Surveys
1) Schedule of upcoming surveys
This information is as of March 2025. The blue cells show when the survey is expected to run, but exact start and end dates are subject to change.
2) Survey directory
Below is a list of surveys of the SFU community that have been conducted in the past several years, where IRP has been involved in survey administration. The table is sorted by the "Target audience" and then "Scope". Click on a survey name to view available reports. If a survey name is not clickable, this means that reports are not currently posted on the IRP website but results may still be available from IRP. Please contact askIRP@sfu.ca for any questions about these surveys.
| Survey | Target audience | Scope | Schedule |
|---|---|---|---|
| Undergraduate Student Survey (UGSS) | UGRD students | SFU | Annual |
| Canadian University Survey Consortium (CUSC) | UGRD students | Canada | Annual |
| National Survey of Student Engagement (NSSE) | UGRD students | Canada and USA | Every 3 years |
| BC Baccalaureate Graduates Survey (BGS) | UGRD alumni | BC | Annual |
| Graduate Student Survey (GSS) | GRAD students | SFU | Annual |
| Graduate Student Supervision Survey (GSSS) | GRAD students | SFU | Discontinued, was run every 3 years |
| Canadian Graduate and Professional Student Survey (CGPSS) | GRAD students | Canada | Every 3 years |
| Graduate Student Exit Survey (GSES) | GRAD alumni | SFU | Annual |
| Tuition Consultation Survey | UGRD and GRAD students | SFU | Annual |
| Student Perceptions of Sexualized Violence Survey (SPSVS) | UGRD and GRAD students | BC | Every few years |
| Canadian Bureau for International Education: International Student Survey (CBIE ISS) | UGRD and GRAD students | Canada | Every 2 years |
| Canadian Campus Wellbeing Survey (CCWS) | UGRD and GRAD students | Canada | Every few years |
| Faculty Survey of Student Engagement (FSSE) | Faculty | Canada and USA | Every 3 years |
| Demographic and Diversity Data Survey (DDDS) | All students, faculty, and staff | SFU | TBD |
To see a brief description of each of these surveys, click the plus sign to the left. The survey descriptions are listed in the same order as in the table above.
Undergraduate Student Survey (UGSS)
An annual survey of all undergraduate students at SFU each fall term. The survey asks about things like overall satisfaction, course availability, teaching and curriculum, services, and university culture and involvement.
Canadian University Survey Consortium (CUSC)
An annual Canada-wide survey of a sample of undergraduate students. CUSC is on a 3-year cycle surveying a different group each year: first-years, middle-years, and graduating students. The survey includes a range of topics including what students expect of their university, their motivations for going to university, whether they have a goal in mind, and their development.
National Survey of Student Engagement (NSSE)
A survey of undergraduate students that is administered across Canada and the United States every 3 years. The focus of the survey is the engagement of students in their education.
BC Baccalaureate Graduates Survey (BGS)
A BC-wide annual survey of students who have graduated with bachelor degrees. The survey is sent to alumni two years after graduation, and asks them about their experience during their degree and what they are doing after graduation.
Graduate Student Survey (GSS)
An annual survey of all graduate students at SFU each spring term, which was first administered in 2021. The survey asks about things like overall satisfaction, progress towards completion, supervision, funding, and services.
Graduate Student Supervision Survey (GSSS)
A discontinued survey of all graduate degree students at SFU that was run every 3 years and was last administered in 2021. This survey existed before the GSS and so included some similar topics, but also included more detailed questions about respondents' experiences with supervision.
Canadian Graduate and Professional Student Survey (CGPSS)
A Canada-wide survey of graduate degree and professional students that is conducted every 3 years. The survey asks about things like overall satisfaction, professional skills development, supervision, and services.
Graduate Student Exit Survey (GSES)
An annual survey of alumni from SFU's graduate programs. Graduates are contacted approximately 6-10 months after their convocation and are asked about their experiences in their program and what they are doing after graduation.
Tuition Consultation Survey
An annual survey sent to undergraduate and graduate students in the fall term whose results inform the preparation of SFU's budget. Students are asked about their priorities and their opinions about proposed changes to tuition fees.
Student Perceptions of Sexualized Violence Survey (SPSVS)
A BC-wide survey run every few years by the Ministry of Post-Secondary Education and Future Skills as a requirement of the Sexual Violence and Misconduct Policy Act, to help assess the effectiveness of that policy.
Canadian Bureau for International Education: International Student Survey (CBIE ISS)
A Canada-wide survey of undergraduate and graduate international students which is administered every 2 or 3 years. The survey asks about things like reasons for studying in Canada, the application process, experiences at school, services, employment, finances, and plans after graduation.
Canadian Campus Wellbeing Survey (CCWS)
A Canada-wide survey which consists mostly of measures used in existing Canadian health surveillance surveys, and which is available for administration to both students and staff. SFU has participated in the student survey in 2020 and 2023.
Faculty Survey of Student Engagement (FSSE)
A survey of instructional staff that is administered across Canada and the United States every 3 years. The FSSE was designed to complement the NSSE, and asks about things like the nature and frequency of instructional staff-student interactions, and how instructional staff organize their time.
Demographic and Diversity Data Survey (DDDS)
An SFU survey administered for the first time in Fall 2024 to all students, staff, and faculty, asking about their demographics and inclusion experiences. Data collection about demographics and diversity is intended to continue in the future, but the exact format and schedule is still to be determined.
3) Thinking of conducting a survey?
If you are an SFU faculty or staff member planning a survey targeted at a large part of the SFU community (e.g. thousands of students, all staff members, etc.), please let IRP know at askIRP@sfu.ca. Suitable data may already exist, it may be possible to get the data using existing data collection tools, and this allows for better coordination of the timing of surveys.