NSSE 2025
High-Impact Practices
University of Houston-Downtown
NSSE 2025 High-Impact Practices
About This Report
About Your High-Impact Practices Report
Due to their positive associations with student learning and retention, certain undergraduate opportunities are designated "high-impact." High-Impact Practices (HIPs) share several traits: They demand considerable time and effort, facilitate learning outside of the classroom, require meaningful interactions with faculty and students, encourage collaboration with diverse others, and provide frequent and substantive feedback. As a result, participation in these practices has the potential to be very influential and rewarding (Kilgo et al., 2015; Kuh, 2008). NSSE founding director George Kuh recommends that institutions should aspire for all students to participate in at least two HIPs over the course of their undergraduate experience—one during the first year and one in the context of their major (NSSE, 2007).
NSSE asks students about their participation in the six HIPs shown in the box at right. Unlike most questions on the NSSE survey, the HIP questions are not limited to the current school year. Thus, senior students' responses include participation from prior years.
Report Sections
Participation Comparisons (p. 3)
High-Impact Practices in NSSE
Service-Learning
Courses that included a community-based project
Learning Community
Formal program where groups of students take two or more classes together
Research with Faculty
Work with a faculty member on a research project
Internship or Field Experience
Internship, co-op, field experience, student teaching, or clinical placement
Study Abroad
Culminating Senior Experience
Capstone course, senior project or thesis, portfolio, recital, comprehensive exam, etc.
Displays HIP participation for your students compared with that of students at your comparison group institutions. Two views present insights into your students' HIP participation:
Overall HIP Participation
Displays the percentage of students who participated in one HIP and in two or more HIPs, relative to those at your comparison group institutions.
Statistical Comparisons
Comparisons of participation in each HIP and overall for your students relative to those at comparison group institutions, with tests of significance and effect sizes.
Response Detail (pp. 4-5) Provides complete response frequencies for the relevant HIP questions for your students and those at your comparison group institutions. First-year results include a summary of their expectations for future HIP participation.
Participation by Student Social Identities and Experiences (p. 6-End)
Interpreting Comparisons
Displays your students' participation in each HIP by selected student social identities and experiences.
HIP participation varies more among students within an institution than it does between institutions, like many experiences and outcomes in higher education. As a result, focusing attention on overall participation rates amounts to examining the tip of the iceberg. It is equally important to understand how student engagement (including HIP participation) varies within your institution. The table beginning on page 6 provides an initial look at how HIP participation varies by selected student social identities and experiences. Your NSSE Tableau dashboard and Report Builder (released in the fall) offer further perspectives on internal variation to help you investigate your students’ HIP participation in depth.
Kilgo, C. A., Sheets, J. K. E., & Pascarella, E. T. (2015). The link between high-impact practices and student learning: Some longitudinal evidence. Higher Education, 69 , 509-525. Kuh, G. D. (2008). High-impact educational practices: What they are, who has access to them, and why they matter. Association of American Colleges and Universities. National Survey of Student Engagement (2007). Experiences that matter: Enhancing student learning and success—Annual Report 2007. Indiana University Center for Postsecondary Research.
Rocconi, L.M., & Gonyea, R.M. (2018). Contextualizing effect sizes in the National Survey of Student Engagement: An empirical analysis. Research & Practice in Assessment, 13 (Summer/Fall), pp. 22-38.
Overall HIP Participation
NSSE 2025 High-Impact Practices
Participation Comparisons University of Houston-Downtown
The figures below display the level of participation of students in High-Impact Practices. Both figures include participation in service-learning, learning communities, and research with faculty. The senior figure also includes participation in internships or field experiences, study abroad, and culminating senior experiences. The first segment in each bar shows the percentage who participated in at least two HIPs, and the full bar (both colors) represents the percentage who participated in at least one.
Participated in two or more HIPs Participated in one HIP
Statistical Comparisons
Participated in two or more HIPs Participated in one HIP
The table below displays the percentage of your students who participated in a given High-Impact Practice, including the percentage who participated in at least one or in two or more HIPs. It also graphs the difference, in percentage points, between your students and those of your comparison groups. Blue bars indicate how much higher your institution's percentage is compared to the comparison group. Dark red bars indicate how much lower your institution's percentage is compared to the comparison group. (Comparison group percentages appear on the following pages.)
a. Percentage point differences (institution – comp. group) rounded to whole numbers. Values less than one may not display a bar and may be shown as +0 or -0. b. Cohen's h (standardized difference between two proportions). Effect sizes indicate the practical importance of observed differences. For service-learning, internships, study abroad, and culminating senior experiences, an ES of about .2 may be considered small, .5 medium, and .8 large. For learning community and research with faculty, an ES of about .1 may be considered small, .3 medium, and .5 large (Rocconi & Gonyea, 2018).
