Dimensions driving business student satisfaction in higher education
| Date | 02 February 2015 |
| DOI | https://doi.org/10.1108/QAE-08-2013-0035 |
| Published date | 02 February 2015 |
| Pages | 86-104 |
| Author | Mazirah Yusoff,Fraser McLeay,Helen Woodruffe-Burton |
| Subject Matter | Education,Curriculum, instruction & assessment,Educational evaluation/assessment |
Dimensions driving business
student satisfaction in
higher education
Mazirah Yusoff
University of Wollongong Programs, INTI International College Subang,
Subang Jaya, Malaysia, and
Fraser McLeay and Helen Woodruffe-Burton
Newcastle Business School, Northumbria University, Newcastle, UK
Abstract
Purpose – This study aims to identify the dimensions of business student satisfaction in the
Malaysian private higher educational environment and evaluate the inuence that demographic factors
have on satisfaction.
Design/methodology/approach – A questionnaire was developed and distributed to 1,200
undergraduate business students at four private higher educational (PHE) institutions in Malaysia.
Exploratory factor analysis was used to identify the underlying dimensions that drive student
satisfaction. ANOVA and t-tests were conducted to evaluate the inuence that demographic factors
have on the results.
Findings – Factor analysis resulted in the adoption of a 12-factor solution from an original set of 53
satisfaction items. The results also indicated the inuence of demographic factors on the level of
business student satisfaction.
Originality/value – This study identied 12 factors or the underlying dimensions that drive business
student satisfaction in the Malaysian PHE. The 12 factors are: professional comfortable environment;
student assessments and learning experiences; classroom environment; lecture and tutorial facilitating
goods; textbook and tuition fees; student support facilities; business procedures; relationship with
teaching staff; knowledgeable and responsive faculty; staff helpfulness; feedback; and class sizes.
Understanding these factors could help educational institutions to better plan their strategies and
inform academics interested in studying student satisfaction.
Keywords Private higher education, Malaysia, Student satisfaction, Survey, Demographic factors,
Underlying dimensions
Paper type Research paper
Introduction
The educational environment is not only extremely dynamic but it is also challenging.
Competition is intensifying in the higher education (HE) sector, in both public and
private provision. Public comparisons between institutions in the form of various
ranking tables are more widely available than ever before. The emergence of global
ranking scales over the past few years has focused considerable attention on higher
education. The spotlight is being put on universities that are increasingly being
compared nationally and internationally. To a certain extent, rankings have helped to
foster greater accountability, as well as increased pressure on universities to enhance
their management practices (EUA, 2011). There are six major university ranking
The current issue and full text archive of this journal is available on Emerald Insight at:
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QAE
23,1
86
Received 15 August 2013
Revised 31 October 2013
Accepted 18 February 2014
QualityAssurance in Education
Vol.23 No. 1, 2015
pp.86-104
©Emerald Group Publishing Limited
0968-4883
DOI 10.1108/QAE-08-2013-0035
systems in the world, of which one is the Times Higher Education World University
Rankings (THE Rankings). THE Rankings adopted a new ranking system, which
consist of 13 indicators across ve broad categories, of which one is teaching-the
learning environment (The STAR, 26 September, 2010). This positive development in
higher education shows the importance of educational institutions understanding
student satisfaction if they want their ranking to be favourable. Student satisfaction is a
short-term attitude resulting from the evaluation of a student’s experience with regard
to the education services rendered (Elliot and Healy, 2001).
As indicated by Alves and Raposo (2009), identifying the factors that inuence
student satisfaction is critical for educational institutions. However, there is a lack of
consensus in the existing literature as to how this can be achieved and previous studies
utilise models that vary in terms of the number of dimensions considered and the
methodologies used to examine the strengths and signicance of the relationships
(Douglas et al., 2006;Elliot and Shin, 2002;Guolla, 1999;Gruber et al., 2010;Petruzellis
et al., 2006; and Smith, 2004).
In Malaysia, education is a leading industry and plays a vital role in national
development. The current educational environment in Malaysia is also very dynamic,
competitive and challenging. Public comparisons of Malaysian private higher
educational (PHE) institutions through an ofcial ranking system called SETARA also
emphasises the importance of understanding student satisfaction. The total number of
students enrolled in higher educational institutions in Malaysia stood at 1,134,134 in
2010, of which 565,403 students (49.9 per cent) are enrolled at the private educational
institutions (MOHE, 2010). Private higher institutions have contributed enormously to
the Malaysian economy via foreign exchange earnings from the inux of foreign
students, which made up of 86,923 international students from 141 countries. From this
gure, 62,709 students (72 per cent) are enrolled at the private educational institutions
(MOHE, 2010).
The objectives of this paper are to identify the underlying dimensions that drive
business student satisfaction in the Malaysian PHE environment and to evaluate the
inuence of factors such as gender, year of study, programme of study, semester grade
and nationality have on the results. We add to and expand upon previous studies by
providing new insights into the general evaluative dimensions of student satisfaction
which may enable education providers to focus on a smaller set of key performance
indicators (KPI) than some studies would suggest. Such knowledge could assist
educational institutions and academics to better plan the development and
implementation of strategies aimed at satisfying student needs. We provide practical
information about what and how students with different levels of study; different
programmes of study; different academic performances or semester grades; gender; and
nationality consider important in drivers of satisfaction. This information provides
valuable inputs to educational institutions to enhance their quality education and
service levels to meet the different needs of specic types of students and be more
competitive. We focus on business student satisfaction as business programmes are a
popular choice among students in Malaysia as compared to other programmes (MOHE,
2007).
Despite criticisms (Arambewela and Hall, 2009;Bigne et al., 2003;Prugsamatz et al.,
2006;Shekarchizadeh et al., 2011; and Yunus et al., 2010), most studies on student
satisfaction in HE and in Malaysia have utilised SERVQUAL and SERVPERF models to
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Student
satisfaction in
higher
education
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