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Survey Instruments

Survey Instruments

NSSE Survey Instruments

The NSSE survey, launched in 2000 and updated in 2013, assesses the extent to which students engage in educational practices associated with high levels of learning and development.

The questionnaire collects information in five categories: (1) participation in educationally purposeful activities, (2) institutional requirements and the challenging nature of coursework, (3) perceptions of the college environment, (4) estimates of educational and personal growth, and (5) background and demographic information.

Tracking NSSE Updates

List of updates 2014 to Present

Edits in 2024 include modified end-of-survey prompts, and additional updates to Greek-letter participation and gender identity items (see 2023 edits). We also substantially updated the Inclusiveness & Engagement With Cultural Diversity, Civic Engagement, Senior Transition, HIP Quality, and Information Literacy modules.

View the List of NSSE Updates

The instrument is administered annually in the United States and Canada, as well as a variety of other countries across the globe. Links to the questions in English basic format (Items) and as they appear online to the student (Survey) are below; links for Items are updated in the fall for the upcoming administration while links for the Survey are updated later in January or February. To view the Spanish and French translations, contact us.

United States: Items | Survey

Canada: Items | Survey

Informed Consent Statements

Informed consent statements for the U.S. and Canadian instruments are also available. In addition to the two English versions of the instrument, Spanish and French versions are also available for schools located in Puerto Rico and Canada, respectively. All statements located for review in our IRB materials.

Licensing Survey Questions

NSSE also licenses its items. Send a message to cpritems@indiana.edu for more information. Use of the copyrighted NSSE survey without permission is prohibited.

Data Codebooks

View codebooks for NSSE, Topical Modules, and consortium questions.

NSSE Update 2013

Read about the significant update to NSSE in 2013

Mobile Optimization

All students who complete NSSE using their smartphone, tablet or desktop computer will experience an optimized survey format, resulting in higher response rates and item completion.