In the fall of 2002, the Oakton College Office of Research conducted a survey of parents of in-district high school class of 2002 students who attended Oakton in the fall 2002 semester. The purpose of the study was to ascertain parents’ role in their students’ college choice process and decision to attend Oakton, to understand outcomes parents wanted their students’ to achieve at Oakton, and to gain insights into how the College might more effectively communicate with parents of prospective students. We received 226 usable responses, for a response rate of 30.3 percent.

Key findings include:

• Two-thirds of the respondents said English was the language spoken at home, and another ten percent said English and another language were spoken at home.
• Most parents are involved in their students’ college choice process, but 17 percent are not.
• Parents rely on Oakton publications, high school counselors, people they know, and their own children for information about Oakton.
• Ninety percent of parents want their students to earn a bachelor’s degree or higher.
• Oakton’s affordability, proximity to home, and ability to give students time to decide what to do or what major to select are primary reasons students come to the College.
• One-third of students decide to come to Oakton only in the summer after high school graduation.
• Parents pay, on average, 77 percent of their students’ direct college expenses at Oakton.
• Transfer preparation is the key outcome parents want for their Oakton students (credits that will transfer and a grade point average that will permit transfer).
• Parents overestimate their students’ academic abilities. Thirty-nine percent of parents rate their students’ academic skills as high (ratings of 4 or 5 on a five-point scale) and only 11 percent rate their students as needing help (ratings of 1 or 2 on the same scale). However, 79 percent of students placed into at least one remedial level course.

The complete report is available on the Office of Research Website, http://www.oakton.edu/resource/oir/parentreportfall02forocc.pdf, or call the office at (847) 635-1894.