Examining student satisfaction with higher education services

Thorsten Gruber · Stefan Fuß · Roediger Voss · Michaela Gläser‐Zikuda

428 citations0/0 files storedInternational Journal of Public Sector Management

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Educational Outcomes and Influences Customer Service Quality and Loyalty Higher Education Research Studies

Abstract

Purpose This paper aims to investigate how students perceive the services they are offered at a German university and how satisfied they are with them. Design/methodology/approach An evaluation study using a new tool to measure 15 dimensions of student satisfaction at an institutional level that covers most aspects of student life was used. It was decided to develop a new measurement tool as many existing surveys are poorly designed, lack standardization and give no evidence concerning reliability or validity. Questionnaires were handed out in eight lectures for the pilot study and 18 lectures for the main study. The response rate was 99 percent. A total of 374 students (pilot study) and 544 students (main study) filled in the newly developed questionnaires using Likert scales. Findings The study gave a valuable insight into how students perceive the quality of the services offered at a university and how satisfied they are with these offerings. The results show that students' satisfaction with their university is based on a relatively stable person‐environment relationship. Thus, the satisfaction of students seems to reflect quite well perceived quality differences of offered services and of the wider environment. Students were particularly satisfied with the school placements and the atmosphere among students. Students were mostly dissatisfied with the university buildings and the quality of the lecture theatres. Research limitations/implications As the study involved only two samples of students from one university, the results cannot be generalized to the German student population as a whole. Originality/value The study was the first to successfully apply a measurement tool, which has previously not been used. The study has hopefully opened up an area of research and methodology that could provide considerable further benefits for researchers interested in this topic. It also shows how the concept of student satisfaction could be assessed in future studies.

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References

1988SERVQUAL: A multiple-Item Scale for measuring consumer perceptions of service quality 1979Review of Psychometric theory (2nd ed.).1999Whence Consumer Loyalty?2000Assessing the effects of quality, value, and customer satisfaction on consumer behavioral intentions in service environments 2010Satisfaction: a behavioral perspective on the consumer 1990Evaluating Service Encounters: The Effects of Physical Surroundings and Employee Responses 1990Delivering quality service: balancing customer perceptions and expectations 1985Problems and Strategies in Services Marketing

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