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The Nation’s Female Freshmen Lack Computer Confidence, UCLA Study Reveals
- Survey reports more students using computers overall and reveals women are half as likely as men to rate computer skills as above average -
Editor’s note: To reach the Higher Education Research Institute directly, call (310) 825-1925.
More freshmen are regularly using computers in the year prior to entering college, according to the results of UCLA’s annual survey of the nation’s students entering undergraduate classes.
Additionally, the survey concludes that although female freshmen have significantly closed the gender gap in computer use, there exists an overwhelming difference in confidence of skill levels between male and female students. Findings also disclosed that women students are less likely than men to engage in Internet chat rooms, go online for other reasons or activities, or devote as much time to playing computer games.
The fall 2000 survey conducted by the Higher Education Research Institute at UCLA’s Graduate School of Education & Information Studies finds a record-breaking 78.5 percent of freshmen using computers regularly during the year before attending college. This represents an increase of over ten percent from last year’s findings (68.4 percent), and nearly triple the rate reported in 1985 (27.3 percent), when the question was first included in the survey.
Although women have almost pulled even with men in computer use -- 77.8 percent of women and 79.5 percent of men report frequent computer use in 2000 (see Figure 1) – a new survey question regarding computer skill levels reveals a much lower confidence level in female freshmen. When asked to compare themselves with same-age peers, women are only half as likely as men are to rate their computer skills as "above average" or within the "top 10 percent" (23.2 percent versus 46.4 percent). The gap in self-confidence may contribute to the fact that men are five times more likely to pursue careers in computer programming (9.3 percent of men, versus 1.8 percent of women). While the gender gap in computer confidence has always favored men, the gap among the 2000 freshmen is the largest in the history of the survey (see Figure 2).
"In a workforce increasingly dependent on technological proficiency, women’s relative lack of computing confidence is likely to place them at a disadvantage when it comes to the jobs they are willing to seek out," said Linda Sax, UCLA Education Professor and director of the survey.
Women are also less likely than men to participate frequently in Internet chat rooms (17.1 percent of women versus 23.4 percent of men) and less likely to report frequent on-line use for "other" reasons (47.7 percent of women versus 57.7 percent of men). The survey cited a large difference in the amount of time freshman women and men devote to playing computer and video games, with 35.4 percent of men reporting playing games for three or more hours per week, compared to only 9.6 percent among women.
Now in its 35th year, the UCLA Survey is the nation’s longest-standing and most comprehensive assessment of student attitudes and plans. Conducted in association with the American Council on Education, the survey serves as a resource for higher education researchers throughout the world.
The fall 2000 survey included 404,667 students at 717 of the nation’s higher education institutions. Data culled from 269,413 of those students at 434 four-year colleges and universities has been statistically adjusted to be representative of the 1.1 million freshmen entering four-year colleges and universities as first-time, full-time students last fall.
Other results and major trends found in the 2000 survey include:
Election Year Interest in Politics Hits Record Low
Entering college students continue to show little interest in politics, with only 28.1 percent inclined to keep up to date with political affairs, a dip from last year’s record low of 28.6 percent and the high of 60.3 percent in 1966 (see Figure 3).
A record low 16.4 percent of freshmen discuss politics frequently, compared to 16.9 percent in 1999 and a high of 33.6 percent in 1968. "Although the 2000 results reflect a long-term decline in students’ political interest, this year is significant since freshman interest in politics traditionally increases during a presidential election year," said Sax.
Declining Interest in Status, Rising Interest in Affluence
Receiving recognition and having authority are less appealing to today’s freshmen, with the percentage of those who feel it is very important or essential to become an "authority" in their chosen field dropping from 60.1 percent in 1999 to 59.7 percent in 2000, marking an all-time low for this item. The freshman goal of obtaining "recognition from colleagues" ranks at its lowest point in twenty-three years (51.2 percent), 9.3 percentage points below the item’s high in 1987. Only 36.9 percent are committed to "having administrative responsibility for the work of others," an item that peaked in 1987 at 45.5 percent. Although students entering college in 2000 care less about status issues, interest in affluence remains strong with 73.4 percent of today’s freshmen interested in being very well off financially.
Higher Grades, Less Time Studying
The survey finds that freshmen are spending less time studying and doing homework than in previous years. Only 36.0 percent of entering college students report studying or doing homework six or more hours per week in the last year. This marks the lowest figure since this question was first asked in 1987, when 47 percent reported studying six or more hours weekly.
