Section Three solicits information about respon-
dents’ plans after leaving college, especially whether
respondents now have a job where they will continue
to work, have been offered a job, or will look for a job
later. Respondents are also asked if they expect to use
their training on the job, the type of job they anticipate
looking for, their expected starting pay, and if they
plan to continue their training at any time in the future.
Section Four is designed to gather general comments
from students on various aspects of college life.

Significance of POL Survey
A point-of-leaving survey can be extremely valuable

to educational institutions in terms of assessing the

quality of a vocational program from the perspective of
its graduates. As well, results of POL surveys benefit
the students before graduation.

¢ A POL survey enables administrators to understand
the perceptions and the problems of students before
they graduate.

¢ Since the overwhelming majority of AVC students
were unemployed at the time of admission, the
results of a POL survey may serve as a basis for the
development of job-hunting skills or job counseling
for graduating students.

¢ Students in vocational programs are overwhelm-
ingly oriented to work force entry; the survey offers
timely insight into problems that prospective
graduates envisage in their transition from school to
work, particularly those who hed bcen unemployed
for many years. A POL survey can be used to assess
the perceived information needs of job hunters.

¢ A POL survey can assess how well students are
prepared to meet the very real challenges of the
employment marketplace.

e¢ A POL provides one of the best means of collecting
reliable, representative, and cost-effective, empiri-
cally based data on students. It is a valid means of
assessing opinions among a representative group of
students.

e¢ A POL survey is a means of assessing quality
assurance in vocational education. It depicts the
image the graduate of a vocational program takes
with them to the labor market.

e A POL permits a comparative analysis of graduates’
perceptions of their vocational! training before and
after graduation.

¢ Comments from graduates on various aspects of
college life are useful in guiding administrators in
meeting the needs of new students.

e A POL survey reveals future educational plans of
graduating students, particularly those in academic

upgrading. Those who intend to further their
education can be recruited into AVC career pro-

grams. ef
Alberta Vocational College, Lac La Biche, has found a

that the best approach is to conduct a triangulation of
student surveys annually, including student point-of-
entry, point-of-leaving, and follow-up.

Bob Adebayo, Research Coordinator, Planning, Research
& Development

For further information, contact the author at Alberta
Vocational College, Lac La Biche, P.O. Box 417, Lac La
Biche, Ab. TOA 2C0, CANADA.

 

Suanne D. Roueche, Editor

October 18, 1991, Vol. XIli, No. 24 INNOVATION ABSTRACTS is a publication of the National Insttute for Staff and Organizational Development (NISOD),

©The University of Texas at Austin, 1991 Department of Educatonal Administration, College of Education, EDB 348, The University of Texas at Austin, Austin, Texas
Further duplication is permitted by MEMBER 78712, (512) 471-7545. Funding in part by the W. K. Kellogg Foundation and the Sid W. Richardson Foundation. Issued weekly
institutions for their own personnel. when classes are in session during fall and spring terms. ISSN 0199-106X.

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