Results of a Survey of the Graduates of METROPOLITAN STATE COLLEGE OF DENVER

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1 Results of a Survey of the Graduates of METROPOLITAN STATE COLLEGE OF DENVER In the spring of 2008 the graduates of Metropolitan State College of Denver were sent a Survey of Recent Graduates. This survey was developed by the Academic Affairs, Career Services, Alumni Relations, and Institutional Research offices to provide information about after-graduation performance and student satisfaction. The survey included 14 questions focusing on satisfaction, employment, and further education. Surveys were mailed to the 2,342 graduates for whom addresses were available. We received a total of 614 completed surveys. About 52 surveys were returned because of bad addresses, so the return rate, excluding bad addresses, was 26.2 percent. The surveys were coded so that we were able to match respondents to demographic variables on the database and make comparisons with the original graduate population. As the following table shows, the respondents were, for the most part, representative of the graduates: % Survey Respondents (n=614) % Graduates of (n=2,342) Sex female Ethnicity Minority status School of Business* School of LAS* School of Professional Studies* Age less than GPA of 3.0 or higher Entered as transfer student *School taken from first majors only. Survey Questions & Responses Part I - Satisfaction Question 1: In general, how satisfied are you with your experiences at MSCD? - 95% said that they were satisfied or very satisfied. Question 2: Overall, did your instructional program at MSCD meet your educational goals? - 98% said Yes, somewhat to Yes, very much - 90% said Yes, mostly or Yes, very much Question 4: Would you recommend MSCD to someone who is specifically interested in your major field of study? - 85% said they would recommend or highly recommend MSCD. - 11% said they would recommend MSCD with reservations. 1

2 Part II Employment Question 5: Which one of the following best describes your current employment situation? - 88% are employed - 6% are not employed and are seeking employment - 6% are not employed and are not seeking employment Question 6: Which of the following best describes your job, or primary job if you have more than one?* - 72% said their jobs are related or somewhat related to their major fields of study - 17% said their jobs are not related to their majors, but they are satisfied with them - 11% said their jobs are not related to their majors, and they are not satisfied with them Question 7: What is your job title?* Responses were broadly categorized according to corresponding majors at MSCD. Since the responses were self-reported, there is room for error in how we interpreted the job titles. Percentages are based on the 540 students who said they were employed. Only the most common job categories are mentioned here. Job Title Number Percent Teaching/Education Management/Business/Administration Accounting/Financial Human Services Nursing/Medical/Health Operations/Project/Program Management Criminal Justice, Police, and Security Customer/Client Service Sales and Marketing Computer/Information Technology Food/Service Pilot/Flight Instructor/Plane Mechanic Analysis/Research Fitness/Beauty Art/Graphic Art/Photography Communications Science

3 Question 8: Who is your employer?* As in the question above, responses were self-reported, so employers were sorted and grouped together with some margin of error. Only the most common employers are mentioned here. Employer Number Percent Denver Public Schools Adams County Schools Self Employed Jefferson County Metropolitan State College of Denver Cherry Creek Schools Jefferson County Schools State of Colorado The Children s Hospital Coors Question 9: How soon after you graduated did you obtain your current primary job?* - 42% already had their jobs at the time of graduation - 33% found jobs within 6 months of graduation - 25% found jobs more than 6 months after graduation Question 10: Did your program of study at MSCD help you to obtain, or keep, your current primary job?* - 71% Yes somewhat or Yes, very much - 29% No Question 11: What is your current annual salary range?* - 17% earn $50,000 or more - 20% earn between $40,001 and $50,000-30% earn between $30,001 and $40,000-21% earn between $20,001 and $30,000-10% earn between $10,001 and $20,000-3% earn less than $10,000 *Percentages based on the 540 students who said they were employed on question 5. 3

