Step 3. What topics will you cover?

As we mentioned in Step 2, we developed a set of categories and topics to assign to the large surveys. These topics will help future surveyors filter the Large Survey Dashboard to find existing survey data and identify other people doing similar surveys. 

By adding topics to your survey, you help other people (including yourself!) find the data they need.

Why do we ask this question on the Large Survey Request Form?

Identifying our survey’s topics can help us share existing survey data, collaborate on future projects, and make things a little simpler for everyone (including our participants!).

Categories & topics overview

Further down this page, you’ll find twenty-one (21) topics that you can assign to your surveys and use to filter the Large Survey Dashboard. To make topics easier to find, we clustered these topics into five (5) categories.

Surveys can be assigned as many topics as needed.

How did we develop the categories and topics? We began by reviewing past large surveys from 2018 through early 2023. We used content from the Large Survey Request Form, technical documentation written by the survey authors, and the titles of the surveys. We entered this content into Chat GPT and asked it to generate 20 topics. We then removed, added, edited, and tested the topics over several months. Finally, we asked prior Large Survey researchers to test the topics and categories by applying them to surveys they previously conducted.

How do they work? The categories and topics are designed to tag the content in our large surveys. The categories and topics are not meant to create a conceptually ideal sorting of the surveys’ content, nor are they mutually exclusive. You may find that your search terms are associated with categories or topics that you don’t think are a good fit. That’s perfectly fine. As long as you can identify topics in the list below, you will be able to use them to filter the Large Survey Dashboard.

As long as you can find topics for your survey, you will be able to use them to filter the Large Survey Dashboard. (Even if you don’t think the topics and categories are a perfect fit.)

A note on demographics

The topics and categories do not include demographic items because these items exist in most of the large surveys. We considered the following to be demographics: race, ethnicity, gender, religion, socioeconomic status, sexual identity, housing, student work, student financial aid, military experience, and similar items.

COVID-specific surveys

We also excluded topics about the pandemic and COVID-19 because surveys with those topics were time-delimited and clearly named.

Finding topics that match your survey content or search interests

Ctrl/Cmd + F

The key to finding topics on this page is Ctrl/Cmd+F . While you are in this page, simultaneously push the Ctrl (or Cmd if you’re a Mac user) and F buttons on your keyboard and then enter the terms you’re looking for in the pop-up box. When you find your search terms, see what topic(s) they’re associated with. That topic (or topics) is what you will use to assign to your surveys in the Large Survey Request Form, or you can use them to filter the Large Survey Dashboard.

Topic 1. Academic Learning

Survey content: Academic Information, academic adjustment, academic disengagement, academic self-concept, academic challenge, academic engagement, challenging assignments, challenging nature of coursework, habits of mind, Learning Strategies, academic experiences, academic support services, academic experiences, curriculum attitudes, liberal arts, education attitudes, satisfaction with coursework, intellectual growth, intellectual discussions, quantitative reasoning, learning strategies, collaborative learning, expected academic perseverance, expected academic difficulty, perceived academic preparation, learning with peers, higher-order learning, reflective and integrative learning, learning strategies, effective teaching practices, face-to-face courses, online courses, evaluation, prior academic, expectations for participating in educationally purposeful activities, academic help-seeking, educational growth, study, hours studying, study habits, variety of courses, stimulating learning environment

Topic 2. Post-Graduation Outcomes

Survey content: post-graduation, post-graduation employment, continuing education, post-graduation volunteering, donations, job offers, job satisfaction, job acceptance, post-graduate activities, work plans, academic plans (e.g., graduate school)

Topic 3. Specific Disciplines

Survey content: Arts, visual arts, performing arts, arts experiences, arts involvement, science identity, science self-efficacy, school of business, business programs

Topic 4. Student-Faculty Interactions

Survey content: experiences with faculty, faculty mentorship, faculty contact and communication, interactions with faculty, faculty expectations, faculty Input, relationships with faculty, student-faculty interactions, faculty interactions, Faculty Fellows, Faculty Fellows familiarity, comfort having conversations with faculty members, teacher/student ratio

Topic 5. Belonging & Community

Survey content: Perceptions of peers, social experiences, social self-concept, positive relationships, belonging, sense of belonging, loneliness, quality of interactions, faculty belonging, feel comfortable being myself, feel valued, feel like part of the community

Topic 6. Civic Engagement

Survey content: Civic awareness, civic engagement, community engagement, faculty community engagement, social agency, staff & faculty community partnership skills, volunteer service, service to community, civic growth, civic growth, community service, volunteer work

