USF Students, Nielsen Begin to Formulate Questions for 2016 Sunshine State Survey

TAMPA – Leaders from Nielsen will visit Distinguished University of South Florida Professor Susan MacManus’s Media and Politics class at 5 p.m. on Wednesday, March 30 to work with students on the upcoming USF-Nielsen Sunshine State Survey. The 2016 USF-Nielsen Sunshine State Survey is expected to shape policy discussion during the 2016 election cycle.

The USF-Nielsen Sunshine State Survey is the most anticipated non-political annual survey of Floridians on a wide range of economic, social and topical issues facing one of the nation’s largest and diverse states. The USF School of Public Affairs, part of the College of Arts and Sciences, in partnership with Nielsen administers this survey and analyzes the results under the direction of MacManus, one of the nation’s leading political experts.

The Media and Politics class taught by MacManus is made up of USF seniors who are majoring in political science or mass communications. The class learns about the polling process and gains hands-on experience by creating questions that will be asked on the 2016 edition of the USF-Nielsen Sunshine State Survey.

”This is the most comprehensive non-political poll in Florida, and it’s not a horserace survey,“ MacManus said. ”This poll is the state’s most in-depth and longitudinal look at Floridians’ opinions on a wide-range of pressing issues, including the assessments of state leaders from the public, private and nonprofit sectors. The USF-Nielsen Sunshine State Survey looks at Florida’s specific hot issues ranging from the economy, education, taxes, health care, gambling to law enforcement, crime and guns.“

The involvement of Nielsen’s top data experts is an incredible opportunity for USF students to learn from industry leaders. Students will work side-by-side with Nielsen as they learn about what makes an effective survey and decide on the questions that will appear on the 2016 survey.

”Nielsen is proud to again administer the survey through our partnership with USF and to teach students how to design, conduct and analyze polls that can identify problems and trigger solutions,“ said Amy Rettig, executive vice president of Nielsen. ”As a business leader in the Tampa Bay community for more than 50 years, Nielsen has a vested interest in the education and creation of a dynamic and skilled next generation workforce through our USF students.“

Members of the media are invited to attend the class on March 30, where they will have a chance to interview students and observe the class working on survey questions. If interested, please contact Michele Dye at mdye@usf.edu.

The University of South Florida is a high-impact, global research university dedicated to student success. USF is a Top 25 research university among public institutions nationwide in total research expenditures, according to the National Science Foundation.

Serving over 48,000 students, the USF System has an annual budget of $1.6 billion and an annual economic impact of $4.4 billion. USF is a member of the American Athletic Conference.