Survey results released by Harvard Monday find a strong sense of belonging among community members, but lower levels of comfort sharing opinions and forming relationships across differences. The new data was released as part of a report of the Pulse Survey on Inclusion & Belonging.

First piloted in 2019 following a recommendation of the Task Force on Inclusion & Belonging, the survey seeks to take the “pulse” of the community and gauge the climate around inclusion and belonging of the entire campus community. Administered for the second time in September 2024, the survey asked every member of Harvard — students, faculty, researchers, and staff — to share their personal experience as an individual interacting with peers, and with the institution as a whole. The results will be integrated with other survey data and used to make improvements to programming related to culture and community. 

“The Pulse Survey is a valuable tool for assessing how members of our community experience the University and understand their place in it,” said President Alan M. Garber. “The insights it provides will help guide us as we work toward creating a culture in which each of us feels included, respected, and valued.” 

To understand the results of the survey, including areas of strength and areas for improvement, the Gazette sat down with Sherri Charleston, chief community and campus life officer, and Drew Allen, associate provost for institutional research and analytics. They shared key findings and next steps for improving campus culture related to inclusion and belonging. 

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Sherri, I see that you have a different title, and the name of your office has changed. Can you tell me how those changes came about?   

Charleston: Over the past five years, we have evolved to direct a variety of services on campus. I started in 2020 as the chief diversity and inclusion officer, leading the Office for Diversity, Inclusion, & Belonging. Given the high-level outcomes of the last Pulse Survey, President Garber decided to rename the portfolio to Community and Campus Life to align with its current focus — building community and increasing belonging. As we administered the Pulse Survey again last fall and considered the best way to communicate all the services we offer, it seemed like the right time to adjust my title to better reflect what the offices under my direction do for our campus community. 

Tell us more about the Pulse Survey.

Charleston: The Pulse Survey provides a snapshot of how we are faring as a University community relative to inclusion and belonging goals across a variety of metrics. Because it is a “pulse” and not an “MRI,” it is meant to provide us with data that is directional in nature, rather than diagnostic. It can then be supplemented with other survey data to provide a fuller picture of the climate here at Harvard relative to inclusion and belonging.

Allen: It is rare that we have a survey that allows us to hear directly from every member of our community — students, faculty, researchers, and staff. The data are powerful because they point us in the right direction and provide a catalyst for more specific efforts to examine inclusion and belonging at Schools and units across campus. 

What did the survey ask and how many individuals responded? 

Charleston: The survey questions sought to examine the full breadth of human experience levels at Harvard: individual, community, and institutional. The survey looked specifically at four dimensions of inclusion and belonging: sense of value, acceptance and integration, connection across difference, and supportive assets. We wanted to gauge if individuals felt valued, respected, and recognized. We also wanted to know if they were comfortable expressing themselves and forming meaningful relationships with other community members, including those with viewpoints different than their own.

Allen: Importantly, this survey was taken by over 10,000 members of the Harvard Campus community, representing approximately 20 percent of the population. Given the response rate, which is in line with response rates of similar surveys in higher education, we feel confident that the data give us a valuable pulse of the Harvard community and can provide important direction for future initiatives and resource allocation. 

What are the key highlights from the 2024 Pulse Survey data?

Charleston: The survey showed that large majorities of our respondents — students, faculty, researchers, and staff — feel like they belong at Harvard (including 78 percent of students, 81 percent of staff, and 75 percent of faculty and academic personnel). Respondents also generally feel respected (80 percent of students, 79 percent of staff, and 74 percent of faculty/academic). These numbers are very promising, but of course, come with the caveat that there are portions of our community who do not feel like they belong and do not feel respected.

We also found that while most members of our community feel comfortable sharing opinions with others and have been able to form relationships with people who have different viewpoints, it is not as high as we would like it to be. So, this is another area that we will want to explore to consider how we can effectively expand and strengthen efforts like the President’s Building Bridges Fund, which funds student-driven programs to bring community members together across differences. 
 
Allen: As Sherri points out, the survey did show that the majority of students do feel like they can be their authentic selves here at Harvard. In some cases, our data showed an even higher level of positivity than in 2019 when the survey was first administered. The survey provides us with solid data to inform our decisions moving forward. 

How will the University use the data? 

Charleston: We will use this data to improve the experience of belonging and connection on campus, particularly across differences. The learnings from this survey can be used directionally to help us make decisions around where we need to allocate resources, both in terms of capacity and focus. 
 
Allen: I think the data can also be used to identify areas of further analysis. A survey is just one method by which we can try to understand inclusion and belonging, but there are other methods we can use to try to understand something that is difficult to measure directly. The Pulse Survey data will guide us to develop additional lines of inquiry that our institutional research office can pursue so that we can better understand our community and their needs.

What improvements or changes were made on campus after the Pulse Survey was administered in 2019? 

Charleston: There has been a real focus on strengthening our community and increasing the sense of belonging here on campus. One specific example was the establishment of the Harvard Culture Lab Innovation Fund  (HCLIF). Funded by the President’s Office, HCLIF supports project ideas that foster a culture of belonging on campus. Grants are awarded to teams that aim to have a direct impact on the University community, engage the broadest audience, and align with the University’s goals toward excellence. 

In addition to HCLIF, we have leaned into both building digital communities and building communities in person on campus. Our office newsletter has about 16,000 subscribers and allows us to share information across many different communities. We have also focused on building communities on campus through our now annual forum, providing community spaces to combat isolation and polarization, and working with colleagues to promote opportunities for community support. Recently, we awarded funding through the President’s Building Bridges Fund to student-led projects designed to build connection and community across differences. 

What are your next steps and when can we expect the next Pulse survey? 

Charleston: Our first step will be to convene community members to help us think about what we have learned and how we can use this data moving forward. Another piece is for us to think about how the various surveys that the University has conducted over the past few years fit together and how we can integrate those findings. We can use this opportunity to ground our decision-making in data and ensure we take actions that will support and improve the sense of belonging and community at Harvard. 

Allen: When we consider when to do this survey again, we want to make sure that enough time has passed so that we can measure meaningful progress. Consistency and timing for the next survey will be important so that the data we collect is valuable and informative.