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Semester at Sea 2023 Survey

Semester at Sea alumni are an integral part of our program. We value your opinion and seek your input to help us better serve you.

For nearly 60 years, we have launched journeys of discovery that have sparked bold solutions to global challenges. As we look into the future, we seek your insights, feedback and ideas to better serve our alumni and friends. This survey should take roughly 12 minutes to complete.

We are listening and are committed to taking action based on the feedback you provide to us.

Thank you for your participation.
We recommend taking your survey on a desktop computer, laptop computer or tablet. If you take the survey using a mobile device, we recommend turning your mobile device to the landscape position. Remember, if you cannot complete the entire questionnaire, please hit the “submit” button at the end, so that we can still capture your results. None of the questions are required. 
Section I

To start, please tell us a bit about yourself and your experience with Semester at Sea.
1. Which of the following describes your overall current opinion of Semester at Sea?
PoorFairGoodExcellentNo opinion
2. How often do you promote Semester at Sea to others?
NeverOccasionallyRegularlyAll the timeNo opinion
3. Which of the following best describes your experience as a student, Lifelong Learner, faculty or staff member?
PoorFairGoodExcellentNo opinion
4. Which of the following best describes your experiences as an alumnus/a?
PoorFairGoodExcellentNo opinion
5. How would you rate your decision to participate in Semester at Sea?
Bad decisionFair decisionGood decisionGreat decisionNo opinion
6. On a scale from 0 to 10, with 0 being the lowest, how connected do you feel to Semester at Sea?
012345678910
7. On a scale from 0 to 10, with 0 being the lowest, how likely are you to recommend Semester at Sea to a prospective student?
012345678910
8. On a scale from 0 to 10, with 0 being the lowest, how likely are you to recommend Semester at Sea to a prospective Lifelong Learner?
012345678910
Section II

The following questions are about your experience as a student, lifelong learner, faculty or staff member.
How important was each of the following aspects to your experience as a student, lifelong learner, faculty or staff member? How would you rate Semester at Sea’s performance in providing these aspects to you?

Importance

1 = Not important
2 = Somewhat important
3 = Very important
4 = Critically important

Performance

1 = Poor
2 = Fair
3 = Good
4 = Excellent                 

1 2 3 4 1 2 3 4
a. Relationship with students
b. Quality of academics/classes
c. Relationship with the faculty
d. Relationship with staff members
e. Opportunities to experience comparative learning in different countries
f. Real-life experiential learning environment
g. Traditions on-board ship
h. Opportunity to interact with alumni
i. Opportunity to engage in community service activities
j. Diverse and inclusive environment on board ship
9. How well did the experience with Semester at Sea prepare you for each of the following?
Space Cell Poor preparationFair preparationGood preparationExcellent preparationNo opinion
a. Being able to work well with people from different cultures
b. Current work status
c. Further graduate education
d. Commitment to continuous education
e. Responding to new career opportunities
f. Commitment to contributing in my community
g. Deepening my commitment to personal development
h. Greater awareness of the world and its different cultures
Name one person who had a special impact on your experience as a student, lifelong learner, faculty or staff member. Please also provide a brief description of the relationship.
Name one part of your experience with Semester at Sea that had a special impact on your experience as a student, Lifelong Learner, faculty or staff member. Please also provide a brief description of the program or activity. 
Section III
 
The balance of the questions pertain to your experience as an alumnus/a.
11. For each of the communication methods listed below, please tell us how important that method is to you and also rate Semester at Sea's effectiveness in utilizing that method:

Importance

1 = Not important
2 = Somewhat important
3 = Very important
4 = Critically important

Effectiveness

1 = Poor
2 = Fair
3 = Good
4 = Excellent          
N/A= Not applicable        

1 2 3 4 1 2 3 4 N/A
a. Email
b. SAS Website
c. Text/SMS
d. Mail
e. Alumni Shipmates Magazine
f. E-newsletter
g. Social media/online community
12. Please rank how you would most like Semester at Sea/Alumni Association to communicate and share information with you in order of importance:

(Please feel free to ignore any that you do not use or are unfamiliar with.) Order the items from the following list. First select an item with the spacebar to show a menu of possible ranking positions. Next, click a ranking position to order it in the ranked list. Note the menu will display more ordering options as you add items to the ranked list.
13. Please rank what information you are most interested in receiving from Semester at Sea/Alumni Association: Order the items from the following list. First select an item with the spacebar to show a menu of possible ranking positions. Next, click a ranking position to order it in the ranked list. Note the menu will display more ordering options as you add items to the ranked list.
Please indicate your feeling regarding the frequency of the following:
Space Cell Way too muchA little too muchAbout rightWould welcome moreNot nearly enoughNo opinion
a. Email correspondence from Semester at Sea (newsletters, news flashes, etc.)
b. Printed materials from Semester at Sea (magazines, newsletters, etc.)
c. Information regarding discount programs (credit cards, insurance services, etc.)
d. Solicitations for donations (annual fund, etc.)
e. Invitations to alumni activities
f. Presence on social media sites (Facebook, LinkedIn, etc.)
16. How important would the following alumni activities be to you? 
Space Cell Not importantSomewhat importantVery importantCritically importantNo opinion
a. Regional in-person social events
b. Regional in-person service events
c. Online social events
d. Online professional development opportunities
e. Mentorship opportunities
f. LinkedIn networking
g. Affinity groups (LGBTQ+, African American, Latinx, etc.)
h. Events & gatherings specific to your voyage
i. All Alumni events (for alumni from all voyages, domestic and international, Homecoming Voyages, etc.)
17. Please rank what types of programming you are most interested in attending: Order the items from the following list. First select an item with the spacebar to show a menu of possible ranking positions. Next, click a ranking position to order it in the ranked list. Note the menu will display more ordering options as you add items to the ranked list.
How important is it for alumni in general to do the following and how well does Semester at Sea do at supporting alumni in doing them?

Importance

1 = Not important
2 = Somewhat important
3 = Very important
4 = Critically important

Performance

1 = Poor
2 = Fair
3 = Good
4 = Excellent                 

1 2 3 4 1 2 3 4
a. Mentoring students
b. Identifying job opportunities for graduates
c. Recruiting students
d. Serving as ambassadors promoting Semester at Sea to others
e. Providing financial support for Semester at Sea (e.g. donations)
f. Networking with other alumni
g. Volunteering for Semester at Sea
h. Attending general alumni and Semester at Sea events
i. Participating in Semester at Sea online activities (social media)
18. How interested are you in the following ways to be involved?
Space Cell Not interestedSomewhat interestedInterestedVery interestedNo opinion
a. Promoting Semester at Sea regionally at local high school/college/organization
b. Joining the Alumni Association leadership team on a council
c. Sharing expertise with alumni either virtually or at a conference setting
d. Donating regularly to Semester at Sea
Which of the following alumni activities would you be likely to engage in? (Check up to five.)
19. How important would each of the following be to you in making a decision to make a gift to Semester as Sea?
Space Cell Not importantSomewhat importantVery importantCritically importantNo opinion
a. It's the right thing to do
b. Increasing the quality of the academics
c. Attracting high-quality faculty
d. Making improvements to the ship
e. Providing financial support to students
f. Creating a more diverse environment
g. Lowering costs for voyages
h. Knowing how gifts are used
i. More exclusive benefits for alumni
j. Alumni activities in my area
k. Having Lifelong Learning opportunities available
l. Having better events or activities for alumni
m. Knowing that the gift is a charitable gift to a 501c3
20. Which of the following would be a reason you might join a dues paying alumni association? (Check all that apply.)
21. Which of the following best describes your financial support of Semester at Sea?
22. Please indicate how much each of the following makes you proud that you are an alumnus/a of Semester at Sea:
Space Cell No impact on my opinionSome impact on my opinionSignificantly impacts my opinionCritically impacts my opinionNo opinion
a. Value/respect for Semester at Sea
b. Media visibility (e.g., newspaper, magazine articles, viral videos, etc.)
c. Hearing about the continuation of traditions
d. Accomplishments of alumni
e. Accomplishments of faculty/staff
f. Semester at Sea outreach to community
g. Accomplishments of students
h. Availability of scholarships
i. A more diverse and inclusive environment on board
23. Please tell us how important you find the following priorities to Semester at Sea's future:
Space Cell Not importantSomewhat importantVery importantCritically importantNo opinion
a. Increase access to the program so that any student who wants to sail can sail
b. Achieve net zero across the home office, ship and field programs
c. Cultivate our intentional inclusive learning community beyond the voyage to engage voyagers from the pre-voyage period through to alumni stage
d. Establish Semester at Sea as the top study abroad brand
24. Please rank the following priorities to Semester at Sea's future by level of importance: Order the items from the following list. First select an item with the spacebar to show a menu of possible ranking positions. Next, click a ranking position to order it in the ranked list. Note the menu will display more ordering options as you add items to the ranked list.
Please provide the following demographic information:
If you selected "yes" above, please check all that apply:
Your current location:
Thank you for your input. Your time is greatly appreciated.
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