USING FACTOR ANALYSIS to ORGANIZE STUDENT

SERVICES
Exploratory factor analysis was used to provide an organizational frame work for data
collected from an entering class of student at a large eastern university. Result from the EFA,
factors that emerged were religion/spiritually, help seeking, interracial relationships,
academic,self concept, cultural tolerance, academic preparedness, shy/lonely, and cult approval.
The needs of student represent an ever-changing concern for college and university
students affairs professionals. Data about students are often gathered from many administrative
units in a piacem eal fashion (posner &rosengerger 1997; twale , 1989). This study presents
factor analysis as a method of identifying the underlying constructs of information that were
gathered on an incoming class of freshmen using a single survey developed with input from
multiple departments.
The different agencies that from student services continuosly strive to develop new ways
of understanding and organizing services delivery. Because the dimensions that emerge from
factor analysis are grouping of the responses supplied by students, those dimensions are
potentially meaningful representations of student issues and characteristics.
Higher education is a potentially ever-changing environment attended by an ever-
changing student population. Factor analysis is proposed in this study as a method of evaluating
student experiences and expectations.
Participants
Participants were 1912(51% female) incoming freshmen from a large eastern university who
were attending a summer orientation program. Their mean age 17,6 9% were African
American,14% were asian American,64% were white. 4% were latino (A) , and 9% were other
or unreported
Results
Examination of the scree plot and eigenvalues indicated that an eight-factor solution was
reasonated
religion/ spirituality
help seeking
interracial relationships
academic self concept
cultural tolerance
academic preparedues
shy/ lonely
cult approval
 Johnson (1999 ) outlines the need for research in higher education that can identify trends ,
inform operating personnel administration ,and lead to increased studentcollege experience . The
use of factor analysisto organize student survey data may have essential utilities for college
administrators inmeet the research objectives Techniques discussed in this article emphasizes
reaching conclusions from the data , soRelevant literature will be cited in the discussion .
The emergence of religious / spiritual asThe first factor revealed that problems involving
existential faith is a very important concernto include students .Research has shown that
religiosity can associated with a different attitude to the culture experience
Factors spirituality , dimensions Approval Cult services across the student groups . studies have
variability shown in a positive attitude towards help looking across gender , race , and ethnicity
( Fischer & Farina , 1995 ; Tracey , Sherry , Bauer ,Robins , Todaro , & Briggs , 1984; Leong ,
Wagner ,& Tata , 1995) Perceptual mapping allows the administrator to
Plan allocation of space for student services based on the students' feelings about the space ,
expressed in the form of a map . Thus , at the time Situation if the student feeling shy and lonely
mapped , potentially critical information about the provision of services to them could
determined .
Factors three and five,
1. Interracial Relationships
2. Cultural Tolerance

Represent two dimensions that may be valuable in helping student affairs professinals to
understand how to culturally relevant services can be delivered to the demographic groups of the
highest need.
Both factors can help identify student attitudes and inform program development.
For example, a university observing that few of their incoming white students report having
friends of other races (low interracial relationships), yet feel that they are open the cultural
differences (high cultural tolerance) may assume that the white students have had little previous
contact with students from other racial/ cultural groups.
Two factors are directly related to student academic concerns :
1. Academic Self-concept
2. Academic Preparedness

Given the current emphasis on retention of students in higher education, these two factors may
provide insights into who should be the focus of early interventions. Combined with informtion
from the helping seeking factor, how the intervention would be implemented could be varied
effectively to account for student reluctance to make use of existing services to avoid leaving
college.
University chaplains are facilitating religious involvement. Because student view that cult
approval as a different concern than religious factors. Cult approval factors can be meaningful in
designing and implementating programs for student groups. The service for student survey data
provider and potentially meaning full organization of survey items that can strengthen the utility
of the survey in diverse college populations