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REPORT ON WHITWORTHCOLLEGE
2004 ALUMNI SURVEY
Prepared By
Raja S. Tanas, Ph.D.
Professor, Department of Sociology
WhitworthCollege
Spokane, WA 99251-1105
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(September 2004)
EXECUTIVE SUMMARY
In spring 2004, Whitworth conducted the third in a series of alumni surveys. The objective of each survey was to assess the degree to which Whitworth’s mind and heart education and, in particular, the College’s eight educational goals and mission have impacted the lives of its graduates.
Each survey obtained data via the use of mailed questionnaires from three different groups of Whitworth graduates from 1987-2003. Results of the surveys have been used for advancing the quality of instruction, for improving student services essential for college life, as well as in the accreditation reviews. The first two surveys were conducted in 1998 and 2001.
Results from the first two surveys were impressive. They were based on data obtained from the classes of 1987, 1990, 1992, 1995, 1997, and 2000. Data from the present survey were obtained from yet another sample of 395 students who completed their undergraduate work in 1994, 1999, and 2003. The sample consisted of more female than male respondents, was predominantly white, and had more graduates from the class of 2003 than from the other two.
To begin with, this report provides a brief socio-demographic profile of the respondents along with their career and employment information since leaving Whitworth. The report also provides description and analysis of their college experiences as well as their academic expectations before and after attending Whitworth. Finally, the report concludes with an assessment of the extent to which the College’s eight educational goals have been achieved in their case. Below are few highlights.
Four in five graduates were employed full time. More males than females
were currently employed.
The two most important goals for attending Whitworth were to earn a degree
and to increase one’s knowledge in an academic field.
The two most important results of having attended Whitworth were earning a
degree and increase in student understanding of God’s Will in one’s life.
The two most satisfying aspects of the Whitworth’s academic life were the
affirmative attitudes of the faculty toward students and the commitment of
the faculty to teaching.
The two most satisfying of the student services were the admission process
and life in the residence halls.
The two most important outcomes of having attended Whitworth were the
development of an interest in the world of ideas regardless of their
immediate utility and the adoption of a style of servanthood in life.
Whitworth’s eight educational goals were achieved at commendable levels
especially in inspiring students to a life of vigorous intellectual inquiry
and enabling them to use the tools for analytical and creative thinking.
For a third study in a row, the results of the alumni survey were again quite impressive. They clearly replicated earlier results and offered strong evidence that Whitworth continues to provide excellence in teaching to its students and to serve their college-life needs in an exemplary manner.
TABLE OF CONTENTS
Page
I. Introduction ...... 4
II. Profile And Goals Of The Study Sample ...... 9
III. Career And Employment Information ...... 18
IV. Experiences At Whitworth ...... 25
V. Concluding Remarks ...... 37
Appendix A (Frequency Tables) ...... 38
Appendix B (The Study Instrument)...... 131
I. INTRODUCTION
In spring 2004, the office of the dean in collaboration with the alumni office at Whitworth administered a third in a series of surveys that asked for input from Whitworth’s graduates on their academic and non-academic experiences during their undergraduate years and beyond. This survey has become institutionalized in that it is conducted every three years and is administered each time among three new cohorts of graduates that typically span a ten-year period.
The first and second surveys were conducted in 1998 and in 2001. Those two surveys obtained data from students who graduated in 1987, 1990, 1992, 1995, 1997, and 2000. The current survey was based on data provided by students who graduated in 1994, 1999, and 2003.
The intent of this research project was to establish baseline data for assessing the effectiveness of the College’s current undergraduate programs in having achieved the eight educational goals and in helping fulfill the College’s mission. This research project is an on-going process. Its intent was also to assess the impact of Whitworth’s mind and heart education on students several years after leaving Whitworth and throughout their adult life.
Over the next few years, the goal is to have surveyed the very large majority of the College’s graduates since 1987. This research strategy would allow for an assessment of the impact of Whitworth’s education in the short term (one year since graduation) and in the long term (ten years since graduation).
