Baruch College Survey Research (BCSR), CUNY’s only survey research facility, designs and conducts surveys on a wide range of public affairs topics for government agencies, nonprofit organizations, media, and academic partners. BCSR regularly conducts web, telephone, mail, and mixed-mode surveys, and is equipped to provide sampling, questionnaire design, analysis, and dissemination for clients. BCSR utilizes the expertise of the Marxe School’s faculty, staff, graduate students, and a cadre of highly trained, multi-lingual interviewers to execute projects.

BCSR adheres to the American Association for Public Opinion Research (AAPOR) Code of Professional Ethics and Best Practices, AAPOR’s Transparency Initiative, and complies with all Internal Review Board requirements.

About BCSR

BCSR provides timely, useable, high-quality data that can support public policy, research, and economic and social investment across New York City, the US, and internationally by delivering consistent collaboration with partners and clients, and using the Baruch College faculty’s vast knowledge and skill-sets.

The History of BCSR

BCSR was founded in 1994 with a mission to deliver high-quality data to support public policy. Initially a joint project with Louis Harris and Associates, the Baruch-Harris Survey Unit polled on a wide range of topics, using Harris’ formidable field operation to reach respondents. Among the many reports issued during this period were studies of New Yorkers’ attitudes toward city services, their political preferences, and their comfort with various policy initiatives. Nationally, the Baruch-Harris Survey Unit performed research on then-new internet technologies and published some of the earliest studies on the digital divide.

The relationship with Harris ended in 1999 when the unit acquired its own computer-assisted telephone interviewing (CATI) capacity. It was during this period that the Unit established its exacting interviewer training protocols. With the ability to control every aspect of survey work, from instrument design to fieldwork through analysis, the Unit became best known for the exceptional quality of its surveys. To this day, all interviewers using CATI and other contact modalities are fully certified in CUNY’s human subjects protocols.

The Center was founded by Douglas Muzzio, a political scientist and one of the founding faculty members at the Austin W. Marxe School of Public and International Affairs at Baruch College. Its second Director was Professor Gregg Van Ryzin (now at Rutgers-Newark), who expanded the Unit’s work to include research partnerships with New York City. Joining what was re-dubbed Baruch College Survey Research (BCSR) in 2008, the third director of the center, Micheline Blum, expanded the roster of City agencies and nonprofit organizations working with the center. She also launched media partnerships with NY1, the New York Times, and other news organizations. The current director is Shane M. Khan, who brings extensive knowledge of — and experience with — various survey modes in the US and across the globe. He is focused on constant innovation and use of emerging technology to understand the breadth of human experience, and how high-quality data can be used to improve public policy and social investment.

Contact Information

Potential clients can contact the BCSR team via email. The team is equipped to provide consultations on your research projects, advising on all stages of your survey, from inception and sample design, to the most productive and cost-effective methods for data collection, analysis and dissemination using state of the art software. Initial consultations and quotes are complimentary.