A Concerted Effort-Taking Graduate Surveys to the

Next Level

SoACE Annual ConferenceNashville, Tennessee

December 13-16, 2009

Presentation Agenda

• Give introductions. • Briefly outline history of our search for the “Holy

Grail” – a graduate follow-up survey that results in accurate, viable information for our use and to share with interested parties.

• Provide an overview of collaborative efforts made with the Texas Higher Education Coordinating Board and the resulting data outcomes.

• Demonstrate how one university’s career center has taken this graduate survey data to a whole new level on their campus.

• Provide time for Q & A.

Who We Are and Where We’re From:

• Teresa Simpson, Director of Career & Testing CenterLamar University, Beaumont, TexasStudent Population: Over 13,000

• Curt Schafer, Director of Career ServicesTexas State University, San Marcos, TexasStudent Population: 30,816

• Pam Laughlin, Director of Career ServicesSam Houston State University, Huntsville, TexasStudent Population: 16,795

Members of the Texas State University System

From Simple Beginnings…

• Late 90s – Created a paper Graduate Follow-Up Survey in response to requests from faculty and parents for information.

• Sent by “snail mail”, was labor intensive, expensive and provided limited return rates (highest was when participants were eligible to win a “Palm Pilot” – approx. 31%).

Evolving to an Electronic Version…

• Adapted original version for SHSU in 2004 and gave to Academic Affairs to distribute at graduation. Results were negligible and statistically unreliable.

• Survey was shared with Institutional Research Office summer of 2007 to be put in an online format but remains “tabled” for now.

Then….

In Pursuit of the Holy Grail (Captured Placement Data): An Education in All Things Bureaucratic

• The Precipitating Situation at Texas State

• 1997 – Abysmal Participation Rates Prompt Discussion

• 1998 - Surveys for SACS and Survey Fatigue

• 1999 – All IR Decree

A Brief History of Captured Placement Data

• 1987 – Florida Education and Training Placement Information Program

• 1989 – North Harris County Montgomery College coordinates first community college graduate follow-up pilot study funded by a Carl D. Perkins grant from the Texas Higher Education Coordinating Board (THECB). The study used surveys to locate students. Findings were less than optimal and recommendation was made to use Unemployment Insurance (UI) wage records (just like Florida) for the next pilot study.

A Brief History of Captured Placement Data Continued…• 1990 – Texas State Occupational Information

Coordinating Committee (SOICC) coordinates the second follow-up study using UI wage records. Success rates similar to Florida. Recommendation was made to expand pilot colleges to 14 institutions of varying sizes.

• 1993 - First university included in Automated Student and Adult Learner Follow-up System (ASAFLS ) - East Texas State University.

Brief History Continued…

• 1995 – Twenty six volunteer universities included in ASALFS.

• 2003 – All public universities included in ASALFS beginning with the 2001-2002 Exit Cohort. Reports were done by THECB staff because the Texas Workforce Commission (TWC) staff are not authorized to receive education records per FERPA regulations. TWC provides a subset of the UI wage records to THECB so they can do the record linkages.

Captured But Not Shared!!! A Brief History of the Pursuit

• 2002 – The Revelation• “As part of its labor market data gathering, Career

Development Resources (CDR), a unit of the TWC, tracks students as they exit from various educational experiences.  For the past 10 years, CDR has tracked university graduates (about 65% of Texas 4-year public school grads, plus some private schools, including Trinity, but not Southwestern).  CDR tracks these students through Social Security, military, welfare, criminal and other schools’ admissions records. 

Minutes from 9/22/02 CTLACC Meeting

Captured But Not Shared Continued…

• Results of this tracking, officially titled, “Automated Student Follow-Up Data” or informally known as the “SOICC data,” have been shared annually in September/October with the Institutional Research office at the institutions tracked via the Texas Higher Education Coordinating Board.  Rich pointed out that there has not been any demand from universities to see the results of this tracking, and, due to changes of FERPA interpretations by the Texas Higher Education Coordinating Board, this report will no longer be shared with universities.”

