This spring, the University of Wisconsin-La Crosse campus is participating in the National Survey of Student Engagement (NSSE), a survey designed to capture a wide range of students’ experiences with campus life, that helps our faculty and staff understand our areas of strength and areas for improvement.

UWL participates in a three-year cycle along with all other UW System campuses in this project.  The survey, coordinated by the Indiana University Center for Postsecondary Research, specifically seeks the responses of first-year and senior students so we are able to get a picture of students at entry and exit from campus.

The questions on the NSSE relate to students’ study habits, use of time, and quality of relationships with students, staff, and faculty, as well as their exposure to different teaching strategies and high-impact practices.  There are also special sets of questions addressing the academic advising experience and a custom set used by all UW system schools which includes information literacy items developed by campus librarians.

Results from the survey will put together and compared to students from three groups including all UW system students, students at schools similar to UWL in size, and the overall national results from all schools.

Students will be sent emails from the NSSE center signed by Chancellor Joe Gow.  Currently, we are seeing a 21% response rate (24% first-year, 18% senior) and would like to get to 40%.  For their approximately 15 minutes of time, students who respond by Friday, March 24 will be entered into a drawing for a $25 bookstore gift card, and 40 cards will be drawn.  Chances of winning depend on how many students respond and approximately 1,130 responded in 2020.

We value the time students take on the survey as we can measure progress over time in several areas including our level of academic challenge, how students learn with peers, experiences with faculty, and our campus environment.  The comparisons with other campuses are also helpful.

Results will arrive in August 2023 and reports will be shared across campus.  We are hopeful to hear from as many students as possible.  The last email reminder will be sent after spring break, but the survey will remain open until May 14.

Contact Information:

Patrick Barlow, Assessment Coordinator

[email protected]

office: 608-785-6867