Although students are spending less time studying, their high school grades continue to climb, with 42.9 percent of freshmen earning "A" averages in high school, compared to a record 42.7 percent last year, and a low of 17.6 percent in 1968. The percent reporting "C" averages or lower remained at last year’s record low of 6.6 percent, compared to a high of 23.1 percent in 1968.
"Considering the high level of grade inflation reached last year, we were somewhat surprised to see the trend continue," said Alexander W. Astin, Education Professor and founding director of the survey. "It is difficult to imagine that C grades once outnumbered A grades, in light of the fact that today we see six times as many A grades as C grades."
Escalating grades apparently translate into rising academic aspirations. The percentage of students who believe that there is a very good chance they will earn at least a "B" average in college rose dramatically from 52 percent in 1999 to 58.1 percent in 2000. When the question was first included in the survey in 1971, only 26.7 percent of freshmen anticipated earning "B" or better grades in college. This year’s survey also reflects a record 20.7 percent of freshmen expecting to graduate college with honors, compared to 18.3 percent in 1999 and a low of only 4.1 percent in 1967.
Drinking and Smoking Continue to Decline
Rates of drinking beer and smoking cigarettes continue to decline among entering freshmen, with less than half (48.3 percent) of today’s students reporting that they drank beer frequently or occasionally during the past year, compared to 48.6 percent in 1999 and a high of 73.7 percent in 1982.
The percentage of students who smoke cigarettes dropped for the second consecutive year to 10 percent, compared to 10.7 last year and a high of 15.2 percent in 1967. This is a relatively new downward trend; between 1985 through 1999 the percent of students who frequently smoked cigarettes increased steadily from a low of 6.5 percent. Additionally, the survey reports that 34.2 percent of freshmen believe that marijuana should be legalized, representing a significant liberalization of attitudes since the record low of 16.7 percent in 1989 (see Figure 4). Today’s figures, however, are significantly lower than the item’s record high of 51.3 percent reached in 1977.
Less Interest in Medical and Health Careers
Interest in medical and health careers continues to decline, with 6.0 percent of freshmen planning to become doctors, compared to 6.4 percent last year and a high of 7.6 percent in 1995. Similar declines were found in other health-related fields, (such as nursing and physical therapy) with 5.4 percent of freshmen expecting to enter the health professions, down from last year’s 6.2 percent and a high of 8.4 percent in 1995.
With respect to medical careers, women continue to widen the gender gap (see Figure 5), with 7.0 percent of women aspiring to become physicians, compared to 4.8 percent of men. This contrasts with past percentages of 7.1 percent of the men and only 2.4 percent of the women aspiring to careers as physicians in 1971. "This is one of the most remarkable long-term reversals in the entire survey," remarked Astin.
Opposition to Death Penalty Rises
Freshman opposition to the death penalty rose sharply, with 31.2 percent agreeing that "The death penalty should be abolished," compared to 26.7 percent in 1999 and 24.1 percent in 1998. Although this figure is considerably lower than the 60.2 percent of freshmen who agreed with the statement in 1971, the last six years have shown a reversal in trend for this item, which hit an all time low point of 21.2 percent in 1994 (see Figure 6).
Growing Support for Gay Rights
Freshman belief that "It is important to have laws prohibiting homosexual relationships" is currently at 27.2 percent. This represents a significant decline from the record high 50.4 percent of students agreeing with that statement in 1987. Further, 56.0 percent of freshmen believe that "Same sex couples should have the right to legal marital status." "This marks the highest level of support for this item since it was introduced on the survey in 1997, reflecting an increasing open-mindedness about gay rights among today’s freshmen," commented Sax.
UCLA’s Higher Education Research Institute has conducted the nationwide freshman survey since 1973. Since the survey’s inception in 1966, more than 10 million students at more than 1,500 institutions have participated.
Copies of the 35th annual report, titled "The American Freshman: National Norms for Fall 2000 (Sax, L.J., Astin, A.W., Korn, W.S, and Mahoney, K.M., 2000), are available to members of the public for $25 (prepaid plus $4.79 for the first book and 40 cents for each additional book for shipping) from the Higher Education Research Institute, UCLA Graduate School of Education & Information Studies, 3005 Moore Hall, Box 951521, Los Angeles, CA 90095-1521.
