This report provides information for the first time on the changes over a ten year
period in the attitudes and experiences of first year students in Australian universities.
The national survey of first year students on which the report is based is the third in a
series conducted at five year intervals: 1994, 1999 and 2004. The 2004 study provides
a snapshot of the students who commenced higher education this year and allows
valuable comparison with the findings of the earlier studies.
The 2004 study’s findings are based on 2,344 individual responses to a mailed
questionnaire. A 25 per cent sample of commencing first year students in nine
universities, stratified by Broad Field of Education (BFOE), was surveyed. Following
a second mailout to non-respondents to the initial mailout, the study achieved an
effective response rate of 28 per cent. The 2004 response rate is considerably lower
than the 57 per cent and 37 per cent achieved respectively in 1994 and 1999 using
comparable methodologies, reflecting a pattern of lower response that is now common
for survey research.
While the majority of items from the 1994 First Year Experience Questionnaire were
retained, some important changes were made including: a set of questions on student
identity and sense of belonging, a new series of items designed to monitor first year
engagement patterns; a more comprehensive suite of items of students’ use of
information and communication technologies (ICTs); and a new ‘managing your
commitments’ section designed to record more fully first year students’ experiences
beyond the classroom and in paid employment.