„ BIG SIX“– six positive experiences connected to preparedness for

life after undergraduate studies

In March 2014, Gallup and Purdue University published the results of their joint survey titled Great Jobs, Great

Lives, mapping the „Big Six“ – that is the six basic experiences, which all students of a high quality

undergraduate education should go through during their studies. These six experiences are closely linked to

preparedness for life after college. The “Big Six” were in turn selected on the basis of previous research on the

success rate of recent alumni of undergraduate studies in finishing their studies and in long-term success in

acquiring engaging employment and leading a successful life. The Gallup-Purdue Index results highlighted

three main key findings:

Preparedness for life is closely linked to these six positive experiences during undergraduate

education,

There is a cumulative effect – each additional "Big Six" experience results in more preparedness for

life,

“Big Six” experiences are also linked to time it took students to complete their degree.

The Gallup-Purdue survey consist of two main parts. The first part covers the support that students received

from faculty and university personnel. The second part asks about the extracurricular experiences during their

studies. More specifically, the first area consists of experiences of having at least one professor, who made

them excited about learning, having professor(s) who cared about them as persons, and having a mentor, who

encouraged them to pursue their goals and dreams. The survey then asks, whether the respondent had all

three of these experiences during their undergraduate education. The second three experiences are also not

connected with the content of education. The three questions ask whether the student worked on a project

that took a semester or longer to complete, had an internship or a job that allowed them to apply the

knowledge gained in the classroom, or was actively engaged in extracurricular activities and organizations.

Respondents are again asked whether they had all three of these experiences during their studies. Finally,

recent alumni are asked whether they experience all six of the “Big Six” items during their studies.

The results of the original survey show that the more positive experiences the students had during their

studies, the more they feel their education prepared them for life after college. At the same time, they are

more successful in attaining engaging, meaningful employment, and experiencing a higher level of subjective

well-being. The positive experiences are much more closely linked to successful life after college than which

school the respondent attended.

Gallup-Purdue survey shows that only 3% of American college graduates had all six experiences during

their studies. The survey polled 29,650 college graduates.

BISLA BIG SIX In 2016, Bratislava International School of Liberal Arts replicated the questionnaire on a sample of 56 of its total of 111 alumni. Compared to the US survey sample, 45% of BISLA students listed having all six positive experiences during their studies (survey sample included 56 of the total of 111 BISLA alumni).

SURVEY QUESTIONS The Undergraduate Experience: Support and Experiential Learning SUPPORT 1. I had at least one professor at [College] who made me excited about learning; 2. My professors at [College] cared about me as a person; 3. I had a mentor who encouraged me to pursue my goals and dreams; A. Strongly agree with all three support statements. EXPERIENTIAL 4. I worked on a project that took a semester or longer to complete; 5. I had an internship or job that allowed me to apply what I was learning in the classroom; 6. I was extremely active in extracurricular activities and organizations while I attended [College]; B. Strongly agree with all three experiential statements C. Strongly agree with all six statements

Gallup-Purdue Index

Feb-March 2014

BISLA „Big Six“ in numbers:

1 2 3 A 4 5 6 B C

Yes 55 52 39 39 29 39 35 28 25

No 1 4 15 12 26 17 20 22 24

No answer 0 0 2 5 1 0 1 6 7

BISLA yes in %

98.21% 92.86% 69.64% 69.64% 51.79% 69.64% 62.50% 50.00% 44.64%

no in % 1.79% 7.14% 26.79% 21.43% 46.43% 30.36% 35.71% 39.29% 42.86%

No answer in %

0% 0% 3.57% 8.93% 1.79% 0% 1.79% 10.71% 12.50%

American sample - yes in %

63% 27% 22% 14% 32% 29% 20% 6% 3%

98,2 92,969,6 69,6

51,869,6 62,5

50,0 44,6

1,8 7,126,8 21,4 46,4

30,4 35,739,3 42,9

0,0 0,0 3,6 8,9 1,8 0,0 1,8 10,7 12,5

0,010,020,030,040,050,060,070,080,090,0

100,0

1. I

had

at

leas

t o

ne

pro

fess

or

wh

om

ade

me

exc

ited

abo

ut

lear

nin

g

2. M

y p

rofe

sso

rsca

red

ab

ou

t m

e as

a p

ers

on

3. I

had

a m

en

tor

wh

o e

nco

ura

ged

me

to p

urs

ue

my

goal

s an

d d

ream

s

A. S

tro

ngl

y ag

ree

wit

h a

ll th

ree

sup

po

rt s

tate

men

ts

4. I

wo

rke

d o

n a

pro

ject

th

at t

oo

k a

sem

este

r o

r lo

nge

rto

co

mp

lete

5. I

had

an

inte

rnsh

ip o

r jo

bth

at a

llow

ed m

e to

app

ly w

hat

I w

as…

6. I

was

ext

rem

ely

acti

ve in

extr

acu

rric

ula

rac

tivi

tie

s an

d…

B. S

tro

ngl

y ag

ree

wit

h a

ll th

ree

exp

eri

enti

alst

atem

ents

C. S

tro

ngl

y ag

ree

wit

h a

ll si

xst

atem

ents

BISLA BIG SIX COLLEGE EXPERIENCESyes no no answer

How is the “Big Six” positive college experiences connected to success in finishing

undergraduate studies, finding engaging employment, sense of well-being, and

sense of being prepared for life. Data from the Gallup-Purdue US sample:

Source: Gallup Index. http://www.gallup.com/poll/182306/big-six-college-experiences-linked-life-

preparedness.aspx