-2010 College Student Characteristics Inventory-
Educational Intentions of Students
How many years do you plan to attend college or what degree level do
you hope to achieve?
Doctoral or
professional degree
10%
1 or 2 years
2%
3 or 4 years
13%
Bachelor's degree
58%
Master's degree
17%
∙ 85% of all incoming students intend to complete at least a bachelor's degree.
∙ 27% of new students intend to complete a graduate degree.
Do you intend to complete a degree at UWSP?
Maybe/unsure
17%
No
3%
Yes
80%
∙ 80% of all incoming students plan to complete a degree at UWSP.
∙ 84% of students with a declared major intend to complete a degree at UWSP
compared to 69% of undeclared students.
∙ Approximately 1/3 of undeclared students are uncertain about whether they will
complete a degree at UWSP, which is twice that of students who have declared
majors.
University of Wisconsin-Stevens Point
Policy Analysis and Planning, Office of the Chancellor
-2010 College Student Characteristics Inventory-
Career Plans and Choice
Which of the following comes closes to describing your career plans?
No idea
6%
Know exactly
18%
Pretty sure
55%
Not too certain
21%
∙ 73% of new students are pretty sure of their career plans, the remaining 27%
are not too certain or have no idea.
∙ This distribution has remained steady over the past 10 years.
How important is it to you to have chosen a future profession before
entering college?
Very important
23%
Fairly important
52%
Not important
25%
∙ The level of importance placed on selection of a profession is a reflection of a
students' choice of a major.
∙ Undeclared students place lower importance on the choice of a profession
than do students with a declared major. 60% of undeclared students report
that selecting a major before entering college was not important, compared to
24% in all majors.
University of Wisconsin-Stevens Point
Policy Analysis and Planning, Office of the Chancellor
-2010 College Student Characteristics Inventory-
Choice of Major
For what reason would or did you choose your major?
Good job market
prospects
5%
Prospect to earn a
lot of money
3%
Someone persuaded
me
1%
Area in which I have
ability
16%
Represents my
interests
75%
∙ Interests and abilities are the primary reasons that students select a major.
∙ Undeclared students report slightly higher rates of influence for good job
prospects and the prospect to earn a lot of money.
University of Wisconsin-Stevens Point
Policy Analysis and Planning, Office of the Chancellor
-2010 College Student Characteristics Inventory-
Study Habits and Plans
As a HS senior, how many hours a week did you study outside of school
hours?
>10 hours
8%
7-10 hours
3%
None
19%
1-3 hours
46%
4-6 hours
24%
∙ 19% of new students reported not studying outside of school hours during
their senior year of high school. This is the highest reported percentage
recorded in data going back to 1986.
How many hours per week do you expect to spend studying?
0-3 hours
4%
>30 hours
2%
21-30 hours
12%
10-20 hours
46%
4-9 hours
36%
∙ Although 98% of new students spent less than 10 hours per week studying in
high school, only 40% say they will spend less than 10 hours per week in
college.
∙ 94% of new students expect to maintain an A or B average in college.
University of Wisconsin-Stevens Point
Policy Analysis and Planning, Office of the Chancellor
-2010 College Student Characteristics Inventory-
If yes, how many total hours per week will you work?
21-30 hours
6%
>30 hours
1%
1-5 hours
8%
11-20 hours
43%
6-10 hours
42%
∙ 66% percent of Freshmen report that they planned to be work either on campus
or off campus or some combination.
Work Plans
Are you planning to work for pay during the coming academic year?
Yes, off campus
11%
No
14%
Unsure
20%
Yes, on campus
35%
Combo of on and
off-campus work
20%
∙ Of those who reported they planned to work, 85% reported they planned to
work between 6-20 hours per week and only 6% reported that they planned to
work more than 20 hours per week.
∙ 7% of Freshmen reported they planned to work more than 20 hours per week,
compared to 9% of incoming Freshmen in 2009.
University of Wisconsin-Stevens Point
Policy Analysis and Planning, Office of the Chancellor
-2010 College Student Characteristics Inventory-
Academic Preparation: Experience with Academic Tasks
Writing a lab report
24%
Utilizing online environments for
academic work
41%
30%
Writing a research paper with
citations
42%
38%
Taking notes during a lecture
Writing an essay exam for classes
Reading a textbook to prepare for
class
37%
Giving a presentation for class
41%
Working with a group on a joint
project for a grade
25%
43%
15%
50%
13%
12%
41%
50%
Little or no
experience
15%
47%
50%
0%
16%
39%
42%
Some
experience
18%
45%
45%
Participating in a class discussion
based on your interpretation of a
reading
19%
39%
39%
Extensive
experience
29%
43%
43%
Taking notes from a textbook on
your own
36%
75%
9%
100%
∙ Students report the least experience writing a lab report, utilizing online
environments for academic work, writing research papers with citations, and reading
a textbook to prepare for class.
∙ Students report the most experience working with a group on a joint project for a
grade and writing an essay exam.
University of Wisconsin-Stevens Point
Policy Analysis and Planning, Office of the Chancellor