Making SENSE of the Entering Student Experience
The Survey of Entering Student Engagement (SENSE), an initiative of the Center for Community College Student Engagement, helps colleges discover why some entering students persist and succeed and others do not.
Administered during the 4th and 5th weeks of the fall academic term, SENSE allows colleges to learn what is working—and what needs improvement—in their intake processes and students’ earliest classroom experiences with the goal of improving entering student retention and outcomes.
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Center Releases National Report, a First Look at Promising Practices in Community Colleges
A Matter of Degrees: Promising Practices for Community College Student Success is the first in a series of reports by the Center for Community College Student Engagement exploring 13 promising practices for strengthening community college student engagement and success. A Matter of Degrees presents key findings from a multi-year Center initiative, Identifying and Promoting High-Impact Educational Practices in Community Colleges, and brings together survey responses from entering students, experienced students, faculty, and institutions. Data sources include results from recent Survey of Entering Student Engagement (SENSE) and Community College Survey of Student Engagement (CCSSE) administrations, the SENSE and CCSSE 2011 special-focus items on promising practices, and the Community College Faculty Survey of Student Engagement (CCFSSE) three-year cohort, plus preliminary findings from the newly launched Community College Institutional Survey (CCIS).
SENSE 2012 Survey Administration
Among community and technical college freshman surveyed across the country, 49% disagree or strongly disagree that a college staff member talked with them about their commitments outside of school to help them figure out how many courses to take. Do your entering students have a similar experience? How do you know?
Learn more about your entering students' experiences by participating in the Survey of Entering Student Engagement (SENSE). Registration for the 2012 administration (fourth and fifth weeks of the fall academic term) is underway and closes May 1, 2012. Before registering, please review information about pricing, adding custom survey items, and other membership options. Contact the Center for assistance.
More national survey data are available online.
Join SENSE 2012 and Receive Special-Focus Item Module on Promising Practices for Free
For an additional fee, all participating SENSE colleges have the option of adding up to two special-focus modules (of up to 12 items each) to the core survey. As part of the Center's newest initiative, Identifying and Promoting High-Impact Educational Practices in Community Colleges, all colleges that register for and administer SENSE 2012 (and that do not select two other special-focus modules) will automatically receive—free of charge—a 12-item module focused on a vetted list of promising educational practices.
Register for the 2012 Entering Student Success Institute
SENSE colleges have the special opportunity to send teams (composed of three to five individuals) to the fifth Entering Student Success Institute (ESSI). During the two and a half days, each college team will work with data, learn about strategies that can help improve the entering student experience, and formulate an action plan for initiating appropriate strategies.