New Survey Shows Baylor Alums 'Very Proud' Of Their Alma Mater

Media contact: Lori Fogleman, director of media communications, (254) 710-6275

A new national survey by a leading university-based public opinion research organization shows that large majorities of alumni of Baylor University are "very proud" to be graduates and feel a special bond to their alma mater.

The survey was conducted from May 31 through July 14, 2007, by the Center for Survey Research and Analysis at the University of Connecticut. The study was commissioned by Baylor's vice president for communications and marketing.

"We're pleased with the results of this scientific survey of Baylor alumni," said Baylor President John M. Lilley. "We will continue our efforts to better engage and inform our alumni, and to be responsive to their needs. But we're not surprised to find that Baylor alumni are very proud of their university and continue to feel a special connection to Baylor."

A national sample of 601 Baylor alumni responded to a battery of questions concerning their alma mater, including their level of connectedness to Baylor, perceptions of its programs and features, the likelihood that they would recommend Baylor as a "top choice" university to college-age children, and the sources they rely on to get their information about Baylor.

Some of the findings from the survey:
? Eighty percent of the alumni surveyed said they are "very proud" to be Baylor graduates, while 79 percent of alumni reported a special bond or connection to Baylor.
? Eighty-two percent of Baylor alumni said if they had a son or daughter who was applying to college, they would recommend Baylor as a "top choice."
? When compared to colleges and universities in general, 87 percent of Baylor alumni said the education a student gets at Baylor is among the best (41 percent) or better than most (46 percent).
? Alumni continue to describe Baylor as traditional, religious in nature - Christian or Baptist - and a place that is caring and safe, with eight in 10 alumni describing Baylor as "One of the Best Baptist Universities in America" and nearly seven in 10 describing Baylor as "One of the Best Christian Universities in America."
? Alumni describe Baylor as an institution that occupies a special place in contemporary American higher education, that is being transformed with new facilities, and that cares about great teaching and the integration of faith and learning.
? Nearly six out of 10 alumni have personally been on the Baylor campus within the last two years.
? Ninety percent of alumni rely on University sources for their information about Baylor. Fewer alumni report obtaining information about Baylor through public media sources such as newspapers (31%), TV news (26%), TV commercials (16%) or radio (16%).

"We appreciate the help of the various offices that reviewed and helped inform the survey design, including the president and provost, development and student life, athletics and the Baylor Alumni Association," said John M. Barry, vice president for marketing and communications at Baylor. "Our collective goal was to ascertain how Baylor alumni nationally perceive their alma mater and to use that information to help us in our planning and communications. This data confirms a wonderfully positive alumni base that has a strong connection to Baylor."

The random sample of alumni for the survey was drawn from a database of all valid alumni phone numbers provided by Baylor. The overall sample accuracy for a random survey of 601 respondents is +/- 4%.

For more results from the survey, view a slideshow presentation here.