Graduates from universities in the Southeastern Conference (SEC) are more attached to their alma maters than graduates of non-SEC schools, according to a survey by Gallup.
Forty percent of SEC graduates strongly agreed that their college was perfect for them, compared with 32% of non-SEC graduates. Thirty-eight percent of SEC alumni could not imagine a world without their college, compared with 22% of non-SEC graduates.
Twenty-nine percent of SEC graduates strongly agreed with both sentiments, compared to 18% of graduates from outside of the SEC.
This survey was part of the Gallup-Purdue Index, using data from almost 30,000 college graduates from across the U.S. who participated in the online survey.
Alumni from all 14 schools in the SEC were included in the survey. Those schools are University of Alabama, University of Arkansas, Auburn University, University of Florida, University of Georgia, University of Kentucky, Louisiana State University, University of Mississippi, Mississippi State University, University of Missouri, University of South Carolina, University of Tennessee, Texas A&M University and Vanderbilt University.
Feeling connected is not the only area where SEC graduates had more positive experiences than graduates from other regions. Graduates from SEC schools were more likely to feel that their college cares about their students’ success and prepare their students for life after graduation.
Gallup data shows that graduates that have an emotional attachment to their school are twice as likely to feel engaged at work. They are also twice as likely to thrive in Gallup’s five areas of well-being: purpose, social, financial, community and physical well-being.
Gallup found that similar groups of graduates, like those from the Big Ten or the Atlantic Coast Conference, and graduates from larger universities (with 10,000 or more undergraduate students) also show higher levels of attachment to their alma maters.
