities

Facilitating students’ involvement in the institution’s non-academic activities

13. Indicate your level of agreement with the following statements.

Strongly disagree

Disagree Neither agree nor disagree

Agree

Strongly agree

Don’t know

My unit has a comprehensive approach to helping undergraduate students succeed.

My unit has a coordinated approach to helping undergraduate students succeed.

Undergraduate student success is a priority for my unit.

My unit has stated goals and objectives for undergraduate student retention.

My unit actively pursues stated goals and objectives related to undergraduate student retention.

I feel my colleagues communicate and work together in an organized way to support undergraduate students’ success.

Senior student affairs and services administrators (VP and directors) provide clear leadership in promoting undergraduate students’ success.

Messages about the area’s undergraduate student retention efforts influence how I approach my day-to-day work.

I feel that my unit receives the resources needed to realize its undergraduate student retention objectives.

Recognizing that postsecondary institutions are complex organizations and people tend to be most familiar with the practices and policies of their immediate work unit, the next two sets of questions ask how you perceive your institution’s efforts to support undergraduate student retention as a part of student success.

14. Indicate your level of agreement with the following statements. Overall, I feel this institution does a good job of:

Strongly disagree

Disagree

Neither agree nor disagree

Agree

Strongly agree

Keeping me informed about the academic support services where I can refer students who are having difficulties.

Keeping me informed about the personal support services where I can refer students who are having difficulties.

Conveying to students the sense that, if they make the effort, they can succeed here.

Conveying to students the sense that they “belong” here.

Facilitating students’ involvement in the institution’s academic activities.

Facilitating students’ involvement in the institution’s non-academic   activities.

15. Indicate your level of agreement with the following statements.

Strongly disagree

Disagree

Neither agree nor disagree

Agree Strongly agree

Don’t know

This institution has a comprehensive approach to helping undergraduate students succeed.

This institution has a coordinated approach to helping undergraduate students succeed.

Undergraduate student success is a priority for this institution.

This institution has stated goals and objectives for undergraduate student retention.

This institution actively pursues stated goals and objectives related to undergraduate student retention.

Areas that deal with undergraduate student issues communicate and work together in an organized way to support students’ success.

Senior administrative leaders provide clear leadership in promoting undergraduate students’ success.

Messages about the institution’s undergraduate student retention efforts influence how I approach my day-to-day work.

I feel the institution has invested the resources needed to realize its undergraduate student retention objectives.

If there is anything else you would care to share with the Supporting Student Success research team regarding the institution’s or your personal efforts to support undergraduate student retention, please use the space below.

Thank you for taking the time to complete our survey. Your responses will help NAME OF INSITUTION support undergraduate student success. If you would like to learn more about the Supporting Student Success research study we invite you to visit our website. Here, you will find a study overview as well as a list of our presentations and publications.