FAQs | My Experience

Frequently Asked Questions

By capturing the views, experiences, and concerns of the campus community - undergraduate and graduate students, staff, postdoctoral researchers, faculty, and administrators - the survey will provide data enabling us to assess the current experiences individuals and groups are having on campus and inform policies and platforms for change at the campus, academic and administrative departments, office, program, and classroom levels.
This survey is a follow up to the 2013 UC-wide Campus Climate Survey administered by an independent consultant and will be Berkeley’s first locally-designed, comprehensive view of campus through the lens of equity and inclusion
The survey ties directly to three of Chancellor Christ’s top priorities - building community, improving the student experience, and increasing diversity
Going forward, the My Experience Survey will take place every four years

Your experience matters
Your participation will inform the campus about where to invest resources toward meeting the Chancellor’s priorities to build community, enhance the student, staff, and faculty experience, and increase diversity; it will also inform strategic planning and the direction of campus policies and opportunities
Through this survey, you can share what you think is going well and where you see opportunities for change
Responses will translate into tangible results

The survey is confidential.
Your Cal Net ID is only used for authentication to ensure that people who are authorized to do the survey are able to do so
Your name, ID, or email address will not be stored with your responses
Individual responses will not be shared. Only aggregate responses will be reported
If aggregate responses are below 10 for a given group, they will be redacted to ensure privacy

The results will be used to assess and, wherever needed, change or improve existing policies and practices, share best practices that support the campus’ commitment to equity and inclusion, ensure accountability and transparency, propose and develop new policies and programs to respond to unmet needs that may surface.

The Division of Equity & Inclusion is administering the survey, in partnership with the Graduate Division and the Office of the Chancellor

The My Voice survey was externally administered and the scope specifically focused on sexual harassment and sexual violence
This survey primarily focuses on individual experiences of students, staff, faculty, and administration on the Berkeley campus, with a focus on building community, enhancing the student experience, and increasing support for marginalized communities.

The 2013 survey was conducted UC system-wide and administered by external consultants
The My Experience Survey is locally designed specifically for UC Berkeley by community members across campus including faculty, staff, students, campus organizations, committees, academic and administrative departments, and offices.

The survey has been redesigned to better address the UC Berkeley community
New focuses have been added in areas that have become more salient including basic needs security and mental health care
The survey will include more questions about experiences in units and departments to inform actions at the local level
The survey also includes questions about best practices and where survey participants experience positive changes to the campus

Initiatives were launched to address specific groups identified as experiencing greater exclusion and isolation
Increased trainings to inform the academic departments on best practices in creating inclusive classrooms
Expanded support for staff professional development and management pathways

Undergraduate and graduate students (Due to consent regulations, you must be 18 years old to take part in the survey.)
Staff – All job classifications
Postdoctoral scholars
Faculty
Administrators

About 30-40 minutes
Your progress is saved as you go along. If you need to finish it later, log in again and continue from where you left off.

Available online
You will receive an email at your Berkeley.edu address with a link to the survey
Log in using your Cal Net ID
Printed surveys are available to staff members upon request in English, Spanish, and Chinese (simplified and traditional characters). To get a printed survey contact (510-643-0818)

The survey is designed to be accessible for screen readers
There will be confidential phone assistance for anyone needing additional help (510-643-0818)

The survey data will be treated the same as other highly confidential records on campus. They are available to only a handful of people who are trained and credentialed to handle confidential records and will be reporting on broad populations
Data will be stored in secure locations with restricted access to assure privacy and confidentiality
Researchers who go through Human Subjects Review (a campus process) and have the proper training will be able to apply for extracts of the survey. The application does not guarantee access
The survey will ask you about experiences in your department with your advisor/supervisor, and peers. Advisors, supervisors, and peers will not have access to your individual responses

A full report, including recommendations and action steps, will be released in fall 2019
Gatherings will be hosted to facilitate discussions of the findings