The State of Student Satisfaction
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Transcript of The State of Student Satisfaction
40%
46%
8%
2%4%
..nearly nine in ten think that a university
education is worthwhile
Very worthwhile
Don’t know
Overall, how worthwhile do you think a university education is these days?
Source: Ipsos MORI
Worthwhile 86
Not worthwhile 10
Net difference +76
% Fairly worthwhile
Not very worthwhile
Not at all worthwhile
Base: 2,003 British adults aged 15+, 30 July - 5 August, 2010
70%
33%
24%
17%
14%
11%
11%
9%
5%
4%
2%
UK universities are seen by the public to help
address some economic issues
Education/knowledge
What benefits, if any, do you think UK universities bring to the UK?
Source: Ipsos MORI
Top mentions
Develop skills of the workforce
Provide employment/jobs
Advances in science and technology
Help the UK economy to be competitive globally
Advances in medicine
Attracting investment to the UK
Innovation/help to develop new products and services
Help to promote British culture
Help to develop the Arts, (e.g. fine art, music, theatre, dance, literature, cinema)
Encourages and develops graduates’ softer skills such as confidence, independence and ways of thinking
Base: 2,003 British adults aged 15+, 30 July - 5 August, 2010
Will reforms create
a competitive HE
market?
Students' expectations are going to be
higher; our challenge is to show the
value of coming to university and
getting a degree and the quality of the
student experience. We haven't yet had
many questions about fees; it's still all
about courses and university
Kerry Law, director of external relations, De Montfort University
www.guardian.co.uk/higher-education-network/blog/2011/jun/27/higher-education-recruitment-starts-now-2012
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But of course…
It is already a competitive market!
Will as many students still want to go
University?
Some courses and universities will
have a harder job to convince
prospective students
6
7
What’s the state of student
satisfaction?
Students are concerned 8
It’s not the course, it’s “what next?” 9
NSS 2010
But pretty cheerful about their courses
83% of undergraduates are satisfied with their courses (National Student Survey)
More than 8 in 10 students find their course intellectually stimulating and motivating (National Student Survey)
86% of research postgraduate students say that the overall experience of their programme met or exceeded their expectations (Postgraduate Research Experience Survey)
88% of taught postgraduates say that the overall experience of their programme met or exceeded their expectations (Postgraduate Taught Experience Survey)
83% of students believe that their course has improved their career prospects (Ipsos MORI)
A trend of rising satisfaction....
Teaching on my course
Overall satisfaction
Learning resources Personal development
Academic support
Organisation and management
Assessment and feedback
% Agree
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Who’s happiest?
Age matters
Older students most positive about Teaching and Learning
Size matters – small is beautiful
Students in small institutions more positive about Teaching and
Learning
…more positive about Academic Support
…more positive Personal Development.
…more satisfied with the overall teaching quality
Ethnicity – some differences....
Students from Asian ethnic backgrounds less positive about
their courses than white students...as in other areas of public
services
Students from black ethnic backgrounds more positive about
Assessment and Feedback
Londoners more miserable (as normal)
Students in the London area less satisfied – why?
Students in NI and Scotland are more satisfied…..
By subject?
Students in historical and
philosophical subjects or physical
sciences are happiest
Creative arts and design students
have the lowest satisfaction scores
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As in so many
areas – key issue
is interactive
communication
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Weakest link is Feedback
62%
67%
62%
74%
73%
Base: c.265,000, NSS, fieldwork January – April 2011
The criteria used in marking have
been clear in advance
Source: Ipsos MORI
Assessment arrangements and marking have been fair
Feedback on my work has been prompt
I have received detailed comments on my work
Feedback on my work has helped me clarify things I did not understand
Assessment and feedback less good
% Agree
1 in 2 students feel that their own feedback is not listened
to and valued
4 in 10 say it is not clear how their comments on the
course have been acted upon
9% didn’t
enjoy it
”
Lack of library
resources
Overstretched
university
resources
Lack of non-
exam based
assessments
Classes
are far
too large
Lack of a sense of
community
amongst students Cost of
doing a
course
Contact hours
and lack of
face-to-face
tutorials
Difficult to
contact
staff
Focus of the
course is on
theory rather than
practice
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www.student-direct.co.uk/2011/09/the-worst-university-in-the-russell-group/
A really good example of a sector raising its
game
Further improvements might be harder
Chance to recast what we do: means we have
to have the conversation
Technology is on our side – and offside
More and better communications will help...
Some conclusions...
Assessment and feedback (% agree)
The criteria used in marking have
been clear in advance
Source: Ipsos MORI
Assessment arrangements and
marking have been fair
Feedback on my work has been
prompt
I have received detailed
comments on my work
Feedback on my work has helped
me clarify things I did not
understand
Base: 264,500 NSS respondents, fieldwork January – April 2011
Academic support (% agree)
I have received sufficient advice
and support with my
studies
Source: Ipsos MORI
I have been able to contact staff
when I needed to
Good advice was available when I
needed to make study
choices
Base: 264,500 NSS respondents, fieldwork January – April 2011
Organisation and management (% agree)
The timetable works efficiently as
far as my activities are
concerned
Source: Ipsos MORI
Any changes in the course or
teaching have been
communicated effectively
The course is well organised
and is running smoothly
Base: 264,500 NSS respondents, fieldwork January – April 2011
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Learning resources (% agree)
The library resources and services
are good enough for my needs
Source: Ipsos MORI
I have been able to access general
IT resources when I needed to
I have been able to access
specialised equipment, facilities
or room when I needed to
Base: 264,500 NSS respondents, fieldwork January – April 2011