The Nation’s Female Freshmen Lack Computer Confidence, UCLA Study Reveals
The American Freshman - National Norms for 2000
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Editor’s note: To reach the Higher Education Research Institute directly, call (310) 825-1925.
More freshmen are regularly using computers in the year prior to entering college, according to the results of UCLA’s annual survey of the nation’s students entering undergraduate classes.
Additionally, the survey concludes that although female freshmen have significantly closed the gender gap in computer use, there exists an overwhelming difference in confidence of skill levels between male and female students. Findings also disclosed that women students are less likely than men to engage in Internet chat rooms, go online for other reasons or activities, or devote as much time to playing computer games.
The fall 2000 survey conducted by the Higher Education Research Institute at UCLA’s Graduate School of Education & Information Studies finds a record-breaking 78.5 percent of freshmen using computers regularly during the year before attending college. This represents an increase of over ten percent from last year’s findings (68.4 percent), and nearly triple the rate reported in 1985 (27.3 percent), when the question was first included in the survey.
Although women have almost pulled even with men in computer use -- 77.8 percent of women and 79.5 percent of men report frequent computer use in 2000 (see Figure 1) – a new survey question regarding computer skill levels reveals a much lower confidence level in female freshmen. When asked to compare themselves with same-age peers, women are only half as likely as men are to rate their computer skills as "above average" or within the "top 10 percent" (23.2 percent versus 46.4 percent). The gap in self-confidence may contribute to the fact that men are five times more likely to pursue careers in computer programming (9.3 percent of men, versus 1.8 percent of women). While the gender gap in computer confidence has always favored men, the gap among the 2000 freshmen is the largest in the history of the survey (see Figure 2).
"In a workforce increasingly dependent on technological proficiency, women’s relative lack of computing confidence is likely to place them at a disadvantage when it comes to the jobs they are willing to seek out," said Linda Sax, UCLA Education Professor and director of the survey.
Women are also less likely than men to participate frequently in Internet chat rooms (17.1 percent of women versus 23.4 percent of men) and less likely to report frequent on-line use for "other" reasons (47.7 percent of women versus 57.7 percent of men). The survey cited a large difference in the amount of time freshman women and men devote to playing computer and video games, with 35.4 percent of men reporting playing games for three or more hours per week, compared to only 9.6 percent among women.
Now in its 35th year, the UCLA Survey is the nation’s longest-standing and most comprehensive assessment of student attitudes and plans. Conducted in association with the American Council on Education, the survey serves as a resource for higher education researchers throughout the world.
The fall 2000 survey included 404,667 students at 717 of the nation’s higher education institutions. Data culled from 269,413 of those students at 434 four-year colleges and universities has been statistically adjusted to be representative of the 1.1 million freshmen entering four-year colleges and universities as first-time, full-time students last fall.
Other results and major trends found in the 2000 survey include:
Election Year Interest in Politics Hits Record Low
Entering college students continue to show little interest in politics, with only 28.1 percent inclined to keep up to date with political affairs, a dip from last year’s record low of 28.6 percent and the high of 60.3 percent in 1966 (see Figure 3).
A record low 16.4 percent of freshmen discuss politics frequently, compared to 16.9 percent in 1999 and a high of 33.6 percent in 1968. "Although the 2000 results reflect a long-term decline in students’ political interest, this year is significant since freshman interest in politics traditionally increases during a presidential election year," said Sax.
Declining Interest in Status, Rising Interest in Affluence
Receiving recognition and having authority are less appealing to today’s freshmen, with the percentage of those who feel it is very important or essential to become an "authority" in their chosen field dropping from 60.1 percent in 1999 to 59.7 percent in 2000, marking an all-time low for this item. The freshman goal of obtaining "recognition from colleagues" ranks at its lowest point in twenty-three years (51.2 percent), 9.3 percentage points below the item’s high in 1987. Only 36.9 percent are committed to "having administrative responsibility for the work of others," an item that peaked in 1987 at 45.5 percent. Although students entering college in 2000 care less about status issues, interest in affluence remains strong with 73.4 percent of today’s freshmen interested in being very well off financially.
Higher Grades, Less Time Studying
The survey finds that freshmen are spending less time studying and doing homework than in previous years. Only 36.0 percent of entering college students report studying or doing homework six or more hours per week in the last year. This marks the lowest figure since this question was first asked in 1987, when 47 percent reported studying six or more hours weekly.