Eventually, obtaining cohort data as a result of these surveys would be quite valuable in carrying out longitudinal analysis for the purpose of an overall assessment of the impact of Whitworth’s education on serving student needs across the years and for mid-course adjustments, if warranted.
Results from the 1998 and 2001 surveys indicated that the alumni were quite satisfied with the manner in which Whitworth served students. The alumni were quite pleased with the short and long-term impact of the College’s academic and non-academic programs as well as with the manner in which the overall environment helped fulfill the College’s mission of faith and learning integration.
The current survey was yet another step in the continuing task of assessing Whitworth’s performance in serving its students. Data were obtained from three new cohorts of graduates. Preparations to survey the new cohorts were completed by the end of spring 2004.
The sample consisted of 1039 respondents who completed their undergraduate degrees in 1994, 1999, and 2003 and for whom the alumni office had current addresses. The instrument was a self-administered questionnaire and was identical to the previous two surveys except for the items that, in the previous two surveys, measured student satisfaction with the Core program (Core 150, Core 250, and Core 350) or with Forum.
In fall 2003, the Core program was completely revised to include new subject matter with different emphasis. The general theme of the Core program has changed from Western Civilization to Worldviews. As for the Forum program, it was discontinued beginning in fall 2000. Therefore, the items dealing with these two programs were eliminated from the current survey.
The alumni survey was mailed out in a packet that included the following four parts. The first part was a cover letter from Tammy Reid, Vice President for Academic Affairs. The letter explained the purpose of the study and asked for cooperation from the recipient in responding to the instrument within three weeks after receipt (see Appendix B).
The second part was the actual instrument. It consisted of 28 items several of which had sub-items that measured the sought after constructs.
The third part was a communication sheet that asked for the name, the current address, and the current telephone number of the respondent. If a respondent desired, he or she could also include a message to a professor or to a department. The respondents were instructed to separate the communication sheet from the rest of the survey and mail it back to the office of the dean under a separate cover. This way their responses would remain anonymous. Another reason for including the communication sheet was to identify respondents who returned the questionnaire in order to avoid a second mailing of the packet.
Finally, two self-addressed and postage-paid reply envelopes were included. One envelope was intended for returning the filled out questionnaire while the other one was for returning the communication sheet.
The instrument consisted of 28 questions that were tailored to solicit the following three general categories of data:
1) Socio-demographic information, personal data, and goals.
2) Information on the alumni’s past and present career and
employment history.
3) The alumni’s experiences during their academic preparation at Whitworth (see instrument in Appendix B).
As was stated above, the packet was mailed out to 1039 alumni. Respondents who did not return the communication sheet within three weeks were sent a second packet. If the communication sheet was not returned within two weeks after the second mailing, the office of the Vice President for Academic Affairs made a courteous phone call urging the alumni to respond to the questionnaire right away.
The above strategy yielded 408 completed questionnaires in addition to 8 others that were received after the data processing phase began. Furthermore, 83 packets were undeliverable and returned by the Postal Service. Subtracting the 83 undeliverable packets from the total packets that were sent out yielded a response rate of 44 percent, which was identical to the response rate for the 2001 survey. This response rate was acceptable for a mail survey of this magnitude.
Data from thirteen graduates were eliminated from the present analysis and that was for the following reasons. Two students who graduated with M.A. degrees were not included since the study was limited to assessing the impact of Whitworth education at the undergraduate level. There were two other students who did not provide information on their year of graduation while a third seemed not to take the survey seriously. It was deemed appropriate to eliminate these three additional cases from the study.
Given the fact that few students may have walked through the graduation ceremony in one year but have officially completed their course work either immediately in the preceding or immediately in the following year after the graduation ceremony, it was deemed appropriate to include such students in the present analysis. They were added to the alumni of 1994, 1999, or 2003. For example, there were 5 students who graduated in 1993 and 5 others who graduated in 1995. These ten students were included in the alumni group of 1994 (see Table 1).
