Students Give RU High Marks on Satisfaction Inventory
On a number of critical measures related to their college experience, students at Rockhurst University are more satisfied than their peers at other private four-year institutions.
That is one of many takeaways from the latest Ruffalo Noel-Levitz Student Satisfaction Inventory, taken by students at Rockhurst and other institutions every other year to measure their levels of satisfaction on a variety of priority areas, from academic advising to faculty teaching to student life. The report helps identify places where students feel an institution is strong and areas where they can improve.
Students at Rockhurst are far more likely to report they are satisfied overall with their college experience compared to other four-year private institutions. The same is true for satisfaction on 10 different scales that reflect broad categories of the student experience, including concern for the individual, campus climate, campus life and campus support services.
“Rockhurst’s scores on all 12 of the scales have been higher than our peers in many of the previous years students have taken the SSI,“ said Annalisa Gramlich, executive director of institutional effectiveness. “This is a trend we’re very happy to see continue.”
In addition to those ratings, the report also identifies Rockhurst’s strengths, or areas of high importance where students ranked the University better — sometimes significantly better — than peers. Rockhurst’s strengths include academic measures, such as:
- Value of material covered in courses
- Faculty expertise
- Faculty availability outside of class
- Quality and availability of academic advising
- Opportunities for intellectual growth
- Clarity of major requirements
- Availability of tutoring services
And on measures related to campus life and campus living, students at Rockhurst reported higher satisfaction than their peers at other institutions on these measures:
- Security response times in emergency situations
- The attentiveness of Counseling Center staff
- Campus beauty/maintenance
- Institutional reputation in the community
Similarly, the SSI identifies challenges, where Rockhurst scored lower than its peers on areas of high importance to students. Among the challenges are measures related to financial aid counseling, course availability and lighting in the parking lots. In the past, University leadership has used this information to make changes to dining options, upgrade residence halls and invest in new amenities such as the MAC. The University always looks to improve on those areas identified as challenges, Gramlich said. But the strengths serve as more than bragging points.
“By giving us a snapshot of our campus experience directly from students, the Student Satisfaction Inventory is one of the most valuable tools we have for University planning,” she said. “We want to continue providing a student experience that is rich and rewarding, so knowing where we can build on strengths and where we should look to improve is critical. Particularly as we begin setting priorities for our next strategic plan.”
