Mobility of NDSU Students
The student transit use survey for NDSU received responses from 598 students. The survey information provides insight into current transit issues including movement demands of campus students, perceptions of MAT services and campus parking, as well as campus public transportation and transit accommodations.
It is not possible with an electronic on-line survey to ensure equal participation from all students. However, there was a proportionate distribution from all undergraduate and graduate classes (Table 1). The junior class had the highest representation. All classes were within 2.47% of actual class distribution.
Table 1. Survey Response Distribution Compared to Actual Class Distribution
| Classification | Actual Class Distribution (Spring '04) | Class Number | Responses Distribution | Survey Number |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Freshmen | 18.59% | 2,024 | 16.56% | 99 |
| Sophomores | 19.02% | 2,071 | 18.23% | 109 |
| Juniors | 17.31% | 1,885 | 25.59% | 153 |
| Seniors | 30.06% | 3,273 | 27.59% | 165 |
| Graduate | 12.78% | 1,392 | 11.37% | 68 |
| Non-degree | 2.23% | 243 | 0.67% | 4 |
| Total | 100.00% | 10,888 | 100.00% | 598 |
Of the 598 students who responded, 367 or 61.4 percent were female, and 231 or 38.6 percent were male. The actual NDSU spring 2004 enrollment consisted of 4,816 females or 44.2 percent and 6,072 males or 55.8 percent.
Student's employment status often influences their attitude towards and use of public transportation. About one-fourth of the survey respondents were unemployed (Figure 1). Just over two-fifths of students are employed off campus and just under one-third of the survey respondents were employed on campus. Compared with the previous year, these figures show a slight increase in people shifting from off-campus employment to on-campus employment, with unemployment being within a .07 percent difference.
Figure 1. Student Work Status (n=598)
A further breakdown shows that a slightly higher proportion of female respondents held jobs (Figure 2). A higher percentage of males identified themselves as unemployed. There is no survey information available to explain the differences.
Figure 2. Employment by Gender (n=367,231)
Whether students live on or off-campus was also evaluated. Just below two-thirds of the students surveyed indicated that they live off-campus. The respondents' results show that 83% (82) of freshman live on-campus, while only 50% (54) of sophomores, 29% (45) of juniors, and a mere 12% (20) of seniors live on-campus. This indicates that many students must use some form of transportation to get to school.