• What is the Law School Survey of Student Engagement?

• Why should I fill out the Law School Survey of Student Engagement?
• I get surveyed all the time. How is this survey different?

• How did you get my name?

• What will you do with the data?
• Will my answers be shared with my law school?
• What will my law school do with the data?
• Are you surveying my law school only?

• Who is in charge of this survey?

What is the Law School Survey of Student Engagement?

The Law School Survey of Student Engagement is a survey specially designed for students like you to provide information about your law school experience, including your views about the quality of your education and how you spend your time. The survey has a national flavor in that your school is one of dozens of law schools from different parts of the country using the survey this spring. But the main reason your law school is participating is that it wants to learn more about what students think and do so it can improve the J.D. program.

Why should I complete the survey?

Simply put, your school needs to know what you think of your law school experience, the kinds of activities in which you engage, and how you are benefiting from your studies. Without this information, it's not very easy for faculty and staff at your law school to identify the areas that can and should be improved.

Unlike many other surveys, the Law School Survey of Student Engagement has a real chance of making a difference in terms of how people at your law school use the information. There is great interest in this study for two reasons. First, your law school chose to participate; it wasn't required. This means there are people who want to see the results. Second, there are numerous people beyond your school who would like to know how well your law school is doing - prospective students, their families, alumni, and others. So, your answers - after they are combined with those of your classmates - will be read with interest by a wide variety of people.

I get surveyed all the time. How is this survey different?

You've heard the expression, "think globally, act locally?" This is a national project with immediate local implications. That is, thousands of students around the country are getting the same survey. And people will be interested in what law students as a group think about their education. But it's also important that your school find out directly from you about your experience and then share what it learns through comparisons with other law schools. This will, probably for the first time, give your faculty and administrators an answer to the question: "How well are we doing?"

The survey results can be used almost immediately.

Your answers combined with those of your classmates will identify areas that your law school will likely examine more closely. For example, compared with other law schools, do students have more or less meaningful contact with faculty? Do students at your school study more or less than students at other law schools? Do you and your classmates think your law school supports them in their efforts? Answers to these and the other questions on this survey will pinpoint areas that need immediate attention.

Finally, this survey differs from most others you get because what you say will become part of a continuing national study that people at your school as well as dozens of other law schools around the country will use. So, your answers will not only help your school, but many others around the country as well.

How did you get my name?

What will you do with the data?

The information from this study will be used in several ways. First, your answers will be combined with those of others at your law school, analyzed and summarized in the aggregate. Your school will be able to examine the information in different ways; for example, to learn about the experiences of women and men or the experiences of students with different legal specializations. This is extremely valuable information because most schools do not have good information about how students spend their time and what they think of their law school. With this information in hand it is possible for people at your school to identify areas where, with some adjustments, the student experience can be improved. In other words, the more your law school knows about its students and what they think of the school, the more likely it is that faculty, academic and student life administrators and others, can take appropriate action.

Another way the information you provide will be used is in comparisons with other law schools. This isn't done very often, primarily because comparable information across law schools does not exist. LSSSE is unique in this sense.

Will my answers be shared with my law school?

Absolutely. Your anonymous answers will be reported directly to the administration at your school. One of the most important reasons to do this survey is so that your school discovers what you and other students at your law school do and think. If you have questions about the anonymity or confidentiality of your responses, call us.

What will my law school do with the data?

Schools will use the information from the Law School Survey of Student Engagement in different ways. Most will share the results in summary form with faculty, staff, student leaders, and other groups that have a "need to know" what it's like being a student at your law school. Some law schools have an assessment committee that collects information about various aspects of law school performance, including the student experience. An assessment committee will analyze information from the survey very carefully and use it in their own reports and in future planning for other assessment activities.

Your law school may also use the information in reporting to external authorities, such as the ABA and AALS accreditation teams, which are responsible to the general public for assuring quality in legal education. Your school may also share the results with other law schools in order to learn how your school compares. Perhaps the most important use is for your school to learn about you and your classmates, and where it should focus attention to improve.

Are you surveying my law school only?

Who is in charge of the survey?