Best questions for high school senior student survey about first generation college support needs

Here are some of the best questions for a High School Senior Student survey about first generation college support needs, plus practical tips for crafting them. If you want to build these surveys quickly, you can generate your own in seconds using Specific—our AI survey tool designed to make this both fast and insightful.

The best open-ended questions to ask

Open-ended questions let high school seniors share their full context, stories, and real struggles—essential when tackling complex topics like first generation college support needs. They're especially powerful if you want to hear challenges in students’ own words, identify issues you might not have considered, and foster genuine conversation that closed questions can’t capture.

1. What are your biggest concerns about becoming the first in your family to attend college?

2. How prepared do you feel academically for college-level work?

3. Can you describe any support you wish you had right now to get ready for college?

4. What resources or programs would make you feel more confident about starting college?

5. Have you experienced challenges balancing schoolwork with your responsibilities outside of school? Please describe.

6. What types of advice or guidance do you want most from teachers, counselors, or mentors?

7. Can you share a time when you felt unsure about the college application or financial aid process?

8. How connected do you feel to other students who are also first-generation college-bound?

9. What would make you feel a greater sense of belonging or support next year?

10. Is there anything you wish your school better understood about first generation students?

The power here: students can surface not only obvious gaps but often-ignored struggles, like balancing responsibilities at home or feeling isolated. Since nearly 60% of first generation college students report feeling a lack of belonging at college, starting with open dialogue can make support efforts more relevant and personal. [1]

Best single-select multiple-choice questions for high school senior students

Single-select multiple-choice questions help you quickly quantify needs, spot trends, or gently start a deeper conversation. They’re perfect when you want to make it easy for students to choose an answer—then use follow-ups for richer details.

Question: Which area do you feel least prepared for as you think about college?

• Academic workload

• Financial planning

• Social adjustment

• Applying for aid and scholarships

• Other

Question: Who do you turn to first with questions about the college process?

• Family members

• Teachers or counselors

• Friends

• Online resources

• No one / I handle it myself

Question: How confident do you feel accessing college support services?

• Very confident

• Somewhat confident

• Not confident

• I am unaware of these services

When to follow up with "why?" Add a follow-up “why?” question any time you want to understand the reason behind a choice. For example: If a student selects “Not confident” about support services, you might follow up with “Can you tell us what makes you feel unsure about using these services?” This clarifies barriers and helps design better programs.

When and why to add the "Other" choice? Always add "Other" when you want to let students express something you didn't anticipate. Pair it with a text followup—students might highlight unique family circumstances, unfamiliarity, or cultural barriers that weren't in your list. Uncovering these unexpected insights is where survey tools like Specific really shine.

Since only about 30% of first generation college students report feeling confident in accessing academic support services, it’s important to know not just “how confident?” but “why or why not?” to tailor your approach. [2]

Should you use an NPS-style question?

Let’s talk NPS (Net Promoter Score). NPS is classic for customer sentiment, but it’s powerful with students too. You simply ask: “On a scale of 0–10, how likely are you to recommend your school’s college prep support to another first-gen student?” This reveals both satisfaction and advocacy. What makes it valuable for first generation college support needs is its simplicity—students can answer quickly and, paired with an open “why?” follow-up, you’ll get both quantifiable scores and rich narrative feedback.

If you want to see how Specific creates NPS surveys—including smart followups—you can check out the NPS survey builder for this topic. It takes seconds to launch.

Approximately 25% of FGCS do not persist beyond their first year, so knowing who would actively recommend your prep support is crucial. [1]

The power of follow-up questions

Have you ever gotten vague responses and wished you could just ask another question? That’s where follow-up questions, especially AI-powered probing, come in. They capture depth and surface causes in real time—meaning less back-and-forth after the survey and more actionable insight instantly. Specific’s AI asks follow up questions dynamically, based on what each student actually says. This means richer context and no missed details.

• High school senior: “I’m not sure what to do about the application.”

• AI follow-up: “Which part of the college application process feels most confusing to you?”

How many followups to ask? Two to three well-timed follow-ups typically yield plenty of context without exhausting the respondent. Specific even lets you set logic to move on once you’ve gathered enough insight from an answer, keeping the flow both respectful and thorough.

This makes it a conversational survey: it feels more like a real conversation than a static form, which is why students open up more.

AI analysis of open-ended responses: Even if you gather a lot of rich, unstructured text, AI makes analyzing all those responses a breeze. With Specific, you can chat with the insights, spot top themes, and rapidly summarize hundreds of answers.

If you haven’t tried this style, generate a survey now and see the difference follow-up questions make.

Prompting ChatGPT or AI for survey questions

If you want AI to suggest questions, the prompt matters. Start simple: ask, then refine, then go deeper.

For example, to brainstorm quickly, try:

Suggest 10 open-ended questions for High School Senior Student survey about First Generation College Support Needs.

But AI performs best with context. Add details about your audience, goal, or known challenges:

I am a high school counselor. I want questions that help me understand first generation students' barriers to college readiness—both academic and social/emotional. Focus on what would make them feel more supported.

Once you have your list, you can organize them. For example:

Look at the questions and categorize them. Output categories with the questions under them.

Once you see the categories, go deeper into topics you care about:

Generate 10 questions for the “academic preparation” category and 10 for “social/emotional support.”

This iterative prompting—combined with your expertise—helps AI create high-impact questions.

What is a conversational survey? Manual vs. AI survey builder

Conversational surveys are a new style—think dynamic chat, not boring form. Instead of fixed, impersonal lists of questions, an AI survey generator like Specific asks your questions, listens to each reply, and adapts with smart follow-ups. This approach gathers both breadth and depth, far beyond what checkbox forms ever could.

Why use AI for high school senior student surveys? You capture student voices more authentically, reach needs hidden below the surface, and save hours analyzing responses. AI survey examples for first generation college support needs show higher engagement and richer detail, sparking the kinds of stories and worries that structured forms miss. For more on practical setup, read our guide to creating a high school senior student survey.

Ultimately, conversational surveys powered by Specific create a smoother, best-in-class respondent experience—so you get honest, detailed, actionable feedback.

See this First Generation College Support Needs survey example now

Find out what students truly need—build AI-powered surveys that start a conversation, adapt in real time, and unlock insights you can’t get any other way. Try it today to see the difference it makes for first generation college support needs.