University of Mississippi2013 Institution Survey
Sites of writing--General Description
Is writing in the disciplines part of the writing program or department? (n=265)
No
Does your institution have a writing center or learning center with writing tutors? (n=679)
Yes
If not part of the writing program or department, what is the institutional home for the basic writing program? (n=249)
Independent program
Sites of writing--Writing Requirement
What does the writing requirement at your institution consist of? (n=638)
First-year seminars taught by faculty across the curriculum (FYWS)
First-year composition predominately taught by English and/or Writing department (FYC)
Are there curricular requirements that are not part of the writing requirement but that have writing as an explicit goal? (n=657)
No
Sites of writing--College Writing Goals
Sites of writing--National Survey of Student Engagement
Does your institution administer the National Survey of Student Engagement (NSSE)? (n=667)
Yes
Is your school part of the WPA/NSSE Consortium for the Study of Writing in College? (n=494)
No
Sites of writing--Changes to Writing Program
Have there been changes to the writing program or sites of writing at your institution in the past 10 years? (n=666)
Yes
Which changes have taken place in regards to the writing requirement? (n=382)
The writing requirement was changed.
First-year composition was converted to a first-year writing seminar taught by faculty across the curriculum.
Were there changes to the assessment of writing at your institution over the past 10 years? (n=589)
Yes
Were there any changes to the administrative structures of the writing program or the sites of writing over the past 10 years? (n=597)
Yes
Which administrative structures of the writing program or the sites of writing changed? (n=396)
A full-time WPA or WCD position was added.
Additional full-time WPA/WCD positions were created.
Was the writing program changed in the past 10 years to expand or eliminate areas? (n=609)
Yes
How did the writing program change? (n=346)
A writing center was added.
A writing fellows program was added.
The writing program became an independent program or department.
Were there changes to the staffing of the writing program or center over the past 10 years? (n=595)
Yes
Which changes to the staffing of the writing program or center have taken place over the past 10 years? (n=412)
Part-time teaching positions were added.
Full-time, non-tenure-line teaching positions were added.
Tenure-line teaching positions were added.
Adjunct faculty positions were converted into full-time, non-tenure-line teaching positions.
Peer tutoring positions were added.
Graduate student tutoring positions were added.
Were there any additional changes to the writing program or the sites of writing at your institution not already mentioned? (n=588)
No
Do you foresee changes to the administrative, curricular, or support structures of the sites of writing at your institution over the next five years? (n=661)
Yes
What type of changes to the administrative, curricular, or support structures of the sites of writing at your institution do you foresee in the next five years? (n=484)
Changes to the curricular structures or writing requirement
Changes to assessment
Changes to the administrative structures
Changes to the types of staffing
If you foresee changes to the administrative, curricular, or support structures of the sites of writing at your institution over the next five years feel free to explain.
Intend to add undergraduate minor, major, graduate certificate in Writing Studies
First-year writing/English composition--General Description
Does your institution have a first-year writing requirement whether explicit or embedded? (n=672)
Yes
By when must the second semester course be completed? (n=316)
Second semester, first year
First-year writing/English composition--Placement and Transfer
What is your program's placement mechanism?
| FYWS (n=18) | FYC (n=373) | |
|---|---|---|
| SAT/ACT | ||
| AP/IB | Yes | Yes |
| CLEP | Yes | |
| In-house exam | ||
| Directed self-placement | ||
| Portfolio | ||
| Dual enrollment/ transfer | ||
| Other |
First-year writing/English composition--Goals and Assessment
How are the goals for FYW courses assessed?
| FYWS (n=66) | FYC (n=381) | |
|---|---|---|
| Paper portfolio | ||
| E-portfolio | Yes | Yes |
| Random sample | Yes | Yes |
| Exam | ||
| Professor evaluation | ||
| None | ||
| Course evaluation | ||
| Student survey | ||
| Other |
Who participates in the assessment of the goals for FYW courses?
| FYWS (n=53) | FYC (n=326) | |
|---|---|---|
| WPA | Yes | Yes |
| Writing faculty | Yes | Yes |
| Institutional faculty | ||
| Outside evaluators | ||
| English faculty | ||
| Department chair | ||
| Other |
First-year writing/English composition--Curriculum
What is the other content of the FYWS requirement?
