Activities in the past year

Attended a religious service

88.7%

86.8%

90.1%

81.8%

82.1%

82.0%

Was bored in class*

40.3%

43.9%

37.6%

55.0%

46.7%

50.0%

Participated in organized demonstrations

52.0%

51.5%

52.4%

61.1%

62.2%

61.8%

Tutored another student

5l.4%

45.4%

56.0%

50.8%

59.7%

56.1%

Studied with other students

85.6%

81.7%

88.6%

90.2%

95.9%

93.6%

Was a guest in a teacher's home

31.4%

32.7%

30.5%

42.4%

33.7%

37.2%

Smoked cigarettes*

 4.8%

 5.3%

 4.5%

 12.9%

 6.6%

 9.1%

Drank beer

37.1%

45.4%

30.8%

63.6%

41.1%

50.2%

Drank wine or liquor

42.5%

45.0%

40.6%

62.6%

52.3%

56.4%

Felt overwhelmed by all I had to do*

29.3%

17.4%

38.2%

25.8%

45.2%

37.4%

Felt depressed*

 8.0%

 6.1%

 9.5%

 9.1%

11.7%

 10.6%

Performed volunteer work

86.0%

81.5%

89.3%

77.9%

85.7%

82.6%

Played a musical instrument

46.8%

46.0%

47.5%

43.2%

48.2%

46.2%

Asked a teacher for advice after class*

25.8%

22.1%

27.5%

28.8%

24.3%

30.2%

Overslept and missed class or appointment

3l.8%

26.6%

28.6%

20.5%

31.1%

34.2%

Discussed politics*

24.1%

21.0%

22.3%

18.2%

19.4%

19.8%

Voted in a student election*

22.3%

2l.9%

23.2%

13.6%

24.0%

21.6%

Socialized with someone of another racial/ethnic group*

66.2%

64.9%

67.2%

69.5%

66.7%

67.8%

Came late to class

59.2%

62.8%

56.4%

64.9%

44.6%

52.8%

Discussed religion*

23.1%

21.7%

24.2%

19.7%

30.3%

24.4%

Communicated via e-mail*

68.0%

58.2%

75.3%

73.0%

88.l%

82.3%

Used the Internet for research or homework*

79.4%

68.5%

79.7%

76.5%

86.2%

83.2%

Communicated via Instant Messaging*

68.4%

66.3%

70.0%

8l.l%

83.6%

82.3%

Other Internet use*

64.8%

66.4%

63.5%

78.3%

77.6%

78.0%

Performed community service as part of a class

54.6%

51.6%

56.9%

50.0%

57.9%

54.7%

Used a personal computer*

83.5%

81.3%

85.1%

83.1%

89.7%

87.0%

Total

Men

Women

MC Men

MC Women

MC Total

Student rated self above average or in highest 10 percent in:

Academic ability

63.8%

63.7%

63.9%

59.4%

54.9%

56.7%

Artistic ability

28.9%

28.0%

29.5%

28.6%

30.1%

29.5%

Computer skills

32.8%

41.7%

22.5%

48.1%

28.1%

36.2%

Cooperativeness

68.4%

65.8%

69.5%

69.2%

74.5%

72.3%

Creativity

53.0%

54.7%

53.5%

57.9%

58.7%

58.4%

Drive to achieve

69.8%

66.9%

72.0%

65.4%

72.4%

69.6%

Emotional health

50.6%

58.2%

44.9%

53.4%

44.4%

48.0%

Leadership ability

60.0%

65.1%

56.2%

69.2%

53.3%

59.8%

Mathematical ability

37.2%

43.5%

32.5%

42.1%

29.9%

34.9%

Physical health

52.2%

66.8%

41.2%

69.2%

43.1%

53.7%

Public speaking ability

34.8%

38.8%

31.8%

41.4%

31.6%

35.6%

Religiousness

43.1%

39.5%

45.8%

27.8%

31.4%

30.0%

Self-confidence (intellectual)

55.6%

64.2%

49.2%

69.9%

43.3%

54.1%

Self-confidence (social)

