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Katie N. Dabbs International Transfer Student Survey Analysis Seattle University: International Student Center

2 During the summer of 2013, the International Student Center (ISC) at Seattle University surveyed international transfer students registered with the center to measure student satisfaction and attitudes regarding their transition and experiences at Seattle University. In particular, the survey was used to gauge these students perceptions of the support provided by the International Student Center. The results will allow the ISC to discover areas of improvement the center can make to better serve international transfer students. Participants and Procedures A total of 110 international transfer students were sent an email requesting their participation in an online survey. A follow up reminder to take the survey was emailed to the students again approximately a week later, leaving the survey open for two weeks. In total, the surveyed consisted of 34 questions. The question types varied and included Likert scale, multiple choice, and short response. The purpose of the questions was to gain information on student demographics, assess the ease of transition and adjustment to Seattle University, and to find aspects within the ISC that can be approved. 50 students participated in the survey, creating a 45% participation rate. 64% of the students who participated were 21-25 years old, 28% were 18-20 years old, and 8% were 26 years old or older. Almost all of the participants (86%) indicated that they transferred to Seattle University from an institution within the United States, and 92% of students indicated they live off campus, but within 10 miles of campus. 76% of students strongly or moderately agreed that getting to campus was easy. Of the 50 students who participated in the survey, 16 different countries of citizenship were identified. The

3 majority of the students who participated were from China (12%), Indonesia (30%), and Vietnam (26%). Results The purpose of this survey was to identify key areas of success and areas of improvement for international transfer students served by the International Student Center at Seattle University. In order to create specific programs and outreach tailored to international transfer students, it is important to first evaluate what these students have identified is needed to improve their experience at Seattle University. In order to get the most accurate responses possible in the timeframe and budget provided, an anonymous survey was deemed the best method to assess the attitudes of international transfer students. The most important demographic piece to note is that the international students recorded in this survey identify as the traditional transfer student age range of 21-25. This is useful information when designing programming for these students to ensure that the programs align with their developmental stage. When looking specifically at the responses that evaluated the ISC support services and transitioning, the overall results were positive. The areas of improvement appear to be in student academic services, oncampus life, and student involvement. Transitioning to Seattle University 68.89% of students strongly agree to agree that they had no problems transitioning to Seattle University. To support international students in their transition from another college, the ISC provides a New Beginnings Orientation program. Students are required to attend this orientation ideally in fall quarter. The survey findings show

4 that 76.67% of transfer students found the orientation to be moderately to very helpful. In the open response section, students commented that due to their previous experience in college, many felt that some aspects of the orientation were repetitive. Overall, 53.33% felt that from an immigration perspective, the ISC staff was helpful during their transition into Seattle University and 62.2% of students felt that they could contact someone from SU when they needed immediate information. Table 1 Orientation Attitudes

The majority (88.8%) of ISC transfer students reported feeling comfortable interacting with staff members at the university. In addition, 93.33% feel that they fit in at Seattle University and 57.78% feel like a part of a community in my major/department. As transfer students, many students will enter Seattle University as sophomores or juniors in class standing. Due to this, it can be more difficult to interact with others on campus,

5 form relationships, and become involved. These results are encouraging, as they show that the majority of international students transferring to Seattle University are not encountering these issues. 82.22% indicated having a positive academic and student life experience at Seattle University and 93.33% report having made friends since transferring to Seattle University. To gain a greater insight into where these students are investing time outside of class, we will analyze student life experiences. Student Involvement The majority of students report spending only 0-2 hours a week involved in oncampus activities outside of class and 48.78% of students report being less involved at Seattle University than they were at their previous institution. Additionally, 26.83% of students report using the collegium facilitates only once a quarter and 36.59% never use the collegiums. According to the results, students are involved in a wide array of activities outside of class and off-campus. Table 2 Outside of Class Activities
Peer Support, 5 Lobby/Interest Group, 1

Mentor, 1

Work, 7 Media, 3 Tutor, 8

Student Clubs, 15 Community Volunteer, 15

Athletics, 5 Started a business, 3

6 Academic Support Services When transitioning from community colleges or other colleges/universities, it can be difficult to adjust to the academic scholarship that Seattle University requires. Particularly for transfer students transitioning from community college, the university standards may be a drastic increase from what one is used to. In order to identify if international transfer students are utilizing academic support services, a section of the survey was dedicated to discovering what services were used. However, almost all (87.8%) of students reported using no academic support services offered by Seattle University. Of the 12.2% of students who have used some sort of academic support, 51.22% of students report never using the Writing Center and 87.80% have never used the Math Lab. Five students reported using personal tutoring, career services, Albers Placement Center, and the Culture and Language Bridge program (CLBR). It should be noted that the programs identified by these five students do not all fall directly under Student Academic Services. Discussion/Implications for Future Research From the survey results, the International Student Center is able to identify critical aspects of the international transfer student population at Seattle University. This report has described the demographics, transition experience, student involvement, and academic support services that these students experience. Though the original intent of this study was to assess students attitudes towards the ISC, the information collected should transcend to other departments on campus who interact with international transfer students. Through these findings, the ISC as well as other on campus departments, such

7 as Transfer and Commuter Student Life and Student Academic Services, can better tailor their outreach and support to this specific student population. While this survey had a realatively high response rate of 50 students, the research was conducted during the summer when many students were away from campus. To add an increased layer of breadth and depth to these findings, it is recommended that focus groups and/or additional in-person meetings with international transfer students be conducted. It would be of use to the ISC and other student development departments to ask the question of why these students are not using academic support services, the collegium, and spending more time involved in campus activities. The findings from these focus groups would also be useful in developing a dynamic transfer student orientation that focuses specifically on transfer student involvement and support services, as students indicated they wished to see. In addition, the use of student development theory, such as Astins (1999) work, Student Involvement: A Developmental Theory for Higher Education, would greatly compliment programming directly related to increase international transfer student involvement on campus. This theory hypothesizes that the more a student is involved in on-campus activities, the more likely a student is to increase their academic success and retention. A collaboration between the ISC and Commuter and Transfer Student Life could lead to many successful events for international transfer students. This population of students ideally should be active in CTSL programming but, as identified earlier, almost never make use of their resources. Future research should seek to identify pathways for international transfer students to become involved on campus and engage in opportunities that further their academic and personal development.