Although students are spending less time studying, their high school grades continue to climb, with 42.9 percent of freshmen earning "A" averages in high school, compared to a record 42.7 percent last year, and a low of 17.6 percent in 1968. The percent reporting "C" averages or lower remained at last year’s record low of 6.6 percent, compared to a high of 23.1 percent in 1968.
"Considering the high level of grade inflation reached last year, we were somewhat surprised to see the trend continue," said Alexander W. Astin, Education Professor and founding director of the survey. "It is difficult to imagine that C grades once outnumbered A grades, in light of the fact that today we see six times as many A grades as C grades."
Escalating grades apparently translate into rising academic aspirations. The percentage of students who believe that there is a very good chance they will earn at least a "B" average in college rose dramatically from 52 percent in 1999 to 58.1 percent in 2000. When the question was first included in the survey in 1971, only 26.7 percent of freshmen anticipated earning "B" or better grades in college. This year’s survey also reflects a record 20.7 percent of freshmen expecting to graduate college with honors, compared to 18.3 percent in 1999 and a low of only 4.1 percent in 1967.
Drinking and Smoking Continue to Decline
Rates of drinking beer and smoking cigarettes continue to decline among entering freshmen, with less than half (48.3 percent) of today’s students reporting that they drank beer frequently or occasionally during the past year, compared to 48.6 percent in 1999 and a high of 73.7 percent in 1982.
The percentage of students who smoke cigarettes dropped for the second consecutive year to 10 percent, compared to 10.7 last year and a high of 15.2 percent in 1967. This is a relatively new downward trend; between 1985 through 1999 the percent of students who frequently smoked cigarettes increased steadily from a low of 6.5 percent. Additionally, the survey reports that 34.2 percent of freshmen believe that marijuana should be legalized, representing a significant liberalization of attitudes since the record low of 16.7 percent in 1989 (see Figure 4). Today’s figures, however, are significantly lower than the item’s record high of 51.3 percent reached in 1977.
Less Interest in Medical and Health Careers
Interest in medical and health careers continues to decline, with 6.0 percent of freshmen planning to become doctors, compared to 6.4 percent last year and a high of 7.6 percent in 1995. Similar declines were found in other health-related fields, (such as nursing and physical therapy) with 5.4 percent of freshmen expecting to enter the health professions, down from last year’s 6.2 percent and a high of 8.4 percent in 1995.
With respect to medical careers, women continue to widen the gender gap (see Figure 5), with 7.0 percent of women aspiring to become physicians, compared to 4.8 percent of men. This contrasts with past percentages of 7.1 percent of the men and only 2.4 percent of the women aspiring to careers as physicians in 1971. "This is one of the most remarkable long-term reversals in the entire survey," remarked Astin.
Opposition to Death Penalty Rises
Freshman opposition to the death penalty rose sharply, with 31.2 percent agreeing that "The death penalty should be abolished," compared to 26.7 percent in 1999 and 24.1 percent in 1998. Although this figure is considerably lower than the 60.2 percent of freshmen who agreed with the statement in 1971, the last six years have shown a reversal in trend for this item, which hit an all time low point of 21.2 percent in 1994 (see Figure 6).
Growing Support for Gay Rights
Freshman belief that "It is important to have laws prohibiting homosexual relationships" is currently at 27.2 percent. This represents a significant decline from the record high 50.4 percent of students agreeing with that statement in 1987. Further, 56.0 percent of freshmen believe that "Same sex couples should have the right to legal marital status." "This marks the highest level of support for this item since it was introduced on the survey in 1997, reflecting an increasing open-mindedness about gay rights among today’s freshmen," commented Sax.
UCLA’s Higher Education Research Institute has conducted the nationwide freshman survey since 1973. Since the survey’s inception in 1966, more than 10 million students at more than 1,500 institutions have participated.
Copies of the 35th annual report, titled "The American Freshman: National Norms for Fall 2000 (Sax, L.J., Astin, A.W., Korn, W.S, and Mahoney, K.M., 2000), are available to members of the public for $25 (prepaid plus $4.79 for the first book and 40 cents for each additional book for shipping) from the Higher Education Research Institute, UCLA Graduate School of Education & Information Studies, 3005 Moore Hall, Box 951521, Los Angeles, CA 90095-1521.