Minutes from 9/22/02 CTLACC Meeting

Pursuit History Continued

• 2002 – 2007 - Numerous follow-up emails sent to Texas State University Institutional Research Director, as well as Texas Workforce Commission and Texas Higher Education Coordinating Board staffers.

• My favorite quote from the email signature of one THECB staffer during this time was:

• “Life is like wrestling a gorilla.  You don't stop when you get tired, you stop when the gorilla gets tired."    --   Anonymous

• August 2008 – THE DATA ARRIVES!!!!

(Not perfect, but a good start)

What’s Next?

• Dialogue with the THECB to Improve Usability

 • Efforts in Other States (Wyoming, New

Jersey and Montana)

 • Maximizing the Use on Your Campus

(Lamar University)

Assessment Reports

• Pre - Graduate Surveys• Departmental Exit Survey• Post Graduate Report• Texas Higher Education Coordinating Board• NACE

Pre Graduate ReportUndergraduate StudentsGraduate Students

•Given to Graduate Office•Survey is included in the Graduation Packets – to be completed by graduate•Once deadline is up - Delivered to Career Services•Report is then created by Career & Testing Center

Exit Interview

•Review of Post Graduate Report•Deans wanted the data to more accurately reflect student populations•Presented Exit Interview Survey vs. Pre – Graduate Survey.

•Currently:•Fall 2009 – College of Engineering•Spring 2010 – College of Business

•Career Services•Designs the survey – include Program Assessment for College Accreditation•Collected through Liaison at the end of each semester•Assessment Report created by CTC•Distributed to each Dean and Chair•Posts on Career Services Website

•College of Engineering Website

•Included in Post Graduate Report

Post Graduate Report

After almost 5 years of hearing, “What is our (Placement) Employment Rate?”

LU’s first Post Graduate Report

Fall 2006 the work began……

Released September 2009

Includes:•Pre-Graduation Survey•Post Graduate -3,6,& 9 month follow-up• Career Fair Evaluations

Executive Summary

•958 or 1,279 undergraduates responded•78.8% - bachelor’s degree•75.4% - master’s or doctoral degree

•22% - indicated they had accepted positions upon graduation•67.5% - were seeking employment•35.9% - plans to pursue graduate studies•Remainder had various other plans

Executive Summary•Number of Respondents•Jobs by Texas county•Salary Distribution•Other Institutions of Study

Executive SummaryContinuing Education•Lamar University•Other

Employer Listing•Deans REALLY want to SEE who is recruiting their students

•Employer Relations•Scholarships•Co-ops/Internships•Research Funding•Advisory Board Members

Texas Higher Education Coordinating Board

link to the THECB website: http://www.txhighereddata.org/reports/performance/ctcasalf/exitcohorts/

 

link to the definitions used: http://www.txhighereddata.org/reports/performance/ctcasalf/exitcohorts/exitdef.pdf

Request from the DeanCollege of Engineering

•Identify Peer Institutions per the Dean’s Request•Identify report features per the Dean’s Request•Report is ran each year and sent to each Chair to include the Dean

THECB Exit Cohort Report2005-20062006-2007

Outcomes by College•Major•Number Employed•Mean Earnings•Median Earnings•Employment Rate

THECB Exit Cohort Report2005-20062006-2007

•Dean’s Request•Career Service Interest•Report sent to Deans

Lamar University•Undergraduate Salary Data by Demographics

•Undergraduate To 10 Industries for Employment

THECB Exit Cohort Report2005-20062006-2007

Outcomes by College•Arts & Sciences•Business

THECB Exit Cohort Report2005-20062006-2007

Outcome by Colleges•Education & Human Development•Engineering•Fine Arts & Communications

THECB Exit Cohort Report2005-20062006-2007

Graduate Salary Data by Demographics

Graduate Top 10 Industries for Employment

NACE

Capturing this information also allows an institution to contribute to national benchmarking efforts such as those reported by NACE.

For Additional Information Contact:

Teresa SimpsonLamar University

(409) 880-8878

teresa.simpson@lamar.edu

Curt SchaferTexas State University

(512) 245-2645

cs21@txstate.edu

Pam Laughlin

Sam Houston State University

(936) 294-1713

plaughlin@shsu.edu