Results of this year’s Student Services Fee survey are in at the University of Arizona, courtesy of Luke Money at the Daily Wildcat, and the results are no surprise.
Students responding to the survey still like receiving the concentrated benefits of various programs—financial aid, subsidized lunches, free tutoring and job counseling—while diffusing the costs over the rest of their peers. As usual, the survey started with a big assumption: it asked only which projects should be funded first, and not whether they should be funded at all.
No matter, though—when it comes to allocating your fee money, student responses are just helpful recommendations. From the article:
Jen Meyers Pickard, a senior research specialist who compiled the survey data into the report, said she believes the survey is “relatively representative” of the priorities of the student body. She also praised the higher student response rate this year, where 4,887 students, or 12.4 percent of the total student population, filled out the survey, compared to 10.5 percent of students in 2009 and 9.5 percent in 2008.
“This is going to be a nice tool in helping assist determining funding priorities for next semester,” Meyers Pickard said.
The survey is part of a larger process of fund allocation carried out by the Student Services Fee Advisory Board, which is made up of seven undergraduate students, four graduate students, and six faculty advisors. The results of the survey will help the board determine funding priorities next year.
Leo Yamaguchi, a physiology and nutrition major and co-chair of the board this year, says that many of the top priorities identified in the survey this year were also listed last year.
“It’s good to see that students are consistent in what they focus on,” Yamaguchi said.
He also said that, while the survey results will be used to help the board in their decisions on funding, they are only one factor that will be considered.
“Basically the survey, at least for me, is a starting point for discussion,” Yamaguchi said. “From here, we can examine the reasoning behind why students responded the way they did, then we can determine priorities from there. We can discuss everything and really see if it’s something students need to improve their education here at the UA.”
You want to create a new fee? Well, for that, a self-survey indicates approval and strong student support—it’s a method good enough to replace a campus vote!
But come time to distribute the cash, a survey is “relatively representative,” ”a nice tool” and a “starting point,” but only one factor in deciding the final allocation. The SSF administration may trust student opinions when it comes to imposing new fees, but when it comes to allocating them, they know what students really need “to improve their education.” Can’t blame them—would you trust an online survey?
Connor Mendenhall blogs at the Desert Lamp. He is a contributor to the Student Free Press Association.
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