Results of the Freshman 2008 Rotation Survey

This is self-reported data and the statistics do not reflect the entire student body. If you would like more specific data you can contact the IHC Secretary who can generate it for you as long as the request is reasonable.

Questions:

General Rotation Questions
	What is your status?
	Freshman	120	99.17%
	Transfer	1	0.83%
	Exchange Student		0.00%
	Which house are you affiliated with?
	Avery	7	5.79%
	Blacker	25	20.66%
	Dabney	16	13.22%
	Fleming	16	13.22%
	Lloyd	14	11.57%
	Page	16	13.22%
	Ricketts	12	9.92%
	Ruddock	18	14.88%
	How did you rate the house you got into?
	1	68	56.20%
	2	12	9.92%
	3	8	6.61%
	4	9	7.44%
	5	7	5.79%
	6	5	4.13%
	7		0.00%
	8	1	0.83%
	9	1	0.83%
	10+	10	8.25%
	Out of the houses you ranked, what choice house did you get into? (please answer this question to reflect how you rated the house you got into in comparison to other houses, not the actual number you rated or ranked it)
	1st	70	57.85%
	2nd	19	15.70%
	3rd	20	16.53%
	4th+	12	9.82%
	Are you happy in the house you got into?
	1 (Very)	97	80.17%
	2	16	13.22%
	3 (Neutral)	5	4.13%
	4	2	1.65%
	5 (Not at all)	1	0.83%
	During Rotation, how many houses did you get to know accurately enough to make an informed decision?
	None	11	9.09%
	1	3	2.48%
	2	4	3.31%
	3	8	6.61%
	4	13	10.74%
	5	27	22.31%
	6	23	19.01%
	7	7	5.79%
	8	25	20.66%
	What parameters affected your choice of house? (check all that apply)
	Cleanliness of the house	49	40.50%
	Noise level of the house	52	42.98%
	Singles vs. doubles	16	13.22%
	Co-ed vs. gender specific bathrooms	5	4.13%
	House athletics	17	14.05%
	House traditions	86	71.07%
	Social environment of the house	114	94.21%
	Perceived alcohol and/or drug use	66	54.55%
	Amenities (big screen, foosball table, hot tub, etc.)	14	11.57%
	Where other friends wanted to be	36	29.75%
	Impression of the house president	37	30.58%
	Impression of upperclassmen	113	93.39%
	Impression of post-dinner reception	81	66.94%
	Impression of house dinner	96	79.34%
	Things heard from upperclassmen	66	54.55%
	Things heard from other freshmen	52	42.98%
	Experience at Pre-Frosh Weekend	43	35.54%
	Experience at frosh camp	19	15.70%
	Other experience (prior to frosh camp)	19	15.70%
	North House vs South House vs Avery	62	51.24%
	Rotation Booklet	8	6.61%
	Experience during preseason sports	8	6.61%
	Rumors	27	22.31%
	Were you given any advice on how to rank houses (other than "rank them honestly")?
	Yes (by upperclassmen)	14	11.57%
	Yes (by other freshmen)	17	14.05%
	No	96	79.34%
	How much of this advice was unsolicited?
	N/A (no advice given)	88	72.73%
	1 (None)	11	9.09%
	2	6	4.96%
	3 (About half)	6	4.96%
	4	2	1.65%
	5 (Most of it)	6	4.96%
	Did you give every house a fair chance/did every house give you a fair chance?
	Yes, I gave every house a fair chance	92	76.03%
	Yes, every house gave me a fair chance	83	68.60%
	No, I did not give every house a fair chance	26	21.49%
	No, every house did not give me a fair chance	14	11.57%
	Did you feel that you were being judged/evaluated during the house receptions?
		1	0.83%
	Yes	55	45.45%
	No	65	53.72%
	How restrictive did you find Rotation rules?
	1 (Not at all)	13	10.74%
	2	17	14.05%
	3 (Neutral)	44	36.36%
	4	38	31.40%
	5 (Very)	9	7.44%
	How effective do you think Rotation rules are in preventing new students from being unfairly biased?
	1 (Ineffective)	8	6.61%
	2	28	23.14%
	3 (Decently effective)	46	38.02%
	4	28	23.14%
