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Method
Subjects
Alumni
Data were collected from alumni of the CSU Fullerton business school. The College of Business and Economics offers both undergraduate and graduate degrees and so both groups of alumni were included in this study. All questionnaires and return envelopes were the same and contained no markings that might distinguish one respondent from another. In this way, subject confidentiality was protected. The respondents were spread across three graduating years spanning two decades so that different professional experiences and varied perspectives would be included in the study. The three years selected were 1975, 1985, and 1995. The total number of graduates, including bachelors and masters in business administration (MBA), were 1975 (850 graduates), 1985 (1108 graduates), and 1995 (1306 graduates). The cumulative pool of alumni was reduced from 3264 to 2500 as a result of excluding repeat students (those who completed both undergraduate and graduate degrees during those years) and those who were missing contact information. Questionnaires were mailed to 2500 alumni, and 500 were returned (a response rate of 20%). Responses were spread as follows across the three years: 1975 (n=95), 1985 (n=152) and 1995 (n=217). Thirty-six respondents failed to report his or her year of graduation. Across the sample, 60% were male and 40% female. This is fairly similar to the current profile of the school of business student body, which is 49% male and 51% female. The ages of the sample fell into the following groupings: 20-30 years (36%), 31-40 years (32%), 41-50 years (22%), 51-60 years (8%), and over 60 years (2%). Data collected on the ethnic-racial background of participants showed that 75% were White (non-Hispanic); 15% Asian; 5% Mexican-American, Mexican, or Chicano; and 5% from a number of other ethnic-racial groups. This is not representative of the current ethnic-racial profile of business school students, who are 36% Asian, 28% White, 14% Chicano, 5% other Hispanic, 5% Filipino, 3% Black, and 9% other (Bagshaw, 2002). Implications of this discrepancy are discussed in the results section. Data collected on former student status revealed that 78% were undergraduate students at the school, 14% were graduate students, and 8% completed both undergraduate and graduate studies. The greater proportion of undergraduate students is representative of the prevailing student body at CSU Fullerton.
Information was collected on the companies by which the respondents were employed. At the time of the study, 73% of employing companies had sales over $5 million, 16% had sales between $1 and5 million, and 11% had sales under $1 million. In terms of size, 61% of the firms employed over 250 people, 17% employed 50-250 people, and 22% employed fewer than 50 people. Cal State Fullerton is located in a large metropolitan area and thus the large size of the companies is consistent with companies in the area in general. This is also reflected in the employer information (presented below). At the time of data collection, 53% of the companies were private and 47% public, 91% for profit and 9% non-profit. The headquarters for 94% of the firms were located in the U.S.
Employers
Data were also collected from 46 likely employers of CSU Fullerton business students. Questionnaires were mailed to 100 companies that recruit alumni on an on-going basis. The names of these companies were obtained from the Student Careers Office. Of these, 46 responded (a response rate of 46%). As with the alumni questionnaires, all employer questionnaires and return envelopes were the same and contained no markings that might distinguish one respondent from another. In this way, subject confidentiality was protected. Across this sample, 59% were male and 41% female. Data collected on the positions held by the respondents showed that 50% were managers or supervisors, 17% were owners or directors of the business, and the remaining 33% held other managerial or human resources positions. Sales volume for the companies surveyed was over $5 million for 86% of the companies, $1-5 million for 12% of the companies, and under $1 million for 2% of the companies surveyed. At the time these data were collected, 96% of the companies were headquartered in the United States, 56% were public and 44% private, 93% for profit and 7% non-profit organizations.
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