Survey ranks Miami among the best

A new survey conducted through Indiana University ranks Miami among the best Universities in the region in terms of student engagement.

According to the National Survey of Student Engagement, Miami University 88% of first year students feel that Miami places a substantial emphasis on academics, compared to only about 80% of those at peer regional universities.

The NSSE, conducted through the Center for Postsecondary Research at Indiana University, examines academic experience and involvement of students and is used regularly to influence Miami’s policies, said Denise Krallman, director of institutional research at Miami.

“I think the reason this one is important is it looks at student engagement,” Krallman said. “It’s not student attitudes, it’s not their behavior outside of the classroom. It’s looking by and large at their academic experience. That’s what we’re here for – to educate a student. This survey shows that we do a good job of educating a student that comes in the door.”

Krallman said that although she regularly runs analyses and compares the surveys to previous years, Miami has maintained relatively consistent scores. The scores in areas where Miami falls below the average, however rare, have also remained about the same.

“Miami doesn’t score low on anything – to try and find something is a stretch,” Krallman said. “The one that we are a little bit below, is the supportive campus environment – does the campus provide you support to succeed academically, socially?”

The survey is conducted every two years since 1999 and is distributed to 610 schools across the nation. At Miami, 1,407 students participated in the survey.