A December 2004 telephone survey of 603 Minnesota residents ages 25 and older, selected at random, gathered information about their attitudes and perceptions of the University of Minnesota, the state's funding of higher education, and tuition issues.
Overall Satisfaction: The table below shows overall citizen satisfaction with the University. About half of respondents indicated they were "very" or "somewhat" satisfied with the University. A significant percentage responded that they were "neutral" or unsure about their overall satisfaction.
Citizen satisfaction with the University of Minnesota, 2004.
Importance vs. Satisfaction: Respondents were asked to rate the importance of 13 goals for the University of Minnesota on a scale from 1 (not at all important) to 10 (very important). They also rated their satisfaction with the University's performance on these goals from 1 (not at all satisfied) to 10 (very satisfied).
The following figure compares the percentage of respondents who rated a goal as "very" or "somewhat" important to the percentage who said they were "very" or "somewhat" satisfied with the University's performance in that area. Satisfaction in all areas is higher in 2004 than it was in 2003. In particular, satisfaction with the University's management of financial resources rose from 30 percent in 2003 to 41 percent in 2004, while satisfaction with tuition affordability rose from 28 percent to 41 percent during the same period. The University has made strides in closing the gap between citizen priorities and satisfaction in almost all areas, but especially in these two areas.
Citizen impressions of University's importance to the state compared to citizen satisfaction with performance, 2004.
Funding: As shown in the figure below, the survey revealed that support for more funding of public higher education has increased significantly since 2001. When asked specifically about research support, three quarters of respondents support allocating funds earmarked for research at the University of Minnesota.
Citizen support for funding of public higher education, 2001 and 2004.
Respondents were asked to select two things that would concern them the most if funding for the University were cut. Responses are shown in the table below. Tuition increases are the top concern across all demographic groups.
Citizen concerns about University funding reductions, 2004.
Admissions: By a margin of more than 3 to 1, respondents thought the University should be open to any resident who meets minimum standards rather than admitting only top students.
Citizen opinions on University access, 2004.
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