Student Satisfaction: Lessons from Australia

 

A recent study, which reviewed surveys of the entire student experience in a large Australian metropolitan multi-campus university during 2005–2011, has highlighted the impact of two key areas on student satisfaction.

The study found that:

• it is the total experience of the university that shapes students’ judgements, not just what happens in the classroom
• taking a systematic approach to student feedback (i.e. feedback from students on their experience), and acting on the results in a timely manner, can significantly improve student engagement and satisfaction.

The report concludes:

“As governments develop funding models for universities, where funding follows students depending on their choices, student feedback surveys will increasingly be used to judge the quality of institutional teaching, with increased accountability on senior managers and academics to improve the student experience.”

 

Reference:

Grebennikov, L. and Shah, M. (2013) Monitoring Trends in Student Satisfaction, Tertiary Education and Management, 19:4, p301-322