1. How satisfied or dissatisfied are you with the choice of Christina Paxson as the University's 19th president?
13.8% Very satisfied
28.1% Somewhat satisfied
33.9% No opinion
3.3% Somewhat dissatisfied
1.0% Very dissatisfied
19.9% Not familiar enough to answer
2. Do you approve or disapprove of the way President Obama is handling his job as president of the United States?
16.5% Strongly approve
62.3% Somewhat approve
8.5% No opinion
9.6% Somewhat disapprove
3.2% Strongly disapprove
3. Do you think Brown should contribute more money to the city of Providence?
30.2% Yes
36.6% No
33.2% Not sure
4. The Undergraduate Council of Students proposed an amendment last month that would allow it to allocate its own budget rather than having its funding approved by the Undergraduate Finance Board. How did the UCS proposal affect the way you view the organization?
3.2% In a very positive way
13.2% In a somewhat positive way
40.9% Little to none
30.8% In a somewhat negative way
11.8% In a very negative way
5. To what extent does your financial aid package (or lack thereof) meet your financial needs?
0.4% I get too much aid
57.5% I get enough aid or do not need any
21.7% I do not get enough aid, and I have taken out external loans
20.3% I do not get enough aid, but I have not taken out external loans
6. "My friend group mainly consists of individuals of my socioeconomic status."
9.3% Strongly agree
35.0% Somewhat agree
6.8% No opinion
31.3% Somewhat disagree
17.6% Strongly disagree
7. "My friend group mainly consists of individuals of my race."
14.0% Strongly agree
30.7% Somewhat agree
3.1% No opinion
24.8% Somewhat disagree
27.4% Strongly disagree
8. The University is expanding its medical and graduate schools and professional master's programs and is looking to create a school of public health. Do you approve or disapprove of Brown's expansion of graduate and professional programs?
38.1% Strongly approve
34.8% Somewhat approve
10.0% No opinion
11.0% Somewhat disapprove
2.8% Strongly disapprove
3.3% Not familiar enough to answer
9. Do you think making admission need-blind for transfer and international students should be a higher priority for the University?
57.0% Yes
21.4% No
21.6% Not sure
10. The University should offer gender-neutral housing for first-years.
33.9% Strongly agree
24.7% Somewhat agree
23.4% No opinion
12.6% Somewhat disagree
5.5% Strongly disagree
11. What is the most important issue for the new president (to) focus on?
37.8% Increasing financial aid
5.7% Building on-campus residence halls
18.3% Renovating on-campus housing
8.6% Hiring more faculty
4.4% Improving athletic facilities
8.6% Improving classrooms and labs
5.5% Improving food options
11.0% Other
12. How has President Ruth Simmons contributed to your Brown experience?
41.3% In a very positive way
39.8% In a somewhat positive way
17.4% Little to none
1.0% In a somewhat negative way
0.5% In a very negative way
Methodology
Written questionnaires were administered to 1,530 undergraduates March 12-14 in the lobby of J. Walter Wilson and the Stephen Robert '62 Campus Center during the day and the Sciences Library at night. The poll has a 2.2 percent margin of error with 95 percent confidence. The margin of error is 3.3 percent for the subset of males, 2.9 percent for females, 3.9 percent for first-years, 3.9 percent for sophomores, 5.1 percent for juniors, 4.6 percent for seniors, 3.3 percent for students receiving financial aid, 3.0 percent for students not receiving financial aid, 9.5 percent for varsity student-athletes and 2.3 percent for non-varsity-student-athletes.
The sample polled was demographically similar to the Brown undergraduate population as a whole. The sample was 45 percent male and 55 percent female. First-years made up 29 percent of the sample, 29 percent were sophomores, 19 percent were juniors and 23 percent were seniors. Varsity athletes made up 12 percent of the sample. Of those polled, 45 percent currently receive financial aid from Brown. Students reported all races with which they identify, with 63 percent saying white, 23 percent Asian, 11 percent Hispanic, 9 percent black, 2 percent American Indian or Alaska Native, 1 percent Native Hawaiian or Pacific Islander and 5 percent other.
Statistical significance was established at the 0.05 level. All reported cross-tabulations are statistically significant.
News Editor Greg Jordan-Detamore '14 and Senior Staff Writers Alexandra Macfarlane '13, Margaret Nickens '15, Eli Okun '15, James Rattner '15 and Adam Toobin '15 coordinated the poll. Herald section editors, senior staff writers and other staff members conducted the poll.
ADVERTISEMENT
