⭐️ survey feedback

• from professor wright after first surveys (1)
• [ ] For clarity, I’d suggest spelling out Computer Science the first time you use it, and adding (CS) after it. After that, you can use CS for the rest. That seems especially important because it is possible that there could be some kind of error where a non-CS major gets on the list and they’ll more easily identify the error that way. But also, even among those who did major in CS, there are people who think of it as CompSci or COMS or probably other things as well.
• [ ] Technically, Barnard CS is currently a “program” not a “department”. Programs are mostly used for multidisciplinary topics such as American Studies, for example, but it is also how Barnard CS was created until we have sufficient critical mass for it to make sense for us to be a department. I’d suggest you replace The objective of this survey is to gain more insight on the experience of Barnard CS alumni who graduated before Barnard created its own CS department in January 2019. with something else. You could just say “CS program”, but I find that saying “Barnard CS program” sounds funny, partly because people don’t always know what a program is, and partly because it can make people think we’re talking about a bunch of C code or something. So you might consider something a bit lengthier, such as: As you may know, Barnard created its own program in Computer Science in January 2019. The objective of this survey is to gain more insight on the experience of Barnard CS alumni who graduated before that time.
• [ ] You may need to update the later question referring to “its own CS department as well."
• [ ] Under “Consent”, maybe start with “This survey and all of its questions are optional, but I hope you’ll fill it out.” Also, since you say that information is only for people who consent to follow up, maybe move them to the end instead.
• [ ] In the “Note”, maybe add “and majored in Computer Science”.
• [ ] Grammatically, your question “You often wished that Barnard had its own CS department” is not a question. Either rephrase as question or changed answers to “Agree” and “Disagree” (or perhaps a Likert scale of Strongly Agree, Somewhat Agree, etc.”
• [ ] Among the example answers you give for changes or additions, it might be helpful if you include “a major adviser at Barnard”. (Of course, anyone can write that in, but that’s something I’ve specifically heard from a lot of students as being very important to them, so I think it would be useful to mention the option.)
• [ ] Where you ask if they knew prior to applying to Barnard that Barnard did not have its own CS department (program), maybe instead ask if they knew before deciding to go to Barnard? I think it’s more informative to know if they knew at the time they made the decision to come to Barnard, whether they knew when they applied or not.

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For the first-years and sophomores survey, in addition to any comments implied by the earlier comments:

• [ ] I like your inclusion of “awesome” about their CS plans.
• [ ] perhaps change “What year are you graduating Barnard” to “what year do you expect to graduate from Barnard” and add “Other” as an option (perhaps with a write-in explanation). Those both reflect a recognition that not everyone has a standard pathway (which they might or might not know in advance).
• [ ] under the question ‘Did you know that Barnard did not have its own CS department until January 2019”, question is not well specified unless you ask when they did not know.
• [ ] To be accurate about the current state of affairs, it is probably important to say that “most required courses for the major” (rather than “certain required courses for the major).
• [ ] You ask how satisfied they are with the CS courses that Barnard offers. Seems like it would be useful to also ask about CS courses that Columbia offers. In both cases, it would be good to add a “Don’t know yet” option (or whatever you want to label it) that would allow a suitable answer for students who may not have taken such classes yet and/or not formed an option. (Some students may have formed some opinions even before taking the classes, based on things they know about the classes, so I wouldn’t suggest implementing this by first asking if they have taken such classes.)
• [ ] I’m very interested in hearing what current first and second years see as their real vision for Barnard CS. But I find the statement “The future of Barnard CS is up to us” a little overstated (though maybe that’s just my perspective). I’d see something as “We have a voice in the future of Barnard CS.” as more accurate and appropriate.

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For the class of 2019-2022 students, in addition to any comments implied by the earlier comments: