Beyond the Debates: Measuring and Specifying Student Consumerism

Do higher education students really seek ‘value for money’?: Debunking the myth

“…However, the key finding of this study is that when given the space to describe their hopes and wants on their own terms, less than 2 per cent of students framed their hopes in terms of value for money. These findings corroborate other empirical studies that suggest that students are not best characterized as empowered, demanding consumers more focused on the products of their education than the process (Brooks, 2018;Fairchild and Crage, 2014;Tomlinson, 2017;Saunders, 2014). Rather, consistent with Quinlan's (2016) framework of emotionally engaging educational relationships, students in Study 1 focused on the process of education, wanting to pursue their interest in their subject, apply what they learn in the real world, grow personally and benefit from stimulating interactions with staff and peers (Quinlan and Salmen, 2019).…”

“…While some students embraced a service-user mentality with increased quality expectations, many students resisted this framing, using other metaphors for their role and emphasizing their investment in education, rather than entitlement. In two different surveys in the US, where students have been paying large tuition fees for generations, many students did not define themselves as consumers or fit the stereotyped attitudes of studentsas-consumers (Saunders, 2014;Fairchild and Crage, 2014).…”

An analysis of current trends in higher education: the place and importance of students' learning experiences in quality assurance

“…In this era where higher education institutions face the tension of necessity of extra procedures for liability of instructors (Fairchild and Crage, 2014) as a result of the shifting focus in higher education institutions in accordance with globalization (Moore and Kuol, 2005), evaluating teacher perceptions of students, which is among the internal processes of the institution, is accepted as a proof of the quality of education (Zerihun, Beishuizen and Van Os, 2012). Thus, student evaluations due to the quality movement in education is becoming an increasingly important factor in providing quality higher education (Leckey and Neill, 2001).…”

Commercialization of Higher Education

“…"Credentials are proxies for skills and knowledge that are required by employers and symbolic of social status. In this way, they are helpful tools for social organization" (Fairchild and Crage 2014). A college degree is a signal to the workforce that students have fulfilled the terms of their educational contract: universities provide training and assessment in exchange for completed assignments, exams, and class completion (Happel and Jennings 2008).…”

“…Employers factor college degrees into their hiring decisions based on the assumption that these signals provide adequate measures of achievement or mastery that students can apply to job tasks. However, a candidate's resume is not necessarily reflective of what happens in the classroom (Fairchild and Crage 2014).…”