School fares well in recently released National Survey of Student Engagement

RELEASED: November 21, 2001

DANVILLE, KY—Centre College received outstanding marks in the 2000 National Survey of Student Engagement (NSSE). The school fared even better in 2001.

Centre improved in many ways in the recently released data from NSSE, and did so when there was an approximately 70 percent increase in survey participation.

According to the survey, Centre received the top score in the category of supportive campus environment for first-year students at a liberal arts institution. This may be the top ranking in the nation in this category for all the liberal arts schools that participated in the NSSE.

Centre also ranked in the 90th percentile nationally in five benchmark categories of effective educational practice for first-year students. The school was in the 90th percentile in four of the five categories for seniors, and in the 80th percentile in the fifth category. These areas of "engagement" criteria measure level of academic challenge, active and collaborative learning, student interactions with faculty, enriching educational experiences, and supportive campus environment.

The NSSE asks college freshmen and seniors to assess how they spend their time with questions such as: How many hours do you study? How often do you talk to a faculty member or students with different political beliefs? What are some of your outside-the-classroom activities? The survey attempts to measure what happens on campus as opposed to relying on admissions and retention statistics, the institution’s financial resources, and the college’s reputation in academic circles for rankings.

The NSSE annually surveys undergraduates at four-year colleges and universities to gauge the extent to which they engage in a variety of good educational practices. The survey includes items that represent student behaviors that are highly correlated with many important learning and personal development outcomes of college.

Last year in the set of "engagement" criteria, Centre was one of four schools singled out for overall praise in the survey. This year's results show improvements in freshman results, indicating that some areas of concern identified in last year’s report have been addressed effectively.

This fall the NSSE drew national attention in the New York Times, on National Public Radio, in Washington Monthly magazine, the Los Angeles Times, and other national media.

Those who are interested in seeing data for Centre in the 2001 NSSE may request a copy by calling (800) 423-6236.

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