Penn State seniors are more likely to be familiar with lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBT) issues than any other class at the university, according to the results of a recent Penn State Pulse survey.

About 20 percent of seniors said they were familiar with LGBT issues and concerns, compared to about 18 percent of juniors, 15 percent of sophomores and 9 percent of freshmen.

"Clearly, the education and interactions on campus help open their [seniors'] minds about LGBT issues and help them become more supportive before they graduate," said Allison Subasic, director of the Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender and Allied (LGBTA) Student Resource Center.

Sara Ryan, Undergraduate Student Government director of LGBTA affairs, said the statistics show the necessity of educating underclassmen.

"It shows they're getting exposure while they're here, but it's important that new students learn about LGBT issues as soon as they get here," Ryan said.

The survey found that 30 percent of students said they became more supportive of LGBT issues. Three percent became less supportive and 67 percent reported no change.

Thirty-two percent of students surveyed said the campus climate is supportive of LGBT students, an increase from 20 percent in 2000.

The number of students who personally support LGBT students was static over the last two years. Sixty-five percent of students surveyed in 2002 personally supported LGBT students, compared to 66 percent in 2000.

A majority of students said they would be comfortable with an LGBT roommate (61 percent) or instructor (85 percent).

Fewer students were comfortable seeing a public display of affection by LGBT students (42 percent) than heterosexual couples (59 percent).

Other questions on the survey focused on students' awareness of LGBT resources on campus. Most students were not aware of the resources available, the survey found. Only 9 percent were aware of the LGBT Support Network, and only 7 percent were aware of the LGBTA Student Resource Center.

The 1,221 students were chosen both at random and from LGBT e-mail lists to answer the survey in October, said Betty Moore, senior analyst for student affairs research and assessment.

About one in 10 students identified themselves as "other than heterosexual."

Moore said she found the number of students who identify themselves as other than heterosexual a surprising result of the survey.

"To me, that means people feel freer to identify themselves as that," Moore said. She also said this was the first time such results seem to move closer toward national trends of sexual identification.

The survey's results showed a large discrepancy between the number of times heterosexuals and non-heterosexuals overheard jokes and derogatory comments directed at LGBT students.

Those who identified themselves as non-heterosexual heard an average of eight derogatory comments a month, while those who identified themselves as heterosexual heard an average of three comments a month. Ryan said the large discrepancy in these reports could be due to LGBT students' acute awareness of offensive jokes and comments.

"Regardless of whether or not there's malicious intent behind them, you're basically being degraded," Ryan said. "LGBT people might be more aware of what would constitute an LGBT joke."