first-year seminar research topics proposed by professors
First-year writing/English composition--Enrollment Caps
First-year writing/English composition--Staffing
In the 2011-12 academic year, what percentage of FYWS courses were taught by: See Note 2a. (n=70)
| Full-Time, Tenure Track English Faculty | Full-Time, Tenure Track Writing Faculty | Full-Time, Tenure Track Other Faculty | Full-Time, Non-Tenure Track English Faculty | Full-Time, Non-Tenure Track Writing Faculty | Full-Time, Non-Tenure Track Other Faculty | Part-time English Faculty | Part-time Writing Faculty | English Graduate TAs | Writing Graduate TAs | Other Graduate TAs | WPA | Other | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 0% | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | |||
| 1-5% | |||||||||||||
| 6-15% | |||||||||||||
| 16-25% | Yes | ||||||||||||
| 26-35% | Yes | ||||||||||||
| 36-50% | |||||||||||||
| 51-60% | |||||||||||||
| 61-75% | |||||||||||||
| 76-85% | |||||||||||||
| 86-99% | |||||||||||||
| 100% |
In the 2011-12 academic year, what percentage of FYC courses were taught by: See Note 2a. (n=422)
| Full-Time, Tenure Track English Faculty | Full-Time, Tenure Track Writing Faculty | Full-Time, Tenure Track Other Faculty | Full-Time, Non-Tenure Track English Faculty | Full-Time, Non-Tenure Track Writing Faculty | Full-Time, Non-Tenure Track Other Faculty | Part-time English Faculty | Part-time Writing Faculty | English Graduate TAs | Writing Graduate TAs | Other Graduate TAs | WPA | Other | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 0% | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | |||
| 1-5% | |||||||||||||
| 6-15% | |||||||||||||
| 16-25% | Yes | ||||||||||||
| 26-35% | Yes | ||||||||||||
| 36-50% | Yes | ||||||||||||
| 51-60% | |||||||||||||
| 61-75% | |||||||||||||
| 76-85% | |||||||||||||
| 86-99% | |||||||||||||
| 100% |
Is there faculty or professional development available for those teaching FYWS? (n=69)
Yes
Is there faculty or professional development available for those teaching FYC? (n=457)
Yes
What form does the faculty development take for FYW faculty?
| FYWS (n=70) | FYC (n=373) | |
|---|---|---|
| Requried pedagogy course taught by the WPA | ||
| Required faculty development workshops | ||
| Optional graduate pedagogy course | ||
| Optional faculty development workshops | Yes | Yes |
| Individual meetings with the WPA/WCD | ||
| Other |
Do those attending faculty development for FYWS receive additional compensation? (n=65)
Yes
Do those attending faculty development for FYC receive additional compensation? (n=411)
Yes
Identifying and supporting diversely-prepared students--General Description
Does your institution identify students who may need additional writing support, including students whose primary language is not English? (n=626)
No
Writing across the curriculum (WAC) and writing beyond the first year--General Description
Does your institution have a WAC program and/or writing requirement beyond the first year? (n=642)
No
The undergraduate and graduate writing major and minor--Description of Undergraduate Major
The undergraduate and graduate writing major and minor--Description of Undergraduate Minor
The undergraduate and graduate writing major and minor--Description of Graduate Programs
Does your institution offer a masters degree (M.A.) in writing, other than creative writing? (n=656)
No
Does your institution have a Ph.D. program in writing, other than creative writing? (n=654)
No
Writing centers--General description
Does your institution have a writing center or learning center with writing tutors? (n=676)
Yes
Is the writing center free-standing or part of another institutional unit? (n=612)
Free-standing
Where is the writing center located? Note: From this point on writing center refers to both free-standing and those located within another unit. (n=612)
Library
What services does the writing center offer? (n=610)
Face-to-face consultations
Online tutoring via Skype or instant messaging (synchronous)
Assistance with oral presentations
Assistance with Powerpoint or other presentation software
Assistance with new media
Writing centers--Consultations
What is the average length of a consultation or tutorial session offered? (n=574)
30 minutes
Writing centers--Consultants
Are some or all of your writing center consultants undergraduate students? (n=561)
Yes
Are some or all of your writing center consultants faculty who teach in the writing program? (n=548)
No
Are some or all of your writing center consultants faculty who teach in other academic departments? (n=539)
No
During the fall of 2011, what percentage of the writing center consultants were undergraduate students? See Notes 2b & 4. (n=449)
96
During the fall of 2011, what percentage of the writing center consultants were graduate students? See Notes 2b & 4. (n=228)
4
During the spring of 2012, what percentage of the writing center consultants were undergraduate students? See Notes 2b & 4. (n=450)
96
During the spring of 2012, what percentage of the writing center consultants were graduate students? See Notes 2b & 4. (n=228)
4
How many consultants who worked in the writing center during the fall of 2011 were undergraduate students? See Notes 2b & 4. (n=448)
25
How many consultants who worked in the writing center during the fall of 2011 were graduate students? See Notes 2b & 4. (n=227)
1
How many consultants who worked in the writing center during the spring of 2012 were undergraduate students? See Notes 2b & 4. (n=449)
25
How many consultants who worked in the writing center during the spring of 2012 were graduate students? See Notes 2b & 4. (n=227)
1
How are consultants working in the writing center initally trained?
