Data mining provides both systematic and systemic ways to detect patterns of student engagement among students at hundreds of institutions. Using traditional statistical techniques alone, the task would be significantly difficult--if not impossible--considering the size and complexity in both data and analytical approaches necessary for this…

Discusses how the National Survey of Student Engagement reveals a different way to evaluate the quality of undergraduate education--not based on institutional resources and public reputation. (EV)

While most institutions know how many of their faculty members have terminal degrees and the number of books in the library, too few have reliable information about the frequency with which first-year students discuss ideas with faculty members outside class, how much time they spend on academic activities, or how often they interact with students…

This study compared college seniors' self-evaluation of skills considered important for lifelong learning from the mid-1980s to the mid-1990s. The study used data from the College Student Experiences Questionnaire (CSEQ), a national database begun in 1983 which includes over 200,000 student records from over 600 colleges and universities. An index…

This study examined college activities and environmental factors associated with the acquisition of continuous learning skills, looking at where students who report the greatest gains in continuous learning devote the most time and energy and at the student and institutional characteristics associated with above-average gains in the capacity for…

The few studies focusing on the relationships between higher education expenditures and student outcomes have produced contradictory results. This study hypothesized that the lack of consistent relationships is a function of the fact that the effects of expenditures on outcomes are mediated by student engagement. Furthermore, it is expected that…

This report is an abridged version of work performed for the National Postsecondary Education Cooperative to synthesize the relevant literature and emerging findings related to student success, broadly defined (Kuh and others, 2006). The author's purpose is to provide an informed perspective on policies, programs, and practices that can make a…

Studies of the relationships between higher education expenditures and student outcomes are relatively rare. The present research examined the relationships between higher education expenditures and students' engagement in educationally purposeful activities. Findings indicate that the relationships between expenditures and student engagement are…

This study compared the levels of student engagement between fraternity and sorority members and other undergraduate students. After controls, Greek members appeared to be equally and sometimes more engaged in academically challenging tasks, active learning, student-faculty interaction, community service, diversity, satisfaction, and on learning…

Differences in student engagement between women and men at historically Black colleges and universities (HBCUs) are examined in this study. Data were collected from 1,167 African American undergraduate students at 12 four-year HBCUs that participated in the National Survey of Student Engagement. Controlling for several factors that might obscure…

The college-choice process is complex and affects many high school students, family members and public policy-makers, as well as institutions of higher education. This report provides an overview of the college-choice process for traditional-age students and examines how it has evolved during the last half of the 20th century. Material from the…

Examined the responses of 58,288 college students to 8 scales involving 53 items from the National Survey of Student Engagement to gauge whether individuals respond differently to surveys administered via the Web and paper. Found that mode effects were generally small; however, students who completed the Web-based survey responded more favorably…

Academic selectivity plays a dominant role in the public's understanding of what constitutes institutional excellence or quality in undergraduate education. In this study, we analyzed two independent data sets to estimate the net effect of three measures of college selectivity on dimensions of documented good practices in undergraduate education.…

This second volume of "Proving and Improving" collects essays from the First-Year Assessment Listserv, which is hosted by the Policy Center on the First Year of College and the National Resource Center. Like the first volume, this one brings together the nation's leading experts and practitioners of assessment in the first college year.…