Applying SERVQUAL: Using service quality perceptions to improve student satisfaction and program image
Journal of Applied Research in Higher Education
ISSN: 2050-7003
Article publication date: 9 May 2019
Issue publication date: 2 October 2019
Abstract
Purpose
Austerity approaches in higher education require choosing the highest leverage strategies of increasing student satisfaction. Attending to student perceptions of program/service quality (SERVQUAL) is a means to identify areas that have the greatest return on investment. The paper aims to discuss these issues.
Design/methodology/approach
This study explores how a program has applied the SERVQUAL model and survey to identify areas for growth.
Findings
The survey of 57 students in a cohort-based doctoral program demonstrated the smallest gaps (highest satisfaction) with the domains of empathy (1.33) and responsiveness (1.30) and the lowest with reliability (2.03), tangibles (1.97) and assurance (1.90).
Practical implications
While not all of the five dimensions are within the purview of a program to address (some may require funding that is determined at a college or university level), many of the gaps can be addressed by adopting procedures and policies that increase transparency so that students can moderate their expectations and faculty and staff can provide reliable information. Additionally, the use of the SERVQUAL model provided this program with specific, actionable information that could be used to improve the program.
Originality/value
The study includes a review of studies that have applied the SERVQUAL model in higher education. The application of SERVQUAL to a cohort-based doctoral program to identify program improvements and steward program image fits into a gap in the extant literature.
Keywords
Acknowledgements
The author would like to thank Charity Anderson at Rutgers University for providing critical feedback on an early version of this manuscript.
Citation
Gregory, J.L. (2019), "Applying SERVQUAL: Using service quality perceptions to improve student satisfaction and program image", Journal of Applied Research in Higher Education, Vol. 11 No. 4, pp. 788-799. https://doi.org/10.1108/JARHE-12-2018-0268
Publisher
:Emerald Publishing Limited
Copyright © 2019, Emerald Publishing Limited