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| Top 10 Questions and Answers received by the Office of Student Affairs Research and Assessment:
What purposes does the Pulse program serve? Pulse data allow us to better understand the needs and experiences of Penn State students. Such knowledge allows for data-driven decision making about Penn State's programs and services. More specifically, the surveys provide us with the ability to measure:
In addition, Pulse serves as a vehicle for informing and educating our students. Each project has an element of the "teachable moment" whereby approximately 900 students learn about a service or topic of concern that may be of interest to them or someone close to them. For example, during the Newspaper Readership Survey, students commented that they had not been familiar with the program prior to the survey but were now interested in taking advantage of the service. Back to Top How are Pulse surveys administered? Most Pulse surveys are conducted by phone and by the Web. In the past several years, the bimodal design became standard because of the increasing percentage of students for whom local phone information is unavailable. While the office now calls long distance numbers, conducting surveys via the web increases the response rate, and thus increases the confidence of generalizing findings to the population. Approximately one-third
to two-fifths of our UP undergraduate students do not currently
provide local phone information to the University Registrar. When
examining the characteristics of the students, we find that they
are more likely to be male, over the age of 21, and to have upper-class
status. In addition, students who live off campus and who indicated
non-minority status are also over-represented among students who
do not provide local phone information. Moreover, students with
higher grade point averages are also less likely to provide local
phone information that are their counterparts. Hence, in order to
reduce the sampling error, a bimodal design is used. Who receives Pulse surveys? Pulse surveys are typically administered to a random sample of Penn State students. The defined population varies depending on the topic. For example, the Student Drinking Survey is administered to a random sample of full-time, undergraduate students at University Park. Some surveys include a sample of graduate students and/or students from other Penn State campuses. Others may be limited to students who live on campus or students who are defined as adult learners. Back to Top How are students selected? In order to determine the sample used, all students who meet the defined criteria are 'pulled' from the Data Warehouse and put into a separate database. Those students are then separated into two sets - students for whom local phone information is available and students who have not provided local phone information. A sample is drawn from each file using a statistical computer program. The size of the initial sample pool is determined by the survey topic and anticipated response rate. Back to Top What is a typical response rate? Based on the 10 surveys conducted during the 2004-2005 academic year, our phone surveys elicited a cooperation rate ranging from 58% to 77%, with an overall average of 74%. When administering the survey via the Web, the response rate was between 8% and 37%, with an average of 18%. Back to Top What are the limitations of Pulse surveys? All surveys are subject to potential sources of imprecision and bias, which may be associated with the working and/or ordering of questions, the response rate, and the quality of the interviewers. Typically, in our
survey respondents, we find a higher proportion of women and of
on-campus residents than what is found in the population. How are Pulse topics chosen? Topics are reviewed by Student Affairs based on the following factors: the ability to better understand the experiences of students; the level of fit with the priorities of the Division and the University; the appropriateness of the topic and questions to the Gallup-type and phone format; the usefulness of the findings to improve programs and services for students; as well as considering resource and scheduling realities. Back to Top How long does it take to complete a Pulse survey? A project will take approximately four months to complete. In general, it takes two to three months to develop a Pulse survey - to research the topic, consult with various stakeholders, compose the survey, pilot the draft with the Pulse workers, and obtain approval from Research Protections. Data collection
typically takes two to three weeks. For the phone administration,
trained student workers make phone calls on Sunday and Wednesday
evenings utilizing survey research software. Numerous attempts
are made to reach students at a convenient time. Students who
are selected for the Web survey receive an e-mail invitation to
participate containing the URL for the survey. At least
one reminder is sent asking students to complete the survey online. What is Research Protections and why is it important? Federal University regulations mandate that all research-related projects that involve human participants require the approval of the Office for Research Protections. The policy ensures that participants are fully informed about the project and consent to participate. Aspects of the process include providing information regarding the purpose of the study, the amount of time it will take, the potential risks to participating, the manner in which confidentiality will be maintained, and the name and phone number of the primary contact for the project. For more information visit: http://www.research.psu.edu/orp/education.asp Based on this process and the mission of the Pulse program, students are able to respond to a Pulse survey with the understanding confidentiality will be strictly maintained. Their responses are recorded without identifying information; thus, at no time are individuals' responses connected with their identity.Back to Top How are data used? Findings from Pulse surveys are used in many ways both within Student Affairs and in the broader University community. Findings are used to:
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Updated 12/01/2005