| Undergraduate students (n=505) | |
|---|---|
| Full-credit course | Yes |
| Half-credit course | |
| Weekly meetings | Yes |
| Monthly meetings | |
| Workshops before the semester | |
| No training required | |
| Other |
What on-going professional development opportunities are offered for consultants working in the writing center?
| Undergraduate students (n=461) | |
|---|---|
| Attendance at national conferences | Yes |
| Attendance at regional conferences | Yes |
| Presenting at national conferences | Yes |
| Presenting at regional conferences | Yes |
| Reading professional journals | Yes |
| Outside speakers | |
| Weekly meetings | Yes |
| Semester inservice or workshop | |
| Written reflections on daily and/or semester work | |
| Meet with director | |
| No opportunities available | |
| Other |
How are consultants working in the writing center compensated?
| Undergraduate students (n=509) | Graduate students (n=263) | |
|---|---|---|
| Hourly wage | Yes | |
| Stipend | Yes | |
| Tuition waver | Yes | |
| Course credit | ||
| Faculty salary | ||
| Release time | ||
| Other |
Writing centers--Course-based Peer Tutoring
Does your institution have a writing fellows (course-based peer tutoring) program? (n=577)
Yes
Do the writing fellows work both as fellows and in the writing center? (n=145)
Writing fellows and writing center tutors are two separate groups.
If two separate groups, how are they staffed? (n=47)
Writing fellows are gradaute students, and writing center tutors are undergraduates.
Do the writing fellows regularly attend the class they are assigned to work with? (n=142)
Yes
Administrative structures
Who has primary responsibility for administering first-year writing requirement? (n=565)
FYWD
Who has primary responsibility for administering the writing center? (n=546)
Separate writing center director or coordinator (WCD)
What is the teaching load for writing administrators?
| Average faculty member (n=501) | FYWD (n=265) | WAC director (n=62) | WCD (n=387) | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 0-0 | Yes | |||
| 0-1 | ||||
| 1-1 | Yes | |||
| 1-2 or 2-1 | ||||
| 2-2 | ||||
| 2-1-2 | ||||
| 2-2-2 | ||||
| 2-3 or 3-2 | ||||
| 3-3 | ||||
| 3-1-2 | ||||
| 3-1-3 | ||||
| 3-4 or 4-3 | ||||
| 4-4 | Yes | |||
| Other | ||||
| Varies |
What are the job responsibilities for writing administrators?
| FYWD (n=267) | WAC director (n=63) | WCD (n=392) | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Teach courses in the first-year writing program | Yes | ||
| Teach courses in the writing program/department (Not FYW) | |||
| Teach courses outside the writing program/department | |||
| Assess all or some aspects of the writing program | Yes | ||
| Assess the development of student writing on campus | Yes | ||
| Conduct faculty development with faculty across the disciplines | Yes | ||
| Conduct TA training | Yes | ||
| Consult with individual faculty across the disciplines | Yes | ||
| Consult with departments across the disciplines | Yes | Yes | |
| Supervise professional staff (writing center director, asst.director, admin asst.) | Yes | Yes | |
| Supervise tutors (professional and/or peer) | Yes | ||
| Hire professional staff | Yes | ||
| Hire tutors | Yes | ||
| Schedule writing courses | Yes | ||
| Schedule writing center | Yes | ||
| Place students into writing courses | Yes | ||
| Facilitate placement exam | Yes | ||
| Oversee curriculum development | Yes | ||
| Train professional staff | Yes | ||
| Train peer tutors | Yes | ||
| Advertise program | Yes | ||
| Oversee program budget | Yes | ||
| Tutor students | Yes | ||
| Plan events | Yes | ||
| Serve on university committees | Yes | ||
| Maintain program website | |||
| Serve as an academic advisor | |||
| Offer student workshops | Yes | ||
| Oversee exemption and/or transfer credit | Yes | ||
| Other |