4 Part III Further Education Question 12: Are you enrolled in, or have you been admitted to, a program of further study? - 74% No - 26% Yes Question 12a: Field of study: As in questions 7 and 8, responses were self-reported, so fields of study were sorted and grouped together with some margin of error. Only the most common fields are mentioned here. Education/Teaching Business/Accounting Psychology/Counseling Social Work Law/Criminal Justice Biology/Medicine Nursing Public Administration/Health Care Administration GSI Engineering Fine Art * Percentages based on the 159 students who said Yes on question 12 Question 12b: Institution/Organization: As in the question above, responses were self-reported, so institutions were sorted and grouped together with some margin of error. Only the most common institutions are mentioned here. University of Denver University of Colorado at Denver Regis University Metropolitan State College of Denver University of Phoenix Colorado State University University of Colorado at Boulder Argosy University Red Rocks Community College University of Northern Colorado 3 * Percentages based on the 159 students who said Yes on question

5 Question 12c: Indicate the degree, certification, licensure which you are seeking: Master s Degree Certification/Licensure Professional Doctoral Second Bachelor s Other *Percentages based on 177 responses from the 159 students who said Yes on question 12. Respondents were asked to select all applicable responses. Part IV Alumni Association Question 13: How aware are you of the services offered by the Alumni Association: - 1% Frequently Use - 5% Sometimes Use - 45% Aware, Don t Use - 50% Unaware Question 14: What services would you like from the alumni association?: Career-related programs, networking Lectures by professors on hot topics s with news and website Departmentally-focused Events Insurance at special rates Volunteer opportunities with the college/alumni association Group travel, sports, or arts events Family oriented programs Other * Percentages are greater than 100 due to multiple selections per student. 5

6 Significant Relationships There were a number of interesting relationships among the graduates responses. In this section relationships that were statistically significant with p <.05 are summarized. Satisfaction With Experiences at MSCD Graduates were more likely to be satisfied with their experiences at MSCD if: a. They felt that their instructional programs at MSCD met their goals. b. Their programs of study at MSCD helped them obtain or keep their primary jobs. There was no relationship between graduates levels of satisfaction with MSCD and various job statuses, such as whether or not they were employed, how long it took for them to get their job, and their salary level. Whether Their Instructional Program Met Their Educational Goals Those respondents who were employed were more likely to say MSCD had met their instructional goals if: a. Their current jobs were related to their majors. b. Their programs of study helped them keep or obtain their current jobs. Whether They Would Recommend MSCD to Someone Interested in Their Majors Graduates were more likely to say they would recommend MSCD to someone interested in their major field of study if: a. They were satisfied or very satisfied with their experiences at MSCD. b. They felt their instructional programs at MSCD had met their educational goals. c. Their current jobs were related to their majors. d. Their programs of study at MSCD helped them obtain or keep their current jobs. e. They are attending or have been admitted to a program of further study. Whether Their Jobs Were Related to Their Fields of Study Graduates were more likely to say their job was related to their major field of study if: a. They found their current primary jobs within one year after graduation. b. Their programs of study helped them keep or obtain their current jobs. c. Their annual salaries were greater than $30,000. 6

7 Whether Their Program of Study at Metro Helped Them Keep or Obtain Their Primary Jobs Graduates were more likely to say that their programs of study at Metro helped them keep or obtain their primary jobs if: a. Their jobs were related to their major fields of study. b. Their current annual salaries were greater than $20,000. c. They obtained their current primary job after graduation. How long it took graduates to find their current primary jobs: Graduates who had their current primary jobs at the time of graduation were more likely to have an annual salary of more than $40,000. How likely graduates are to attend a program of further study: There were no significant relationships when determining if a student was going to pursue further program of further study. Additional Comments Twenty-one percent of the graduates took advantage of the opportunity to add written comments about MSCD. The most commonly mentioned topics/remarks were as follows: Positive Comments # of times mentioned Overall MSCD experience very good 31 Very satisfied with specific department 13 Faculty / Specific Educator / Advisor is great 11 Negative Comments # of times mentioned Poor advising/faculty performance 11 General dissatisfaction 11 Dissatisfied with specific program/department 8 Neutral Comments # of times mentioned Negative and positive or miscellaneous comments 22 Suggestions for change 17 Note change of or address 6 7