UF gives incentives to students for completing SERU survey

April 11, 2011

GAINESVILLE, Fla. —Two bits of information, one computer and a half hour are all University of Florida undergraduates need to complete an online survey, the ante for entering the UF football lottery.

Opening today at 9 a.m., the football lottery will prompt all undergraduates to complete the online survey to be eligible to enter the lottery. Available through the UF ISIS system from now until July 1, the Student Experience in Research Universities, known as SERU, gives undergraduates an opportunity to share their thoughts on their college experience, student programs, faculty and social life, or take the opportunity to advise current and future Gators.

Developed by the University of California Berkeley Center for Studies in Higher Education, SERU seeks to broaden understanding of the undergraduate experience on campuses and facilitate improvements.

The survey questions range from classroom activity to academic advising to student support groups to events attended on campus, according to Marie Zeglen, assistant provost and director of Institutional Planning and Research.

Unlike other surveys circulating campus, SERU is a population survey, not a sample. Instead of sampling random students and receiving results that may not represent the entire population of students, SERU invites nearly all undergraduate students to respond to the survey.

“In 2009, nearly 70 percent replied and took the survey,” Zeglen said. “This was very powerful since it meant that there were enough students to break the data into meaningful groups.”

The richness of the data allowed UF to better understand the undergraduate student experience and to identify areas for improvement, according to Zeglen.

Rivalry brews beyond the athletic fields as UF’s colleges compete to be number one. While College of Education is in the lead, the college ranks can change weekly.

Compared to 2009’s statistics, UF is surpassing its previous record, and is in the lead compared to other institutions. However, other universities, including University of Pittsburgh and University of Texas-Austin, threaten UF’s ranking.

The university is asking undergraduates to give their “two bits” and maintain UF’s ranking. UF is competing against eight other universities, including University of Texas-Austin, University of Pittsburgh, University of California-Berkeley, University of Michigan, University of North Carolina, University of Oregon, Rutgers and University of Southern California.

Participating UF undergraduates will receive football season ticket lottery eligibility and discounts to the Butterfly Rainforest and Harn Museum of Art. Prizes also include a chance to win an iPad and Amazon.com, iTunes and UF Bookstore gift cards.