Wake Forest University Class of 2013-14 HEDS Alumni Survey Results
In May 2019, the Wake Forest University undergraduate degree recipients from 2013-2014 reported on the Higher Education Data Sharing Consortium (HEDS) Alumni Survey high levels of satisfaction with their education (95%) and a strong sense of connection to WFU (95%). Nearly all respondents indicated being either employed full-time (80%) or enrolled full-time in graduate school (12%). Although differences existed across WFU sub-group respondents, overall, WFU alumni reflected as positively or more positively on their experiences in college than peers at other administering institutions.
HEDS is a consortium of private colleges and universities that collaboratively share, analyze, and use data to advance their institutional missions. The HEDS Alumni Survey asks alumni about the quality and impact of their undergraduate educational experiences, including co-curricular activities such as internships, study abroad, and community service. The survey also asks alumni to evaluate the impact of their undergraduate education on their postgraduate critical thinking, problem solving, and other learning outcomes. Additionally, the survey asks about postgraduate employment, college satisfaction, and college debt. See responses to individual HEDS Alumni Survey items here.
The HEDS Alumni Survey was distributed to 807 undergraduate degree recipients from the 2013-2014 academic year for whom the university had valid email addresses. A total of 207 Wake Forest alumni submitted responses (6.8% margin of error, 26% response rate, 18% of the entire graduating cohort). The respondents were fairly represented by race but somewhat overrepresented by female students (57% of respondents compared to 52% in the graduating cohort). In order to correct some of the nonresponse bias, all analyses by gender and race were performed with post-stratification weights.
See here for more on survey analysis methodology.
Individual Items of Note
Individual questions provide a close look at notable differences across years and groups. The following links report by sub-groups those questions where the differences in percentage responding between the groups exceed the 95% confidence interval. The following items of note are those with the greatest numerical differences between groups.
WFU Class of 2013-14 Compared to WFU Class of 2010-11
More WFU 2013-14 graduates compared to 2010-11 graduates reported to have:
- Felt that their undergraduate experience prepared them very much for their current career (45% vs 26%)
- Felt that their undergraduate experience prepared them very much for interpersonal relationships and family living (34% vs 19%)
- Participated in community service very often as an undergraduate (25% vs 10%)
Fewer WFU 2013-14 graduates compared to 2010-11 graduates reported to have:
- Felt that their experience with off-campus employment contributed very little to their learning and personal development (13% vs 36%)
- Hoped to attain a PhD in the future (6% vs 14%)
WFU Class of 2013-14 Compared to Other Private Institutions
More WFU alumni compared to alumni from other administering institutions reported to have:
- Received health insurance benefits from their first job after graduation (75% vs 53%)
- Participated in a sorority or fraternity (68% vs 27%)
- Felt a very strong connection to their undergraduate institution (65% vs 46%)
- Borrowed no loans at the time of graduation (55% vs 35%)
Fewer WFU alumni compared to alumni from other administering institutions reported to have:
- Participated in on-campus employment (54% vs 72%)
WFU Class of 2013-14 Compared by Gender
More men compared to women reported to have:
- Believed that their first paying job after graduation paid enough to support their desired lifestyle (73% vs 42%)
- Found their experience with intercollegiate athletics contributed very much to their learning and personal development (56% vs 20%)
- Hoped to attain a Master of Business Administration in the future (46% vs 21%)
More women compared to men reported to have:
- Taken at least one course for credit overseas while enrolled at Wake Forest (69% vs 40%)
- Found service organizations to contribute very much to their learning and personal development (36% vs 14%)
WFU Class of 2013-14 Compared by Race
More White students compared to underrepresented minority students (URM) reported to have:
- Felt a very strong connection to Wake Forest University (71% vs 43%)
- Felt that their current job involves work that they find meaningful (86% vs 63%)
- Found student or campus government to contribute very little to their learning and personal development (38% vs 13%)
More underrepresented minority students compared to white students reported to have:
- Participated in multicultural student groups as an undergraduate (92% vs 63%)
- Found financial aid to be very important in their decision to enroll at Wake Forest (54% vs 24%)
Longitudinal Graphs of WFU Custom Questions
In addition to the HEDS Alumni survey questions, WFU added a number of custom questions to the survey over the years. The following are the custom questions with the greatest numerical difference between WFU class of 2013-14 and WFU class of 2010-11.
More WFU 2013-14 graduates compared to 2010-11 graduates reported to have:
- Felt that student-faculty engagement was very important to overall student experience (60% vs 44%)
- Felt well prepared for leading a life of meaning and purpose after graduation (59% vs 36%)
- Felt very significantly that they had a person at Wake Forest that they would consider their mentor (41% vs 25%)