	5 (Very effective)	11	9.09%
	How effective are the Rotation rules in preventing Houses from going to extremes to recruit new students?
	1 (Ineffective)	10	8.26%
	2	11	9.09%
	3 (Decently effective)	37	30.58%
	4	38	31.40%
	5 (Very effective)	25	20.66%
	How effective are the rotation rules at preventing Houses from going to extremes to bias new students away from ranking them?
	1 (Ineffective)	17	14.05%
	2	30	24.79%
	3 (Decently effective)	41	33.88%
	4	16	13.22%
	5 (Very effective)	17	14.05%
	Do you feel that restrictions (like the Rotation rules) should be placed on what upperclassmen can say to new students about other houses?
		2	1.65%
	Yes	61	50.41%
	No	58	47.93%
	How would you describe your knowledge of the picks process?
	Don't know them	97	80.17%
	Have been to picks (Saturday evening - Sunday) and know them	6	4.96%
	Never been to picks (Saturday evening - Sunday) and know them	18	14.88%
Life in the Houses
This section has a few questions about general life at Caltech. Remember that the Houses are here for fun, friendship, and support. The success of the Houses in this capacity are in your hands, so if you think something is wrong it often takes personal initiative to improve it.
	How much did you know about the Houses before you came to Caltech?
	1 (Knew their personalities)	7	5.79%
	2	30	24.79%
	3 (Knew what they are)	52	42.98%
	4	20	16.53%
	5 (Had never heard of them)	12	9.92%
	Would you consider the House System to be a reason you came to Caltech?
		2	1.65%
	Yes	66	54.55%
	No	53	43.80%
	How strongly do you associate yourself with your house?
	1 (My house is a huge part of who I am)	25	20.66%
	2	26	21.49%
	3 (My house is a significant part of who I am)	50	41.32%
	4	18	14.88%
	5 (My house doesn't really matter to me)	2	1.65%
	What percentage of the time do you spend hanging out in your house (vs time spent hanging out in other houses)?
	0%	1	0.83%
	10%		0.00%
	20%	2	1.65%
	30%	7	5.79%
	40%	3	2.48%
	50%	6	4.96%
	60%	5	4.13%
	70%	18	14.88%
	80%	16	13.22%
	90%	40	33.06%
	100%	23	19.01%
	What percentage of your friends are from your house?
	0%	1	0.83%
	10%	2	1.65%
	20%	5	4.13%
	30%	6	4.96%
	40%	9	7.44%
	50%	20	16.53%
	60%	10	8.26%
	70%	23	19.01%
	80%	26	21.49%
	90%	19	15.70%
	100%		0.00%
	What percentage of your friends are from your year?
	0%	1	0.83%
	10%		0.00%
	20%	1	0.83%
	30%	11	9.09%
	40%	9	7.44%
	50%	20	16.53%
	60%	27	22.31%
	70%	22	18.18%
	80%	15	12.40%
	90%	11	9.09%
	100%	4	3.31%
	How welcome do you feel in other houses?
	1 (Everyone loves me)	7	5.79%
	2	28	23.14%
	3 (I'm on good terms with a decent number of people)	73	60.33%
	4	11	9.09%
	5 (I feel unwelcome in other houses)	1	0.83%
Grand Finale
We saved the best questions for last. Thank you for making it this far!
	Have you ever purposefully committed a Rotation Violation?
	Yes	5	4.13%
	No	116	95.87%
	Have you ever seen a Rotation Violation committed?
	Yes	33	27.27%
	No	88	72.73%
	Are you satisified with the way Rotation is carried out?
	Yes	95	78.51%
	No	24	19.83%
Appendix
	Are you happy?
	Yes	115	95.04%
	No	6	4.96%
	On a scale of 1-10, If you were a superhero and could have any power, what would it be?
	1 - Command of sea animals	14	11.57%
	2 - Flower	4	3.31%
	3 - To sneeze with your eyes open	5	4.13%
	4 - Ranger	14	11.57%
	5 - To swim	6	4.96%
	6 - Puppy	7	5.79%
	7 - Like that one guy in that one movie where he like....	26	21.49%
	8 - Heart	16	13.22%
	9 - Dyne-furlongs per fornight	7	5.79%
	10 - Mark Twain	22	18.18%