48.3%

55.7%

42.7%

63.9%

49.2%

55.2%

Self-understanding

49.4%

54.3%

45.7%

57.1%

44.1%

49.4%

Spirituality

46.3%

43.4%

48.5%

29.3%

30.4%

30.0%

Understanding of others

62.1%

57.5%

65.6%

60.2%

71.3%

66.8%

Writing ability

44.0%

40.5%

46.5%

37.6%

41.0%

39.6%

Total

Men

Women

MC Men

MC Women

MC Total

Reasons noted as very important in deciding to go to college

My parents wanted me to go

41.5%

39.4%

42.9%

37.6%

42.6%

40.4%

I could not find a job

 6.7%

 7.5%

 6.1%

 4.9%

 4.8%

 4.9%

Wanted to get away from home

27.4%

26.0%

28.4%

20.4%

19.4%

19.8%

To be able to get a better job

71.0%

72.0%

70.4%

67.2%

68.0%

67.7%

To gain a general education and appreciation of ideas

64.5%

57.9%

69.0%

53.4%

67.5%

61.4%

There was nothing better to do

 4.9%

 5.3%

 4.6%

 4.2%

 2.7%

 3.3%

To make me a more cultured person

39.4%

34.6%

42.6%

30.3%

43.8%

38.0%

To be able to make more money

71.4%

72.2%

70.9%

66.2%

58.1%

61.6%

To learn more about things that interest me

72.4%

68.4%

75.1%

68.6%

79.2%

74.7%

To prepare myself for graduate or professional school

58.2%

53.4%

61.4%

45.1%

54.7%

50.6%

To get training for a specific career

71.0%

63.2%

76.3%

68.5%

77.4%

73.5%

Total

Men

Women

MC Men

MC Women

MC Total

Objectives considered essential or very important

Becoming accomplished in one of the performing arts

17.3%

15.6%

18.5%

16.0%

17.9%

17.1%

Becoming an authority in my field

59.0%

59.4%

58.7%

56.9%

52.5%

54.4%

Obtaining recognition from my colleagues for contributions to my special field

54.5%

50.8%

56.9%

46.4%

43.7%

44.8%

Influencing the political structure

16.4%

19.5%

14.4%

21.3%

15.3%

17.8%

Influencing social values

39.6%

35.2%

42.6%

38.5%

45.5%

42.5%

Raising a family

78.3%

71.1%

83.1%

78.0%

79.1%

78.6%

Having administrative responsibility for the work of others

42.7%

43.0%

42.6%

36.8%

30.9%

33.4%

Being very well off financially

75.5%

73.4%

76.9%

66.8%

59.7%

62.7%

Helping others who are in difficulty

64.1%

55.5%

69.7%

57.8%

72.4%

66.2%

Making a theoretical contribution to science

21.1%

27.3%

16.9%

15.7%

12.5%

13.8%

Writing original works (poems, novels, short stories, etc.)

16.7%

19.5%

14.9%

15.9%

14.8%

15.3%

Creating artistic work (painting, sculpture, decorating, etc.)

20.8%

21.3%

20.5%

13.1%

15.8%

14.6%

Becoming successful in a business of my own

43.3%

45.3%

42.1%

42.3%

30.0%

35.2%

Becoming involved in programs to clean up the environment

20.6%

28.3%

15.5%

15.6%

15.6%

15.6%

Developing a meaningful philosophy of life

38.4%

37.5%

39.0%

42.5%

41.9%

15.6%

Participating in a community-action program

29.2%

25.8%

31.4%

18.4%

24.8%

42.1%

Helping to promote racial understanding

26.0%

28.1%

24.6%

26.5%

28.3%

22.1%

Keeping up to date with political affairs

27.9%

31.3%

25.6%

34.6%

28.9%

27.5%

Becoming a community leader

33.2%

37.5%

30.4%

33.4%

30.0%

31.4%

Improving my understanding of other countries and cultures

38.7%

33.6%

42.1%

50.7%

60.8%

56.5%

Integrating spirituality into my life

37.2%

35.2%

38.5%

36.1%

46.4%

42.0%

Total

Men

Women

MC Men

MC Women

MC Total

Agree strongly or somewhat that:

There is too much concern in the courts for the rights of criminals

65.0%

59.5%

63.8%

59.6%

61.3%

Abortion should be legal

40.7%

38.0%

51.9%

43.0%

46.6%

The death penalty should be abolished

25.4%

32.0%

35.4%

32.8%

33.9%

If two people really like each other, it's all right for them to have sex even if they've known each other for only a very short time

45.65 

23.2% 

69.2% 

32.3% 

44.3% 

Marijuana should be legalized

34.3%

37.8%

47.7%

25.1%

34.1%

It is important to have laws prohibiting homosexual relationships

51.5%

21.3%

51.2%

17.9%

31.1%

Racial discrimination is no longer a major problem in America

30.1%

21.4%

35.2%

28.5%

31.1%

Realistically, an individual can do little to bring about changes in our society

30.0%

21.4%

42.7%

26.5%

32.8%

Wealthy people should pay a larger share of taxes than they do now

52.7%

55.0%

57.9%

59.6%

58.9%

Colleges should prohibit racist/sexist speech on campus

59.8%

67.3%

56.0%

59.6%

58.2%

Same-sex couples should have the right to legal marital status

34.3%

45.4%

44.6%

73.1%

61.6%

Affirmative action in college admissions should be abolished

52.2%

45.1%

54.9%

49.2%

51.4%

The activities of married women are best confined to the home and family

31.2%

16.3%

32.8%

15.5%

22.3%

Federal military spending should be increased

46.1%

37.1%

46.0%

34.0%

38.7%

Total

Men

Women

MC Men

MC Women

MC Total

Political orientation

Far left

 2.7%

 3.3%

 2.2%

 4.0%

 3.7%

 3.8%

Liberal

19.0%

17.8%

19.9%

24.0%

29.3%

27.2%

Middle of the road

42.6%

42.0%

43.0%

50.4%

46.8%

48.2%

Conservative

32.5%

32.6%

32.6%

20.0%

19.7%

19.8%

Far right

 3.3%

 2.8%

 2.3%

 l.6%

 0.5%

 1.0%

Did your High School require Community Service?

No

75.0%

74.3%

75.5%

72.9%

76.6%

75.2%

Yes

25.0%

25.7%

24.5%

27.1%

23.4%

24.8%

Note: The statistics are based on survey responses of over 250,000 freshmen entering over 400 four-year colleges and universities in the fall of 2004.  The figures were statistically adjusted to represent the total population of approximately 1.6 million first-time, full-time freshmen at four-year institutions. Because of rounding or multiple responses, figures may add to more than 100 percent.

SOURCE: "The American Freshman: National Norms for Fall 2004," published by American Council on Education and University of California at Los Angeles Higher Education Research Institute