BCSSE Survey
BCSSE ask students about their prior academic experiences as well as their expectations for the coming year. Many of the questions on the survey are paralleled on NSSE, including several items sets that comprise the BCSSE Scales. The BCSSE Psychometric Report provides in-depth detail regarding content and factor structure for these new indicators.
What Content Does BCSSE Include?
BCSSE has common content for all students regarding their expectations and perceptions for the coming year. These common content areas include:
- Perceived Academic Preparation
- Perceived Academic Perseverance
- Expected Academic Difficulty
- Expected Academic Help-Seeking
- Expected Collaborative Learning
- Expected Student-Faculty Interaction
- Expected Hours Studying and Working
- Importance of Campus Support
- Expectation to Graduate from Current Institution
BCSSE content specific to first-year students' high school engagement and experiences includes:
- Amount of Reading and Writing
- Hours Studying and Working
- Learning Strategies
- Quantitative Reasoning
- Self-Reported High School Grades
- Extracurricular Activities
- Course taking including AP, Dual Credit, and IB courses
BCSSE content specific to transfer and delayed-entry students includes:
- Co-Enrollment with Another Institution
- Anticipated Stressors During the Coming Year
- Years Degree Completion Year
- Expected Hours per Week Providing Care for Dependents and Commuting to Campus
- Military Service
BCSSE content specific to transfer students' academic experiences includes:
- Reasons for Leaving Previous Institution
- Academic Performance at Previous Institution
- Expected Credits to Transfer
- Learning Strategies
Student status is determined by the following criteria:
First-year students are recent high school graduates who met one of the following criteria:
- All paper survey respondents regardless of high school graduation year, or
- Web respondents who graduated high school in 2019, 2018, or 2017 and did not attend another institution since graduating high school, or
- Web respondents who graduated high school in 2019, 2018, or 2017 and did attend another institution since graduating high school and expects to transfer 11 or fewer credits.
Transfer students are those respondents who met the following criteria:
- All web respondents who attended a college or university after graduation from high school and expects to transfer 12 or more credits regardless of graduation year.
Delayed-entry students are those who met the following criteria:
- Web respondents who graduated high school in 2016 or earlier and did not attend another institution since graduating high school, or
- Web respondents who graduated high school in 2016 or earlier and did attend another institution since graduating high school and expects to transfer 11 or fewer credits.