Web Surveys

This page contains information about how CSUCI employees can create and publish accessible web-based surveys at CSUCI.

How do I create a web survey?

To create a web survey, do the following:

1. Create a draft of your survey in Microsoft Word.
   1. In your draft, list all questions and answers.
   2. For each question, note how you would like the answers to appear. The following answer formats are supported:
      • Radio button (such as Yes/No/Decline to State)
      • Checkbox (for multiple selections, such as "Check all that apply"-type questions)
      • Drop-down box  (similar to Radio button)
      • Text field (supports multiple lines)
      • Likert Scale (using radio buttons)
   3. Also write out any logic (for survey branching or other action) that your survey requires.
2. Contact the Institutional Review Board (IRB) to determine if the IRB approval is required to publish your survey. The IRB oversees research on any human subjects at the University, so they will provide you with feedback about the requirements to perform your web survey. If IRB is required, complete the IRB process before proceeding to the next step. 
3. Once your survey has received IRB approval (or exemption), send your survey draft to the Help Desk at helpdesk@csuci.edu and request the creation a web survey. A work order will be created and assigned to a Web Services team member.
4. Web Services will create a draft of the web survey and publish it for your review and approval.
5. With final changes completed and your approval, Web Services will provide you with a URL to your web survey, which you may distribute to your survey participants.
6. You can request downloads of your survey data through the Help Desk.

How do I publish my survey? How do I publicize my web survey?

Web Services will provide you with a web link (URL) to your survey, which you can distribute to your survey participants at your discretion.

Publicity and distribution of web surveys is the responsibility of the researcher/survey owner. One approach to survey distribution might be to draft a "mail merge" message using Microsoft Word to generate mass emails to a group of recipients.

How long will it take to publish my web survey, start-to-finish?

It depends on how long it takes you to complete steps 1-5 of the web survey creation process. A general estimate is approximately 2 weeks (10 business days) to complete steps 1-5. Once Web Services receives your survey draft, we require a minimum of 3 business days to assemble the survey for your review and approval. Web Services may require more time depending on the length and complexity of the survey.

What features do your web surveys support?

Supported features include:

• password protection
• branching
• save-and-return later, with email confirmation
• deletion of incomplete submissions after a designated period
• email confirmation to survey recipient

Does your web survey software support branching?

Yes, survey branching (i.e., going to different pages) is supported.

Can the survey be password protected?

Yes, the survey can be password protected, either using a generic password or a list of passwords. Please note that the password list must be manually uploaded or input into the survey software; the password list cannot link actively to a database or directory such as LDAP. The survey creator is responsible for creating the password list and keeping track of the password usage.

Where will my survey data be stored? How long will it be stored there?

Your web survey data will be stored on CSUCI web servers, until the completion of the survey. Upon completion of the survey, the survey data will be emailed or otherwise provided to the researcher/survey owner for archiving. Web Services is not responsible for the maintenance of survey data archives upon completion of the survey.

How do I get my survey results? How long does it take?

Please email your request to download survey data to helpdesk@csuci.edu and include the name of your survey whose data you are requesting. Web Services will download the survey data for you and provide it in one of several formats, including:

• comma- or tab-delimited text;
• Microsoft Excel;
• Microsoft Access (mdb); and
• SPSS.

By default, Web Services will provide your survey results as a Microsoft Excel spreadsheet. It can take up to 2 business days to process requests for survey data.

Can I receive an email confirmation once a survey is submitted?

Yes. Please send the email address that you would like survey confirmations to go to along with your survey draft.

How can I limit who fills out the survey?

You can:

• password protect your survey
• restrict repeat survey results

Are there any graphing/statistics capabilities built-in to this software?

Yes, but they will be provided for reference purposes only. Web Services will not make any customizations to the default web survey reporting.

Will my survey be accessible?

Web Services will create your survey using best practices for accessibility per CSU Accessible Technology Initiative (ATI) and Section 508 guidelines.

More information on ATI and accessibility can be found on the CSUCI ATI web site.