The National Survey of Student Engagement (NSSE) is administered nationally by the Indiana University Center for Postsecondary Research and provides information about students’ participation in programs and activities that institutions provide for their learning and personal development. This is the second year WFU has participated in the NSSE, joining 473 US institutions in 2023.
The NSSE was distributed electronically by the Office of Institutional Research during the Spring of 2023 to all first-year students (N = 1,300). A total of 327 students submitted responses, representing a 25% response rate (estimated margin of error \(\pm\) 6.5%). The respondents were not representative of the first-year class when comparing distributions across gender and race/ethnicity; for example, the responses completed underrepresented the proportion of White men (16% vs 28%) in the WFU first-year population. To address some concerns around nonresponse bias, all analyses were performed with post-stratification weights by gender and race/ethnicity.
WFU first-year students scored highly on several NSSE Engagement Indicators, including Quality of Interactions, Discussions with Diverse Others, and Effective Teaching Practices. On all Engagement Indicators, Wake Forest first-year students scored similarly or higher than peers at 32 administering institutions. Among all first-year respondents, 95% anticipated returning to Wake Forest University the following year.
For each item below, a statistical test for the difference between groups (e.g. gender) is performed. If the difference between groups is found to be statistically significant, this analysis reports effect sizes to allow one to compare the magnitude of the difference. Each item that is found to have a difference between groups and indicates at least a small effect size is highlighted in the following colors. This report provides a summary of each section (e.g. Engagement Indicators) followed by the comparison within WFU first-year students by gender, race/ethnicity, and first-generation status. Comparisons by survey year (2023 vs 2021) are also provided, but please note that first-year students in 2021 attended mostly on-line courses with limited social interactions due to the COVID-19 pandemic. (See here for more on survey analysis methodology.)
| Size | Criteria |
|---|---|
| Large Effect | ≥ 0.80 |
| Medium Effect | ≥ 0.50 |
| Small Effect | ≥ 0.20 |
Due to the large number of individual questions asked and the complexity of assessing specific areas of potential concern, NSSE developed ten Engagement Indicators which group information gathered from numerous items into a more reliable, cumulative measure. Each Engagement Indicator is expressed on a 0 to 60-point scale (e.g. Never=0, Sometimes=20, Often=40, and Very Often=60) then averaged together to compute student-level scores.
Wake Forest first-year students scored highest on Quality of Interactions (44), Discussions with Diverse Others (43), and Effective Teaching Practices (43) and lowest on Student-Faculty Interaction (27). WFU first-years scored higher than students at 32 peer institutions with a small effect size on the following Engagement Indicators:
WFU first-year students scored similarly by gender on most Engagement Indicators. With a small effect size, male students typically scored higher on Quantitative Reasoning (38 vs 31) and Student-Faculty Interaction (29 vs 25).
By race/ethnicity, scores for WFU first-year students only differed for one Engagement Indicator. With a small effect size, Underrepresented Minority students typically scored higher on Student-Faculty Interaction (29 vs 25) than White students.
No differences in Engagement Indicator scores were found between first-generation and non-first-generation respondents.
First-years by survey year scored differently on three engagement indicators, likely due to the COVID-19 restrictions in 2021. Respondents in 2023 scored higher than respondents in 2021 on Student-Faculty Interaction (27 vs 21), Supportive Environment (39 vs 35), and Collaborative Learning (34 vs 30) with a small effect size.
For the full results and comparisons please see the Engagement Indicators section below.
Due to their positive associations with student learning and retention, NSSE asks students about six undergraduate opportunities that are considered High-Impact Practices (HIPs). Participation in a High-Impact Practice is reported as the percentage of students who responded “done or in progress” for all HIPs (except service-learning, for which they reported at least “some” of their courses included a community-based project). For first-year students, it is not unreasonable to see small participation rates as the respondents have only had two semesters to participate in any activity at this stage.
Overall, 52% of WFU first-year students responded that at least some of their courses have included a community-based service component.
By gender, WFU first-year students reported similar participation rates across all High-Impact Practices.
A few differences were found in HIP participation rates by race/ethnicity. With at least a small effect size, URM first-years reported higher participation rates in research with a faculty member (12% vs 1%) and a learning community or similar formal program (13% vs 5%) than White first-years.
First-generation and non-first-generation WFU first-year students reported similar participation rates for most HIPs. With a small effect size, more first-generation students reported participating in research with a faculty member (13% vs 4%).
By survey year, a few differences were found. Relative to 2021, a higher proportion of WFU first-year students in 2023 reported that at least one of their courses included community-based service learning (52% vs 36%).
For the full results and comparisons please see the High-Impact Practices section below.
The NSSE presents students with items about their backgrounds and goals. Among all WFU first-year respondents,
For the full results and comparisons please see the Respondent Profile section below.
