Getting a SurveyShare Account

To create your new SurveyShare account at UNC Charlotte, please visit the account request page here: Request a SurveyShare Account.

After you sign up, the Center will email you everything you need to begin using SurveyShare (usually within 48 hours of the request). We will send you the UNC Charlotte SurveyShare Quick Start Guide, including your username and password.

Directions for Planning a Survey

When planning your survey, make sure that you have a clear idea about what you are attempting to measure. Fortunately, SurveyShare has provided over 100 survey templates for you to use or modify to fit your needs, and CTL will be continually creating our own UNC Charlotte “Institutional Templates” for faculty use. In addition, CTL can send you a copy of a question database of approximately 500 validated questions arranged into several different categories about teaching and learning.

In most instances, you will likely use the items from one of the SurveyShare templates or the question database, but sometimes you may need to write your own custom questions. If you need assistance in planning your survey, please contact CTL using SurveyShare@uncc.edu to arrange for a consultation.

Guidelines on How to Write Survey Questions

If you wish to write your own custom questions and need guidelines for doing so, here are some quick tips:

• Be aware of your personal biases.
• Be clear and concise.
• Use standard English.
• Write clear instructions.
• Avoid slang, jargon, and acronyms whenever possible.
• Avoid loaded or leading words.
• Avoid double-barreled questions (i.e., measure one thought per item).
• Sequence the questions logically.
• Preview the survey and/or have a colleague review it.
• Consider the time needed to complete the survey.
• When in doubt, K.I.S.S. (keep it short & simple).

For more resources and information about writing survey questions, please see the online resources section of this help page. You may also come peruse CTL’s extensive library of texts and multimedia resources in the CTL Resource Room, 149C Atkins Library.

Public Surveys vs. Private Surveys

Would you like to leave your survey public or would you rather make it private? SurveyShare explains the four different levels of accessibility to choose from:

Public

For a public survey, anyone who knows the web address (URL) of the survey may respond to it. Although each respondent is asked to enter an email address, a respondent could conceivably take the survey multiple times by entering different email addresses.

Private

For a private survey, only those people whom you specify (via the Address Management page) may take the survey. When a respondent begins a survey, they are asked to input an email address. If this email address matches one of the email addresses that you have associated with the survey, they are allowed to take the survey once, and only once.

Anonymous Unsecured

For an anonymous unsecured survey, anyone who knows the web address (URL) of the survey may respond to it. No identifying information is required to take the survey, which means a respondent could conceivably take the survey multiple times.

Password

For a password protected survey, only those people who know the survey password you specify and the web address (URL) will be allowed to take the survey. A password may be up to twenty characters in length and should consist solely of alphanumeric characters, e.g. A-Z, a-z, and 0-9.

Whichever type you choose, rest assured that all respondent data remain truly anonymous in the sense that you will not be able tie an individual's data to a particular response set (assuming you have not asked for personal identifiers within the survey). However, if you are using the survey to conduct research for publication and/or wish to identify or link respondents to their actual responses, you should first check with the UNC Charlotte Institutional Review Board for Research with Human Subjects (http://www.research.uncc.edu/comp/human.cfm) to ensure that your study is exempt from review.

Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)

How many surveys can I create?

Your initial SurveyShare account provides you with two activated surveys.

What does “activated survey” mean?

A survey is not accessible by respondents until you have activated it. IMPORTANT: once you have activated a survey, you cannot edit or modify it. There are a finite number of surveys available for all of UNC Charlotte, so we request that you DO NOT ACTIVATE A SURVEY UNTIL YOU ARE READY TO REALLY USE IT. In other words, please do not activate a survey to test it out, etc. There is a preview feature for seeing what you survey will look like, so you can simply preview it before activating it.

What are the limitations of my initial “free” account?

Your initial SurveyShare account provides you with two activated surveys of no more than 12 questions each, and you are limited to 100 responses total for the two surveys. There are also certain other feature limitations, but for most purposes, these limitations are not a problem. If you are creating a survey that requires more than 12 questions or a greater number of responses, please contact CTL for an upgrade: SurveyShare@uncc.edu.

Can I create surveys for non-university purposes?

CTL has contracted SurveyShare to create a system designed exclusively for university use. If you wish to do surveys but not for UNC Charlotte, please go to Surveyshare.com and sign up for one of their private accounts. They have a range of services to meet every need.

Where are my survey data stored?

Survey data are maintained on a secure server at SurveyShare. Your data will not be viewed or used by anyone for any purpose, including the administrators at SurveyShare or UNC Charlotte.

Do I have to use only the pre-defined survey templates in SurveyShare, or can I write my own items?

You can easily create your own new questions or edit the existing items in SurveyShare. It is your choice.

How do students access my survey?

When you create a new survey, a web address (URL) is created for students to access the survey. Simply direct them to the URL to complete the survey. You can notify your respondents directly, or you can use the email invitation system within SurveyShare.

How long will this service last?

SurveyShare is licensed annually to UNC Charlotte. Future funding of this service depends on faculty use of the system.

Why won’t my username and password work?

Usernames and passwords are case sensitive. Make sure to enter your assigned username and password exactly as it was sent to you. If you are having difficulties, please contact CTL (SurveyShare@uncc.edu).

How do I update my user profile or change my password?

After you are logged in to SurveyShare, please go to the following page: http://www.surveyshare.com/account.php.

How do I access SurveyShare?

Please go to the SurveyShare login page with your username and password that CTL sent to you: http://www.surveyshare.com/login.php.

How do I get more surveys in my account?

Contact CTL at SurveyShare@uncc.edu to request more surveys in your account. Be sure to include the word “SurveyShare” in your subject line.

Who wrote this FAQ?

CTL would like to acknowledge SurveyShare’s website as the source of most of this information.

Online Manuals, Tutorials, and Resources

The Official SurveyShare Help Page

This is an excellent and informative help page about the features and technical aspects of SurveyShare. It contains answers to your questions to help you to use each feature of SurveyShare:

http://www.surveyshare.com/help/faq.php

Web Survey Design Tips

Learn how to plan your survey, construct questions, and more:

http://www.surveyshare.com/resources/tip.php

Useful Web Survey Links

SurveyShare has organized an annotated list of useful links covering everything from assessment to writing reports:

http://www.surveyshare.com/resources/links.php

Recommended Web Survey Books

SurveyShare has provided a list of recommended books about survey research:

http://www.surveyshare.com/resources/sbooks.php

Glossary of SurveyShare Terms

This glossary should help you as you learn how to use SurveyShare:

http://www.surveyshare.com/help/glossary.php

Contact CTL

1. Have you tried SurveyShare's own help pages? They have three very helpful pages that should be able to answer your questions and help you to use each feature of SurveyShare:
   1. SurveyShare’s FAQ Page
   2. Survey Resources from SurveyShare
   3. SurveyShare Glossary
2. Have you searched this CTL SurveyShare Help page for your problem, especially the FAQ section?
3. If you answered yes to both questions, then contact CTL.