Princeton Undergraduate Student Government

The Analysis of Princetonian Attitudes Committee (APAC) has set three goals for this summer with regards to the COMBO I and COMBO II surveys. The committee aims to better inform the student body of the significance of the surveys' results.

The results of the 2009 COMBO Survey are now available.  The Analysis of Princeon Attitudes Committee (APAC) has released the following highlights:

Eating clubs: It appears as though eating club financial aid has been successful in attracting students to join clubs.  Even more students would join if it were expanded to cover social fees, although there are strongly diminishing returns to vastly increasing aid to eliminate the cost difference between a dining hall and eating club.  A majority of those not currently in clubs would join (at least temporarily) if sophomore fees were covered.  Perceptions of racial diversity: Princetonians today rank the campus as more diverse than our predecessors did five years ago. On a scale of 1(homogeneous) to 7(extremely diverse), the ranking increased from 3.7 in 2004 to 4.72 today. Post-graduate plan change: There is a very large change in the number of people getting finance jobs for the summer compared to two years ago, and more students appear to want to spend their first couple of years doing public service.  Friends: Princetonians talk to many more people about matters important to them than the national average.  Unlike the rest of the country, we are not “Bowling Alone.”  Academic calendar: A slim majority of students does not want an academic calendar change.  Why Princetonians are happy/unhappy: About 60% of students say socializing with friends is the activity that makes them the most happy on campus.  Intellectual discussions were also highly ranked. Grading policy/competition,” lack of sleep, and “being overwhelmed by schoolwork” were by far the top sources of unhappiness.  About 34% of students did not rank a fifth source of unhappiness (compared with only 10% who failed to rank a fifth source of happiness), potentially indicating that some students are so pleased with their experience they have trouble finding many sources of unhappiness on campus, or there are only a few very important sources of unhappiness.

 

Download the raw data

Download the analysis

Download the 2007 report

Over the past four months, the USG Analysis of Princetonian Attitudes Committee has developed a new and improved version of the comprehensive COMBO survey: COMBO II. This 10-minute survey is very important: it is the one means through which the USG is able to accurately assess and evaluate overall student well-being at Princeton University. Among other things, the survey focuses on how socioeconomic background impacts student experiences on campus. The online survey will be distributed to the student body on April 15 (Wednesday). Those who take the survey will have the chance of winning over $2,000 in prizes.

In addition, there will be two COMBO II study breaks with, of course, free food on the 100 level of Frist with computers available to make it even more convenient for you to fill out the survey:

8:30pm-10:00pm, April 15 (Wednesday), Frist 100 Level 8:30pm-10:00pm, April 16 (Thursday), Frist 100 Level

We strongly urge that you participate in this survey. If you have any questions regarding COMBO II, please e-mail either Thomas Chen or James Coan.

The new USG administration has hit the ground running, tackling the most pressing issues that face Princeton undergraduates today. From civic engagement to the P/D/F policy, the USG has been working hard to develop sustainable policy solutions that will better the overall undergraduate experience. Specialized USG Working Groups comprising three to five USG officers address issues in their domain through conducting research, meeting with University administration officials, and proposing final policy solutions. Read more to learn about the wide variety of currently active working groups.