College experience can have long-lasting effects
Alumni of Minnesota’s private colleges and universities ranked the quality and richness of their education higher than did alumni from public institutions, according to a survey administered by the Minnesota Private College Research Foundation and Hardwick Day. Comparing Results 2004: Alumni Perspectives on College PDF
(171 KB) provides updated results about what graduates say they experienced, and how it has impacted their lives.
Although assessments of student learning while in college are useful and increasingly available, they do not measure the effects of college over time. According to the MPCC alumni surveyed, their collegiate experience continues to have an impact on their decision making, leadership opportunities, job satisfaction, and involvement in civic activities.
For example, 67 percent of MPCC alumni indicated that their college experience helped them become effective leaders in the years after college — compared to 51 percent at regional public institutions.
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Eighty-four percent of MPCC graduates asserted the importance of contributing to their communities, as compared to 73 percent at regional publics. MPCC alumni also report being more politically and socially aware after college, more likely to consider equality and social justice as important and have increased appreciation for the fine arts.
The survey suggests that many of the differences in educational outcomes between private colleges and large research universities can be attributed to the smaller, residential settings where strong academic and social support systems are available and faculty members are deeply engaged in the educational process. Small class sizes that facilitate extensive discussions and interactive experiences also enriched the learning process.
In fact, 90 percent of MPCC alumni said they benefited from classes of fewer than 20 students, compared to only 30 percent of students attending public institutions in the six-state region.
Finally, 78 percent of MPCC alumni stated that professors challenged them academically but also personally helped them meet those challenges, as opposed to only 39 percent of regional public university graduates who felt similarly challenged.
The fact that MPCC students continue to benefit from their education long after they graduate suggests that our institutions are doing their job well. By successfully educating students, the state reaps the returns of a high quality of life, service to our communities and economic growth.
Note: The initial survey, completed in 1999, consisted of telephone interviews with nearly 850 alumni who graduated between 1958 and 1993. Results were reported in the Worlds of Difference report (see our research report section). The 2004 survey was administered to over 100 additional MPCC graduates from the classes of 1994 through 1999. A third survey is currently being planned.