2005 Freshman Class

1
2005 Freshman Class

• Beliefs, Behaviors, and Attitudes

2
Major Sources

• Institutional
• Admissions Office
• ASU Fact Book
• Freshman Survey
• College Student Inventory (2003)
• National Survey of Student Engagement (NSSE)
  (2003)
• National College Health Assessment Survey (2001)
• National
• HERI, The American Freshman (1971-2002) AKA
  CIRP
• Your First College Year (YFCY)
• National Survey of Student Engagement (NSSE)
• Millennials Rising, by Howe Strauss (2000)
• Chronicle of Higher Education

3
Generational Context

• Every college student is a product of its age.
• -Levine Cureton, When Hope and Fear Collide

4
The life and times of the Class of 2009

• Born (1987)
• Stock Market crash
• Oliver North (Iran-Contra hearings

• One year old (1988)
• George Bush elected
• Pan Am 747 explodes over Lockerbie Scotland
• Two years old (1989)
• Berlin Wall came down
• Tianamen Square killings
• Exxon Valdez accident
• World Wide Web started
• Simpsons Debut

5
The life and times of the Class of 2009

• Five years old (1992)
• Bill Clinton elected
• U. S. troops in Somalia
• Los Angeles riots followed the Rodney King
  verdict
• Six years old (1993)
• Israeli-Palestinian peace accord
• Branch Davidian stand off in Waco, Texas
• Monica Seles stabbed

• Three years old (1990)
• Persian Gulf War
• Nelson Mandela released
• Unification of Germany
• Four years old (1991)
• Soviet Union broke apart
• Apartheid repealed in South Africa
• Clarence Thomas hearings

6
The life and times of the Class of 2009

• Seven years old (1994)
• World Series was canceled
• Kurt Cobain committed suicide
• Nancy Kerrigan attacked
• Eight years old (1995)
• Newt Gingrich became Speaker of the House
• O. J. Simpson was acquitted
• Oklahoma City federal building bombed

• Nine years old (1996)
• Unabomber arrested
• Bill Clinton reelected
• Olympic Park bombing
• Ten years old (1997)
• Simpson guilty in civil trial
• Dow Jones topped 8,000
• Princess Diana killed

7
The life and times of the Class of 2009

• Thirteen Years Old (2000)
• Presidential election controversy
• Tech stocks start to fall
• Elian Gonzales
• Survivor debuts
• Fourteen Years Old (2001)
• George W. Bush elected
• Terrorist attack on U.S. territory (World Trade
  Center and Pentagon)
• Anthrax scare

• Eleven Years Old (1998)
• Clinton/Lewinsky Affair
• Jesse Ventura elected
• Twelve Years Old (1999)
• Columbine High School Tragedy (and local threats)
• Dow Jones sets record highs (Tops 12,000)
• Instant Messaging (IM) technology
• US Womens Soccer Team wins World Cup

8
The life and times of the Class of 2009

• Fifteen Years Old (2002)
• War on terror
• Sniper shootings
• Enron collapse
• Sixteen Years Old (2003)
• War in Iraq
• Space Shuttle Columbia disaster
• SARS outbreak
• Sammy Sosas corked bat
• Woman plays in PGA tour event
• Governor Schwarzenegger

• Seventeen Years Old (2004)
• War continues
• Bush reelected
• Tsunami
• Eighteen Years Old (2005)
• Pope John Paul II dies

9
Todays Students (summary)

• Computers, CDs, VCRs have been present their
  entire lives
• Never known a day without AIDS
• Too young to remember the space shuttle blowing
  up
• Grew up in a period of rapid change
• Era of personal violence and terrorism

10
The Millennial Generation

• Seven Distinguishing Traits
• Special
• Sheltered
• Confident
• Team-Oriented
• Achieving
• Pressured
• Conventional

11
Fall 2005 ASU Freshmen

• Highest number of applicants ever (10,518)
• 2,525 entering freshmen
• Average SAT score 1148
• 3.77 average High School GPA
• 55 female / 45 male

Appalachian Admissions (as of May 3, 2005)
12
Hometowns (all undergrads)