Table 1. Year Of Graduation From Whitworth
Year N (%)
1985 ( 1) .20
1986 ( 1) .20
1990 ( 1) .20
1991 ( 2) .50
1993 ( 5) 1.20
1994 ( 73) 18.00
1995 ( 5) 1.20
1996 ( 1) .20
1998 ( 5) 1.20
1999 (122) 30.10
2000 ( 8) 2.00
2001 ( 2) .50
2002 ( 5) 1.20
2003 (160) 39.50
2004 ( 12) 3.00
TOTAL 403 100.00 ______
Data from the remaining eight students (highlighted in bold) who graduated in the other years were also eliminated from further analysis. Thus, the final sample size for the present study consisted of 395 alumni.
The following report consists of three sections. The first section presents a brief profile of the study sample. The next section includes a summary of the alumni’s career and employment information. The Final section assesses the alumni experiences within the parameters of the College’s liberal arts education and life at Whitworth. The report ends with concluding remarks.
II. PROFILE AND GOALS OF THE STUDY SAMPLE
More than two in five respondents (45%) were from the graduating class of 2003 compared to one in five (21%) and one in three (34%) who were from the graduating classes of 1994 and 1999, respectively (Table 2). The larger response rate from the most recent graduating class (2003), followed in size by the next graduating class (1999), and lowest by the most distant graduating class (1994) may suggest that one’s degree of connection to Whitworth may diminish by time. This finding may also be a function of inaccurate current addresses of the graduates. As was mentioned above, the U.S. Postal Service returned 83 undeliverable survey packets to the College.
Approximately three quarters of the respondents were females (74%) and the large majority (87%) received Bachelor of Arts degrees. These percentages were slightly higher than one would expect to find in a typical school year. In other words, women and graduates with Bachelor of Arts degrees were more represented in this sample than were males and graduates with Bachelor of Science degrees.
TABLE 2. PROFILE OF THE STUDY SAMPLE (N=395)
Variable N Valid Percent
YEAR OF GRADUATION:
1994 83 21
1999 135 34
2003 177 45
TYPE OF DEGREE RECEIVED:
Bachelor Of Arts 344 87
Bachelor Of Science 51 13
GENDER:
Female 292 74
Male 103 26
RACE:*
White/Caucasian 376 95
Asian Or Pacific Islander 20 5
Native American 5 1
Spanish/Hispanic/Latino(A) 8 2
Black/African American 2 < 1
Other 2 < 1
WHEN FIRST CAME TO WHITWORTH:
Before Finishing High School 9 2
Directly After High School 280 71
After Working (Other Than A Summer Job) 21 5
Transfer From A Community College 48 12
From Military Service 3 <1
Transfer From A 4-Year Institution 32 8
Did Not Answer 2 Missing
TYPE OF FINANCIAL AID RECEIVED AT WHITWORTH:*
Scholarship/Grant 341 86
Loan 285 72
Work Study 178 45
GI Bill 1 <1
Other Types 10 3
No Financial Aid Received 29 7
CHURCH AFFILIATION UPON ENTERING WHITWORTH:
Presbyterian 118 30
Church of God 1 <1
Christian (Non-Denominational) 96 25
Baptist 25 6
Methodist 22 6
Catholic 25 6
Nazarene 3 1
Lutheran 20 5
Other Church Affiliation 29 7
No Church Affiliation 30 8
Other Religions 23 6
Did Not Answer 3 Missing
CHURCH AFFILIATION AT THE PRESENT TIME:
Presbyterian 89 23
Church of God 2 <1
Christian (Non-Denominational) 109 28
Baptist 25 6
Methodist 14 4
Catholic 22 6
Nazarene 3 1
Lutheran 15 4
Other Church Affiliation 32 8
No Church Affiliation 56 14
Other Religions 25 6
Did Not Answer 3 Missing
CURRENT AGE:
Range = 20 To 59 Years; Mean = 28.61; Standard Deviation = 7.12
* The total exceeds 395 respondents or 100% because of multiple responses to this item.
