Newsletters and Other Mass Messaging Promotion

Promoting NSSE 2023 in Newsletters, Announcements, and Other Mass Communications

If you use newsletters, announcements, or send other general communications to students or faculty/staff, these materials will help you get the word out to seniors and first-year students about NSSE.

Promo Materials and How-To

Suggested Messaging to STUDENTS (DOCX)

Include an announcement about NSSE in your unit’s regular messaging to students (e.g., in newsletters, blanket reminders to graduating seniors, weekly roundups, other mass messaging) using or adapting this suggested text. We ask that you include these announcements about NSSE in your messaging in March (and into April and early May, if desired).

Note: NSSE will remain open until May 15th; however, students must complete the survey by April 15th to be eligible for the drawings for the $100 Visa gift cards.

Reminder: NSSE’s IRB protocol prohibits direct and personal contact by campus officials encouraging individual students to respond. See guidelines below for more details.

Suggested Messaging to FACULTY/STAFF (DOCX)

Send messages to instructors and staff/employees in your unit encouraging them to help promote NSSE to students in March (and into April and early May, if desired). Instructors and staff/employees can encourage students to take the NSSE survey in a number of ways, including in-class promotion, social media, digital displays, newsletters and other general communications.

Note: NSSE will remain open until May 15th; however, students must complete the survey by April 15th to be eligible for the drawings for the $100 Visa gift cards.

Suggested Promo Dates

The main window for NSSE 2023 promotion is March 1 – 31 and students will receive email invitations on the dates below. These are all good dates to include announcements or send communications!

  • March 1
  • March 7
  • March 20
  • March 23
  • March 28

Note: NSSE can also be promoted into April and early May; however, students must complete the survey by April 15th to be eligible for the drawings for the $100 Visa gift cards.

Promotional DOs and DON’Ts

NSSE is overseen by the Indiana University Bloomington Institutional Review Board. Promotion of NSSE should be tailored to fit WSU, your program, and your students, but also must fall within IRB guidelines.

DOs

  • DO promote NSSE to your audience
    • But: Keep in mind that only SENIOR and FIRST-YEAR students are eligible to take the survey
  • DO communicate how responses help “pay it forward” and/or ways that NSSE data have helped your program
    • For example: “Senior responses to NSSE helped us update our career resources to be more useful”
  • DO describe NSSE results as “confidential”
    • Why: Demographic data are collected for disaggregation purposes, but personally identifiable data are not disclosed with the results

DON’Ts

  • DON’T promote NSSE to specific students with “direct and personal contact encouraging individual student response”
    • For example: No individual emails or one-on-one messaging
  • DON’T make students feel coerced to take the survey
    • For example: There must be no public shaming (even as a joke) or remarks like “Only real Cougs take NSSE”
  • DON’T describe NSSE as “anonymous”
    • Why: While personally identifiable data are not disclosed with the results, students must log in with WSU credentials to access the survey

Additional Information About NSSE 2023

NSSE opens on March 1st and remains open until May 15th; however, students must complete the survey by April 15th to be eligible for the drawings for the $100 Visa gift cards.

On March 1st, NSSE invitations will be distributed via email to eligible senior and first-year students on all WSU campuses, with a unique survey link for each student. Students also receive up to four reminder emails (on March 7, 20, 23, 28).

Students may also access the survey through a message in their Canvas inbox, a tile in myWSU, or by clicking through to myWSU from announcements or social media posts.

WSU partners with Indiana University for the administration of NSSE. Consequently, the NSSE survey is hosted on a website that is outside of the WSU web domain. NSSE invitation and reminder emails are sent by NSSE on behalf of WSU President Kirk Schulz, and include a unique link to take the survey at https://nssesurvey.org.

If a student has doubts about the legitimacy of their NSSE email, they can log in to myWSU and look for the NSSE tile on their homepage.

Each student who completes the survey by April 15th will be automatically entered into campus drawings for $100 Visa gift cards. Chances of winning depend on the number of students that complete the survey on each campus. Based on campus participation in 2021, odds of winning are approximately:

  • Pullman, 10 winners (1 in 180)
  • Vancouver, 2 winners (1 in 148)
  • Tri-Cities, 1 winner (1 in 132)
  • Global Campus, 2 winners (1 in 81)
  • Spokane, 2 winners (1 in 44)
  • Everett, 1 winner (1 in 37)

Note: NSSE will remain open until May 15th; however, students must complete the survey by April 15th to be eligible for the drawings for the $100 Visa gift cards.

If a student does not wish to participate in NSSE, they may click through to the survey and select “opt out.” They will no longer receive reminder emails from NSSE.

The estimated time to complete the survey is 15-20 minutes. If a student is unable to complete the survey in one session, NSSE will save their progress for later.

Eligible senior and first-year students on all WSU campuses will receive an email invitation on March 1st and can also access NSSE through a tile in myWSU. If students have questions about their eligibility, they can email Kimberly Green at kimberly_green@wsu.edu.

FIRST-YEAR Students Eligible to Take NSSE 2023:

  • Students enrolled in the spring 2023 term who:
    • were admitted to WSU as first-time, first-year students in 2022 in spring, summer, or fall (regardless of how many credit hours they brought in)
    • transferred to WSU and had <30 total credits at the beginning of the fall 2022 term
    • are former students returning to WSU and had <30 total credits at the beginning of the fall 2022 term

Students NOT Eligible for NSSE 2023:

  • Students in their 2nd year at WSU who still have “first-year academic level standing” (<30 credits)
  • Students enrolled at WSU through Running Start in the fall 2022 or spring 2023 term
  • Students admitted to WSU in the spring 2023 term

SENIORS Eligible to Take NSSE 2023:

  • Students enrolled in the spring 2023 term who had “senior academic level standing” (a minimum of 90 cumulative credit hours) at the beginning of the fall 2022 term

Students NOT Eligible for NSSE 2023:

  • Students who gained “senior academic level standing” at the end of fall 2022 term
  • Students in their 4th year who did not have “senior academic level standing” at the beginning of the fall 2022 term
  • Post-baccalaureate students
  • Students admitted to WSU in the spring 2023 term

Students’ responses to NSSE are confidential. Demographic data are collected for disaggregation purposes, but personally identifiable data are not disclosed with the results.

NSSE collects data from eligible senior and first-year students on all WSU campuses about their student experience inside and outside of the classroom, including their engagement in educational practices associated with high levels of learning and development. In 2023, the survey will include additional topical modules related to inclusiveness and engagement with cultural diversity, first-year experiences, and senior transitions.

NSSE provides data for WSU that can be analyzed for different campuses, colleges, schools, academic departments, and student affairs groups. Some NSSE data can be compared to peer institutions to provide insight into how WSU compares nationally.

Past NSSE results have helped WSU expand student services, build living-learning communities that bridge classes and residence halls, and broaden undergraduate research opportunities with mentoring faculty.

If you have any questions about the NSSE promotion guidelines, dates, or materials, please contact Kimberly Green at kimberly_green@wsu.edu.