• Top 6 Counties
• 1) Mecklenberg (316)
• 2) Wake (308)
• 3) Guilford (144)
• 4) Forsyth (129)
• 5) Buncombe (74)
• 6) Watauga (73)
• Ashe Avery combined (38)

Top 5 States 1)North Carolina (11,802) 2)
Georgia (278) 3) South Carolina (173) 4) Virginia
(199) 5) Florida (133)
2004-05 ASU Fact Book All Undergraduate
enrollment
13
Choosing a College

• Students (nationally) are applying to more
  colleges
• 10 applied to 7
• (up from 8.3 in 1991)
• 68.7 are attending their 1st choice
• (down from 79 in 1977)

College admissions is very competitive
Higher Education Research Institute, 2003-04
14
Number of Colleges Applied To2004 ASU Freshmen
Freshman Survey (2004)
15
Primary factor influencing choice of Appalachian

• Location in Mountains 28.5
• Availability of Program of Study 23.3
• Academic Reputation 13
• Distance from Home 8.4
• Other 26.7

Freshman Survey (2004)
16
Paying for College

• 57.4 receive some type of financial aid
• 18.3 - Academic
• 39.3 - Financial Need
• 2.4 - Athletic based
• 50.9 plan to work while in school
• 10.4 more than 20 hours per week

ASU Freshman Survey (2004)
17
Thought to Ponder

• What implications might this demographic
  information (generational context, prior
  achievement) have for your role in Freshman
  Seminar?

18
Behaviors

• Sex, Drugs, and Rock n Roll

19
ASU Freshman Smoking HabitsWithin the last 30
days, on how many days did you use cigarettes?

• 50.2 Never used
• 10.2 Have, but not in 30 days
• 8.8 Used 1-9 days
• 3.9 Used 10-19 days
• 26.9 Used 20 or more days

39.6 - Active Smokers
National College Health Assessment Survey, Spring
2001
20
Plan to smoke marijuana (incoming freshmen)
In 2001, 34 of students reported that they
smoked marijuana within the last 30 days
(national 15)
Freshman Survey (2004) ACHA (2001)
21
Freshmen and AlcoholHow would you describe
yourself as a drinker?

• 30 Abstainer, non-drinker
• 36.5 Light drinker
• 29.1 Moderate drinker
• 4.4 Heavy drinker

Appalachians Online Health Survey, Fall 2001
22
Consequences of Drinking

• 43.1 reported doing something they later
  regretted
• 32.7 reported forgetting where they were or what
  they did
• 3.4 reported having someone use force or threat
  of force to have sex with them

National College Health Assessment Survey, Spring
2001
23
Social Life

• According to Levine Cureton, many student
  affairs officers have reported rises in
• Eating disorders
• Alcohol abuse
• Suicide attempts

24
Psychological Problems

• 50 of students report feeling very sad
• 33 have felt hopeless
• 22 have felt so depressed they cant function
• Suicide is 2nd leading cause of death among 20-24
  year olds
• 1 in 12 college students make a suicide plan

National Mental Health Association/JED
Foundation, 2002
25
Mental Health Concerns ASU Freshmen
26
Top Reasons for Counseling Visits

• Relationships
• Depression
• Anxiety
• Alcohol Drugs

ASU Counseling Center (2004)
27
Thought to Ponder

• What are the implications for our work regarding
  students increasing psychological issues?

28
Technology is a way of life

• Approach academic research differently
• Engage in cyber relationships
• Expectation of cyber service
• Students are plugged-in
• Trial error as learning strategy
• Video game generation

29
Technology

• 53.3 of students spent more than 5 hours per
  week online
• Nearly every freshman last year brought a
  computer to campus (35-Desktop 67.7 laptop)
  totals more than 100
• 93.8 brought a cell phone to campus
• 73.1 very often or often used e-mail to
  communicate with an instructor.

ASU Freshman Survey (2004) NSSE (2003)
30
Thought to Ponder

• What impact does students use of technology
  (internet, cell phones, etc) have on community,
  connection to ASU, and psychological well-being?

31
Freshmen Self Ratings
Rated self above average or highest 10
With rank (out of 21 choices)
Millennial
Higher Education Research Institute, 2003-04
32
Co-Curricular Involvement

• 89.6 plan to join a club/organization
• 38 plan to become a leader in a student
  organization (down from 48.5 in 1994)
• 21 plan to join a fraternity or sorority ?

ASU Freshman Survey (2004)
33
Cultural Experiences Expectations
Freshman Survey (2004)
34
Academics

• Attitudes and Behaviors

35
Academic DisengagementFrequently Bored in Class
High School
Higher Education Research Institute
36
Academic DisengagementHours spent studying per
week in last year of high school
ASU Freshman Survey (2004)
37
Hours Planned to Study
College Student Inventory (2003)
38
Academic Expectations
Higher Education Research Institute
39
Disengagement Continues Bad Habits in College

• 35.6 studied less than 6 hours per week during
  freshmen year
• 47.9 frequently or occasionally turned in
  assignments that did not reflect their best work
• 33.3 frequently or occasionally skipped class
• 32.6 frequently or occasionally came to class
  late

Your First College Year, 2003
40
Why Are They Here?
Top Reasons for Attending College

• To learn about things that interest me (76.9)
• To be able to get a better job (70.1)
• Training for a specific career (70)
• To be able to make more money (69.4)
• To gain a general education and appreciation of
  ideas (65.4)
• Prepare for graduate school (57.8)

Higher Education Research Institute, 2003-04
41
Reasons for Attending College (longitudinal)
Higher Education Research Institute
42
Traits that Describe A Great Student

• Being honest in my relationships with others
  (71.2)
• Searching for meaning/purpose in life (34.6)
• Engaging in self-reflection (26.3)
• Appreciating the interconnectedness of everything
  (24.1)

Higher Education Research Institute, 2003-04
43
AspirationsHow important is it to you that you
graduate from college?

• Not at all important 0.0
• Somewhat important 2.0
• Very important 20.6
• Extremely important 77.3

60 will graduate (5 years)
ASU Freshmen Survey (2003)
44
Degree Expectations

• 64 plan to go beyond a bachelors degree!
• 42.8 in 1971

ASU Freshmen Survey (2002)
45
Elite to Mass EducationPercentage of 18-21 year
olds that attend college
Levine and Cureton (1998) H.L Horowitz (1987)
46
Academic Integrity

• 54.4 reported that they cheated on an exam,
  paper, or test the year prior to enrolling in
  college.
• 16 plan to cheat during their first year in
  college!

ASU Freshman Survey (2004)
47
Thought to Ponder

• What are the lessons or implications of students
  academic expectations? What can we do as
  instructors to help bridge the disconnect between
  student and faculty expectations?

48
Career Planning

• 32.9 are undecided or not very sure about
  the choice of a future career.
• 32.6 are undecided or not very sure about
  the choice of an academic major.

Freshman Survey (2002)
49
Personal Objectives
Higher Education Research Institute, 2003
50
Personal Objectives (longitudinal)
Higher Education Research Institute
51
Getting it Done?

• 45.8 of freshmen frequently felt overwhelmed by
  all they had to do
• Only 29.1 felt very successful in managing their
  time effectively

Your First College Year, 2003
52
Change Over the First Year

• As compared with when they entered college,
  first-year students

• Spend more time studying, partying, and
  socializing
• Spend less time exercising and reading for
  pleasure
• Drink alcohol more frequently
• Attend religious services and perform volunteer
  work less frequently
• Feel more overwhelmed and depressed
• Feel more worried about the costs of college

Your First College Year, 2003
53
A Worthwhile Endeavor!
Your First College Year, 2003
54
Putting it all Together

• Academics are not students only priority
• Many engage in risky behaviors
• Psychological issues
• Tech savvy, yet still apprehensive
• Need to understand value and purpose of a college
  education
• Need help managing time
• Need to be academically engaged challenged

55
Challenge
L H
Suppor t
L H
Sanford, N. (1967) Development through challenge.