Topic 7. Co-Curricular Involvement

Survey content: extracurricular activities, campus activities, campus events, leadership, recreation, athletics, sports, participation in athletics, high school athletics, college athletics, interest in athletics, likelihood of college involvement, college activities, mentorship (faculty mentorship is in the student-faculty interactions category), college activities, activity engagement, co-curricular learning, student organizations, panhellenic, Greek life, sororities & fraternities, events, traditions

Topic 8. Diversity, Equity, Inclusion, and Accessibility

Survey content: campus climate, diversity and discrimination, diversity, equity, inclusion, accessibility, cross-racial interactions, pluralistic orientation, faculty equity, interactions with diversity, student disability accommodations, learning assistance, student disability accommodations awareness, expected discussions with diverse others, discussions with diverse others, support for gender equity

Topic 9. University Satisfaction

Survey content: Overall satisfaction, college satisfaction, college reputation orientation, campus attitudes

Topic 10. Sustainability

Survey content: Sustainability, climate change, environmental and social justice, environmental policy, food and agriculture, human health and the environment, transportation, waste,climate change, national security & global peace, planetary/ecological health, public health, and social justice/injustice, 

Topic 11. Administration

Survey content: Risk, strategic risk, operational risk

Topic 12. Faculty & Staff Employment

Survey content: Faculty time use, professional support, faculty input, faculty equity, overall atmosphere, tenure attitudes, workload, research barriers, research productivity

Topic 13. Mental Health

Survey content: positive mental health, anxiety & depression, body image, suicide, diagnosed mental iIllnesses, use of counseling and therapy, satisfaction with counseling and therapy, counseling – perceptions about, stigma, behavioral health medication, eating disorders, mood, happiness, anxiety, depression, social anxiety, self-esteem, coping skills, positive coping, help-seeking, counseling/therapy use and satisfaction, mental illness, mindfulness, self-injury

Topic 14. Physical Health

Survey content: Perceived health status, physical health, exercise, nutrition, physical activity, weight, eating habits, personal health, health services utilization, medications, medical providers, fitness, sleep, sleep patterns, medications, medical providers, hospital, emergency department, emergency room

Topic 15. Safety & Other Basic Needs

Survey content: safety, campus safety supports, perceptions of risk, campus police, police, community police, police interaction, police satisfaction, satisfaction with police, campus police attitudes, campus safety, personal safety, bystander behavior, bystander intervention, bystanding, upstanding, violence, interpersonal violence, injury and violence prevention, violence, interpersonal violence, basic security needs like food and housing, food security, financial health, incident reporting, relationship violence, sexual assault, sexual misconduct, safety features like lighting, safety phones, crime prevention through environmental design, escorts

Topic 16. Sexual Health & Behavior

Survey content: Sexual health, safe sex, safe sex education, social norms, barrier methods, condom distribution, condom use, STI, HIV, STI testing, HIV testing, STI and HIV prevention, pregnancy, types of sexual activities, oral, anal, vaginal

Topic 17. Substance Use

Survey content: Substance Use, Personal Alcohol Use, Personal Substance Use, Perception of Risk regarding Substance Use, Other Students’ Alcohol Use, Perceptions of Peer Substance Use, alcohol consumption, drinking habits, alcohol attitudes, alcohol activities, alcohol incidents, heavy drinking, impaired driving, tobacco use, drug, alcohol harm reduction, drug harm reduction, substance use harm reduction, cannabis, BASICS, Recovery, Blackout, Liquor, Beer, Wine, Seltzer, Medical amnesty, Fake ID, Drinking games, BAC, blood alcohol, standard drink, BORG, marijuana

Topic 18. Wellbeing

Survey content: Wellbeing, well-being, subjective wellbeing, wellness, meaning, sense of meaning, purpose, life goals, personal growth, flourishing, resilience, contribution, life satisfaction, optimism, perseverance, goals in life

Topic 19. Campus Resources

Survey content: campus resources, knowledge of campus services, campus services – knowledge and perceptions, satisfaction with campus services, residential life, transportation, transportation barriers, housing, supportive campus environment, importance of campus environment, campus environment, supportive environment, support services, library, libraries

Topic 20. Policy & Leadership

Survey content: Students’ perceptions of leadership and policies, 

Topic 21. Technology

Survey content: technology, devices, information technology, learning management systems, Canvas

Questions? Contact us at largesurvey@wfu.edu