*p < .05, **p < .01, ***p < .001 (z- test comparing participation rates).
Note: Participation includes the percentage of students who responded "done or in progress" except for service-learning which is the percentage who responded that at least "some" courses included a community-based project. Results are unweighted, except for overall percentages which are weighted by sex and enrollment status.
First-year students
About how many of your courses at this institution have included a communitybased project (servicelearning)?
NSSE 2025 High-Impact Practices
Response Detail
University of Houston-Downtown
Participate in a learning community or some other formal program where groups of students take two or more classes together.
Work with a faculty member on a research project.
Plans to Participate
Knowing whether first-year students plan to participate in upper-division HIPs can reveal insights about HIP demand, awareness of opportunities, and the clarity of institutional information. These results might also point to topics for additional exploration, such as what contributes to students’ expectations, their assumptions about who can participate, or why other students are undecided or have no plans to participate in the activity.
Internship or Field Experience
Participate in an internship, co-op, field experience, student teaching, or clinical placement.
a. Refer to your Frequencies and Statistical Comparisons for details on the other response
Study Abroad
Participate in a study abroad program.
Note: Results are unweighted, except for overall percentages which are weighted by sex and enrollment status.
Culminating Senior Experience
Complete a culminating senior experience (capstone course, senior project or thesis, portfolio, recital, comprehensive exam, etc.).
Seniors
About how many of your courses at this institution have included a communitybased project (servicelearning)?
Participate in a learning community or some other formal program where groups of students take two or more classes together.
Work with a faculty member on a research project.
Participate in an internship, co-op, field experience, student teaching, or clinical placement. Participate in a study abroad program.
Complete a culminating senior experience (capstone course, senior project or thesis, portfolio, recital, comprehensive exam, etc.).
NSSE 2025
High-Impact Practices
Response Detail
University of Houston-Downtown
NSSE 2025 High-Impact Practices Disaggregated Results
University of Houston-Downtown
Participation in High-Impact Practices by Student Social Identities and Experiences
Examining participation rates for different groups offers insight into how engagement varies within your student population. The table below displays participation in each HIP by selected social identities and experiences. Details include the number of HIP participants (N), the number within the group who responded to the item (total), and the group participation percentage (%).
First-year Senior ServiceLearning Learning Community Research with Faculty ServiceLearning
Learning Community Research with Faculty Internship or Field Experience Study Abroad Culminating Senior Experience
NSSE 2025 High-Impact Practices Disaggregated
Results
University of Houston-Downtown
Participation in High-Impact Practices by Student Social Identities and Experiences
Examining participation rates for different groups offers insight into how engagement varies within your student population. The table below displays participation in each HIP by selected social identities and experiences. Details include the number of HIP participants (N), the number within the group who responded to the item (total), and the group participation percentage (%).
NSSE 2025 High-Impact Practices Disaggregated
Results
University of Houston-Downtown
Participation in High-Impact Practices by Student Social Identities and Experiences
Examining participation rates for different groups offers insight into how engagement varies within your student population. The table below displays participation in each HIP by selected social identities and experiences. Details include the number of HIP participants (N), the number within the group who responded to the item (total), and the group participation percentage (%).
Notes: Results are of those responding "done or in progress" except for service-learning which is the percentage responding that at least "some" courses included a community-based project. Results are unweighted, except for overall percentages which are weighted by sex and enrollment status if applicable. Percentages are within-group and can be read, for example, "X% of business major respondents participated in a learning community."
a. NSSE's default categories, based on first major if more than one was reported. Customizable major categories are available in your NSSE Tableau dashboards and Report Builder (released in the fall). Excludes majors categorized as "all other."
b. Institution-reported variable.
c. No parent, guardian, or person who raised you holds a bachelor's degree.
d. Select-all-that-apply item; students may be represented in more than one category.
e. Based on responses to "How would you evaluate your entire educational experience at this institution?"