Exploring student satisfaction and future employment intentions

Abstract

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to explore the factors that affect higher education student satisfaction and to understand students’ perceptions of their academic success and future employment expectations at a particular institution. Design/methodology/approach This study analyzes institutional performance related to students’ satisfaction and their preparedness for future employment endeavours. The questionnaire is designed specifically for students who are eligible to graduate, and the survey is implemented over the institutional website via the student portal and a total of 750°-seeking undergraduate students (target population) are invited to participate. Findings The descriptive results of this study suggest that while student satisfaction may be relatively similar for all academic programmes, there are differences in the perception of career expectations based on chosen academic programme. Most notably, the results also indicate students’ expectations for employment did not have a negative effect on their satisfaction with the higher education institution (HEI). In contrast, they were mostly satisfied with their academic and personal development. In essence, they felt prepared for the workplace and satisfied with the skills and knowledge developed at a university, regardless of job expectations. This paper suggests that institutions may wish to heighten their focus on academic factors in their efforts to retain students and improve their student academic experience. Originality/value This study is conducted at a small-sized (less than 5,000 students) higher institution in Canada that primarily provides undergraduate courses and focusses on students’ employment expectations and their rating of the academic experiences. This study can assist HEIs in developing policies related to student retention and success. HEIs may find this study useful in developing policies and programmes related to transitioning from undergraduate studies to the workplace.

Re-imagining employability: an ontology of employability best practice in higher education institutions

“…It has internal components relating to learned abilities and skills, as well as uncontrollable external factors (Batistic and Tymon 2017), such as labour market forces, which are driving students to regard employability potential as the most important factor in deciding to go to university (Jisc 2015). Employability has become an important focus for higher education (HE) (Bell 2016), caused by: globalisation and the knowledge economy (Kalfa and Taksa 2017); increasing numbers of students (Helyer and Lee 2014); the massification and marketisation of HE (Farenga 2015;James and Yun 2018); devalued degree qualifications (Batistic and Tymon (2017); the Bologna Process (Sin and Amaral 2017); government policies (Huq and Gilbert 2013); skills shortages (Yorke 2006, Belwal et al 2016; and the fact that graduate employability has become a publicly reportable statistic (Rae 2007;Rowe and Zegwaard 2017). Many contemporary HE policies aim to strengthen the relationship between universities and the free market, leading to increased managerialism of academia (Valenzuela 2013, Bell 2016.…”

“…A survey of Canadian graduates reveals that students may also feel this way. They choose university places based on employability potential, but once at university they are actually more interested in personal fulfilment, and achieving life goals through engaging with their subjects in a critical and indepth way (James and Yun 2018).…”

Situación laboral e impacto social de Enfermeros Graduados. Universidad del Magdalena 2007-2019.

“…Un estudio realizado en Canadá exploró los factores que afectan la satisfacción de los estudiantes de educación superior, las percepciones sobre su éxito académico y las expectativas futuras de empleo;, encontrando que quienes sintieron mayor satisfacción con su desempeño académico y personal se sentían más preparados para enfrentar el mudo laboral (19). Aspecto fundamental a tener en cuenta por los programas de pregrado, sobre todo por la necesidad de mejorar la formación integral, incluyendo aspectos que permitan a los estudiantes sentirse seguros y confiados durante su formación profesional y prepararlos para la salida al mundo del trabajo de forma contextualizada.…”

Work placement learning and student employability: Do student satisfaction, commitment and achievement matter?

“…It can be expressed in terms of satisfaction with the institution, the facilities, the curriculum or the faculty (Caza et al, 2015; Sutherland et al, 2019). Student satisfaction influences student retention (James and Yun, 2018; Kaur et al, 2020), suggesting that satisfied students are likely to finish their programme successfully. It is generated by factors such as academic performance, service quality, loyalty, the quality of facilities, the environment of the institution and the image of the institution (Arif et al, 2015; Chandra et al, 2019; Chaudhary and Dey, 2020; Sriyalatha and Appuhamilage, 2019).…”