VCU Commonwealth Education Poll finds Virginians think higher education is producing graduates ready to work

By Mike Porter

Large majorities of Virginians said Virginia colleges and universities are doing a good job producing graduates who are ready for the working world,  according to a new Commonwealth Education Poll released today by Virginia Commonwealth University’s Commonwealth Educational Policy Institute in the L. Douglas Wilder School of Government and Public Affairs.

Seventy-two percent of the Virginians surveyed said colleges and universities are doing a good job producing graduates in scientific fields and providing the skills that will be useful in obtaining a job. Slightly smaller majorities said the state’s schools do a good job preparing students for the workforce needs for the future (69 percent) and developing students’ writing and communication skills (63 percent).

The percentage of respondents who thought colleges and universities are doing a good job increased in all four areas since last year. The largest increase (7 percent) was in areas related to connecting college students to the world of work, specifically providing skills that will be useful in obtaining a job and preparing students for the workforce needs of the future.

Overall, Virginians responding to the poll indicated that they believe high school graduates are prepared for higher education and college graduates are prepared for the workplace. Strong majorities agreed that high school graduates are ready for college (63 percent) and that college graduates are ready for work (68 percent). However, a similar majority thought that high school graduates were not prepared for the workplace. Sixty-seven percent strongly or somewhat disagreed with the statement that high school graduates are ready for work.

“Virginians think our colleges and universities are doing a good job connecting students to the world of work,” said William C. Bosher Jr., Ed.D., executive director, Commonwealth Educational Policy Institute and distinguished professor of public policy in the Wilder School of Government and Public Affairs at VCU. “They also gave Virginia’s four-year institutions and community colleges high marks for the quality of education they provide.”

The survey also asked respondents what they think students need to succeed. A majority of Virginians (59 percent) indicated that it is more important to have specific job knowledge and skills than a college degree from a well-respected university in order to succeed in today’s workplace. Twenty-nine percent thought that a college degree was more important to success. Eight percent of respondents offered that both are important.

There were regional differences on the issue. Respondents in the northwest and south central regions were more likely to indicate the importance of job-specific knowledge and skills, with 68 percent and 62 percent, respectively, rating specific job knowledge and skills the most important factor for success. Northern Virginia and the west region were more likely to say that a college degree was more important with 36 percent selecting that option, compared to Tidewater and the northwest with 22 percent and 20 percent, respectively, citing a college degree. Respondents with a family income of $50,000 to $100,000 were most likely to say obtaining specific knowledge and skills was more important with 71 percent, compared to 55 percent for everyone else.

“In a tough job market, a majority of Virginians think that having skills and knowledge related to a specific job are key to succeeding today,” said Farrah Stone Graham, Ph.D., assistant professor in the L. Douglas Wilder School of Government and Public Affairs and director of the survey.

Overall, respondents offered a positive evaluation of the quality of education provided by Virginia’s four-year colleges and universities and community colleges. A strong majority of 79 percent rated the educational quality of colleges and universities as either excellent (23 percent) or good (56 percent). A similar majority of 77 percent rated a community college education as either excellent (20 percent) or good (57 percent). Mixed reviews were given for Internet-based programs, for which the degree is completed entirely online. A plurality of respondents (45 percent) rated the educational quality of Internet-based programs as either fair or poor, while 36 percent rated them as either excellent or good, and 19 percent of respondents said they didn’t know or they declined to answer the question.

Respondents also were asked to give their impression of the level of safety on college and university campuses. A strong majority (70 percent) believes that Virginia’s college and university campuses are safe, with 12 percent saying very safe. There was a 10 percent decrease in the number of respondents indicating campuses are very safe compared to last year (22 percent). A quarter of respondents (25 percent) said that campuses are not very or not at all safe.

The Commonwealth Education Poll was conducted by landline and cell telephone from Dec. 27, 2013, to Jan. 3, 2014, with a random sample of 803 adults in Virginia. The margin of error for the poll is plus or minus 4.5 percentage points. This poll is conducted annually by VCU’s Commonwealth Educational Policy Institute (CEPI).

For a PDF of the 22-page report, including complete question wording and detailed tables of results, see http://cepi.vcu.edu/publications/polls/.