Other characteristics that should be noted included the racial background of the sample. The sample was predominantly white (95%) with minorities constituting no more than 5%, a percentage that included a smaller minority (4%) that belonged to more than one racial group. These statistics came as no surprise since they were a reflection of the racial makeup of the student body. These statistics were also reflected in the racial make up of the Spokane metropolitan as well as the general Inland Northwest area that has predominantly a white population. This demographic attribute continued to highlight the need for greater efforts in recruiting a more racially diverse student body. Apparently, this phenomenon remains an on-going challenge.
Age of respondents varied between 20 and 59 years old with an average age of 28.61 years and a standard deviation of 7.12 years. Almost one in ten respondents (9.4%) was born in 1969 or earlier highlighting the result that Whitworth continued to serve a significant number of non-traditional students via its continuing studies programs.
More than two-thirds (71%) of the students came to Whitworth immediately after having obtained their high school diplomas. The next two groups consisted of students who transferred to Whitworth either from a community college (12%) or from another four-year institution (8%). A small percentage of students attended Whitworth after being employed for at least one year (5%), before finishing high school (2%), or after serving in the military (less than 1%).
The very large majority of the respondents (97%) have received financial aid in one form or another. The most common sources of financial aid were grants or scholarships (86%), a source that was closely followed by loans (72%) and work-study scholarships (45%), respectively. A very small percentage of students received financial aid through the GI Bill (less than 1 percent) or through other sources (3%). A relatively small number of students (7%) did not receive financial aid from any source.
Since it was possible for a student to receive financial aid from one or more sources simultaneously, further analysis of the data indicated that one in five students (21%) received financial aid from one source only, close to one-third (30%) received financial aid from two sources, two in five (41%) received financial aid from three sources, and only three students (1%) received financial aid from four sources or more.
Upon entering Whitworth, more than one-half of the students were affiliated with either the Presbyterian Church (30%) or with non-denominational churches (25%). All other church-affiliated groups were small by comparison. In some instances, members of the latter group constituted as small as 1% (Nazarene) or as large as 6% (each of Baptists, Methodists, and Catholics) of the sample. At least 14% of the respondents reported no church affiliation at all or belonged to other religions.
Between the time the students were enrolled at Whitworth and the time they were surveyed, the alumni’s church affiliation has changed slightly. For example, affiliation with the Presbyterian Church dropped from 30% to 23% while nondenominational church affiliation increased from 25% to 28%. An important data worth noting was that the percentage of students who had no church affiliation at the time they came to Whitworth increased from 8% to 14%. These findings should come as no surprise when one considers national data on religious affiliation.
The instrument included fifteen statements that measured the goals and interests of a typical college student. These statements were grouped into the following three categories. Statements 1 through 3 measured academics, statements 4 through 6 measured career preparations, and statements 7 through 15 measured personal development and enrichment outcomes.
Respondents were instructed to indicate which of the 15 statements reflected the goals they have considered important by the time they were admitted to Whitworth and which of the statements they have achieved or were still in the process of achieving them as a result of having received Whitworth education.
In Table 3, each of the fifteen statements is listed followed by the number of respondents with their corresponding percentages who indicated that a particular goal was important to them upon entering Whitworth and that that goal was actually achieved upon graduation. Subsequently, these items were ranked from the most frequently to the least frequently mentioned goals.
The final column displayed the difference in the number of respondents who reported that a goal was important and the number of respondents who reported that that goal was achieved. Thus, the value of the difference could be either positive or negative. A positive value indicated that the number of students who have achieved a particular goal was greater than the number of students who reported that same goal to be important. The opposite was true for a negative value.