Although less stable than Engagement Indicators, responses to individual survey questions may provide a closer look at specific issues and notable differences across groups.
Among all WFU first-year respondents,
WFU first-years responded differently to several individual items by gender. With a medium effect size, men reported more frequently having conversations with people who have differing political views from their own (87% vs 66%) than women. Men also more frequently discussed course topics or ideas with a faculty member outside of class (44% vs 32%) with a small effect size.
By race/ethnicity, multiple significant differences in first-year responses were detected, all with small effect sizes. A smaller proportion of URM students reported feeling comfortable being themselves at Wake (83% vs 96%) and feeling like part of the WFU community (74% vs 90%) than White students. Additionally, URM students more frequently worked with other students on course projects or assignments (68% vs 55%), while White students reported having more hours per week to relax and socialize (13 vs 11).
With a medium effect size, a lower proportion of first-generation students reported feeling like part of the community at this institution (61% vs 88%), and non-first-generation students reported having more hours per week to relax and socialize (13 vs 9). With a small effect size, first-generation students had discussions with others whose religious beliefs differed from their own less frequently than non-first-generation students (65% vs 81%).
Several differences were found in first-year responses by survey year. Many of these differences, unsurprisingly but encouragingly, reflected students’ opportunity to work collaboratively with peers and faculty more frequently in 2023 than students could with the COVID restrictions in 2021.
For the full results and comparisons please see the Individual Items section below.
Wake Forest included two Topical Modules with this year’s survey. The Inclusiveness and Engagement with Cultural Diversity (ICD) Module asks students to reflect on their experiences at WFU with inclusive teaching practices, intercultural learning, participation in diversity-related programming, and their perceptions of WFU’s institutional values regarding diversity. The First-Year Experiences (FYE) Module focuses on academic perseverance, help-seeking behaviors, and institutional commitment.
Among all first-year respondents,
By gender, WFU first-years responded differently to several items on the ICD Module. With a medium effect size, a larger proportion of men felt that WFU as an institution emphasized taking allegations of discrimination or harassment seriously (86% vs 63%) than women. Additionally, with a small effect size, a larger proportion of men felt that WFU provides a supportive environment for students’ political affiliations (69% vs 53%) and economic backgrounds (56% vs 41%).
WFU first-years also differed in their responses by race/ethnicity. With a small effect size, a smaller proportion of URM students felt that WFU provides a supportive environment for students’ economic backgrounds (36% vs 54%), political affiliations (50% vs 66%), and racial/ethnic identities (54% vs 69%) than White students. Additionally, with a medium effect size, URM first-years more frequently reflected on their own cultural identity (61% vs 34%) and participated in a diversity-related club or organization (38% vs 19%).
With a small effect size, a smaller proportion of first-generation students felt that WFU provides a supportive environment for students’ economic backgrounds (30% vs 50%) and emphasizes providing information about anti-discrimination and harassment policies (55% vs 74%). Additionally, first-generation students more frequently reflected on their own cultural identity (62% vs 41%) and participated in a diversity-related club or organization (42% vs 24%) than non-first-generation students.
By survey year, few differences were found. With a small effect size, first-years in 2023 more frequently attended events, activities, or presentations that reflect an appreciation for diverse groups of people (50% vs 27%) and participated in the activities of centers related to specific groups (35% vs 18%) than first-years in 2021, likely due to COVID-19 restrictions. A smaller proportion of students in 2023 indicated that their coursework often respected the expression of diverse ideas (71% vs 81%).
Among all WFU first-year respondents,
No differences were found in WFU first-year students’ responses by gender to the FYE Module.
By race/ethnicity, WFU first-years differed in their responses to multiple items. With a small effect size, URM students felt that it was more difficult to manage their time (71% vs 51%) and get help with their school work (41% vs 27%) than White students. Additionally, a larger proportion of URM students took a course that introduced them to college & success skills (45% vs 29%).
A few differences between first-generation and non-first-generation students’ responses were found. With at least a small effect size, first-generation students felt that it was more difficult to learn course material (78% vs 51%) and manage their time (75% vs 55%) than non-first-generation students. First-generation students also less frequently sought help from faculty members (20% vs 41%).
First-years only differed in responses to one item by survey year. With a small effect size, a smaller proportion of WFU first-year students in 2023 indicated that interacting with faculty was difficult (23% vs 38%) than in 2021.
For the full results and comparisons please see the Topical Modules section below.
Inclusiveness and Engagement with Cultural Diversity
First-Year Experiences
Inclusiveness and Engagement with Cultural Diversity
First-Year Experiences
Inclusiveness and Engagement with Cultural Diversity
First-Year Experiences
Inclusiveness and Engagement with Cultural Diversity
First-Year Experiences
Inclusiveness and Engagement with Cultural Diversity
First-Year Experiences