AbstractInstitutions may be interested in using alumni career success as evidence of institutional effectiveness, but the current study suggests that using income as the sole outcome may not be entirely capturing the occupational experience of graduates. Utilizing data from the Strategic National Arts Alumni Project (SNAAP), exploratory and confirmatory factor analysis indicated that there are two distinct components of job satisfaction among arts alumni: intrinsic satisfaction and extrinsic satisfaction. The results of Ordinary Least Squares (OLS) regression analyses for these two factors provide some relationships concerning age, gender, reported income, and occupational field. In considering overall job satisfaction, intrinsic satisfaction may play a larger role in how alumni perceive their careers outcomes and success.

For further information please contact adlamber@indiana.edu or anglmill@indiana.edu. More information on this and related projects can be obtained at snaap.indiana.edu

Literature Review•There is an increasing trend for requiring colleges and

universities to show measures of their effectiveness (Kuh & Ewell, 2010)o Combination of the struggling economy, funding cuts

to higher education, and the evolution of the traditional higher education model (i.e. distance education, MOOCs, etc.)

•One important measure of effectiveness is alumni success in the workplace (Cabrera, Weerts, & Zulick,

2005)

• In addition to content knowledge from a student's major, institutions can also provide other skills such as

communication, analytical thinking, and creative thinking (Tait & Godfrey, 1999)

• If institutions do not train students well, the employability of their graduates will decrease (Evers, Rush, &

Berdrow, 1998)

• Many institutions employ some type of alumni survey, requesting that alumni report back their current job(s) and

income

•Certain fields in particular have recently been under scrutiny for the career outcomes of their graduates

o Architecture, arts & humanities, law

•Data indicates that some majors have disappointingly low income levels, especially among recent college

graduates (Carnevale, Cheah, & Strohl, 2012)

OLS regression analyses indicate that intrinsic and extrinsic job satisfaction can be predicted by certain demographic and other characteristics:Predictor Variables: Intrinsic β Extrinsic β

Female .041*** .038***

Age .167*** -.075***_

White .018**_ -.003____

Income .087*** .441***

Work in Arts Field .271*** -.032***_

Artist Parent(s) .023*** .012__

R2 .121*** .180***

* p < .05, ** p < .01, *** p < .001

ReferencesCabrera, A.F., Weerts, D.J., & Zulick, B.J. (2005). Making an impact with alumni surveys. New Directions for Institutional Research, 2005: 5-17. doi: 10.1002/ir.144

Carnevale, A.P., Cheah, B., & Strohl, J. (2012). College majors, unemployment, and earnings: Not all college degrees are created equal. Washington, DC: Center of Education and the Workforce, Georgetown University. Evers, F.T., Rush, J.C., & Berdrow, I. (1998). The bases of competence: Skills for lifelong learning and employability. San Francisco, CA: Jossey-Bass.

Kuh, G. D. & Ewell, P. T. (2010). The state of learning outcomes assessment in the United States. Higher Education Management and Policy, 22(1), 1-20.

Lepper, M. R., & Henderlong, J. (2002). Turning “play” into “work” and “work” into “play”: 25 years of research on intrinsic versus extrinsic motivation. In C. Sansone & J.M. Harackiewicz (Eds.), Intrinsic and extrinsic motivation: The search for optimal motivation and performance (pp. 257-307). San Diego, CA: Academic Press.

Tait, H., & Godfrey, H. (1999). Defining and assessing competence in generic skills. Quality in Higher Education, 5(3), 245-253. 

Assessing Alumni Success: Income is NOT the Only Outcome!

The problem with income…•What is “enough” when it comes to income?•What if the alumni pursued further education?•Some fields of work (i.e. arts, education) are not generally associated with large monetary incentives

•The current study uses an arts alumni survey to explore how aspects of job satisfaction, and their relationships to other demographic, occupational, and institutional variables, can provide alternative performance indicators

Amber D. Lambert and Angie L. Miller

Exploratory and confirmatory factor analysis found that there are two distinct types of job satisfaction:

Rotated Component Matrix Eigenvalues for Items:

Factor 1: Intrinsic

Factor 2: Extrinsic

Work reflects personality, interests, values .952 -.110

Opportunity to be creative .758 -.024

Opportunity to contribute to greater good .686 .060

Balance between work and non-work life .272 .265

Income -.097 .828

Job security -.030 .661

Opportunity for career advancement .368 .485

Good model fit: χ2 = 31.32; GFI = .995, CFI = .993, RMSEA = .050, PCLOSE = .447