John L. Dennis & Ravichandran Ammigan
Do German students studying in the UK value the same educational experiences as Botswana students studying in the UK?
Would you say that the experiences of German international students are more similar or dissimilar from other EU students?
And how do the experiences of Botswana international students compare to other African students?
For some time now, we have been thinking of new methods and perspectives that enhance our understanding of international student satisfaction. To this end, we've explored the international student experience using i-graduate’s International Student Barometer (ISB), the world’s leading benchmarking tool of international student satisfaction in higher education. The ISB tracks and compares the decision-making, expectations, perceptions, intentions and satisfaction of international students from application to graduation. It enables host universities to make informed decisions to enhance the international student experience, optimize resource allocation and support services, provide strategic input to key investment decisions, and drive successful recruitment and marketing strategies.
So, instead of using the international student’s country of origin, we divide the data into two International Monetary Fund defined categories—advanced vs. non-advanced economies.
We suggest that perhaps, differences between national contexts, which are many and rather complex, could be analyzed and one way of doing that is categorizing country of origin as either advanced or non-advanced economies. Advanced economies, according the IMF, are those that 1) have a high per capita income; 2) export diversification; and 3) integrate in the global financial system. Only 39 out of 193 countries in the world (about 20%) meet these criteria (see IMF World Economic Outlook, April 2018 for the current list of these countries). In the ISB, about 40% of the international student respondents are from advanced economies.
Interestingly, our research demonstrates that international students from advanced economies were more satisfied with their institution than students from non-advanced economies, while international students from non-advanced economies were more likely to recommend their institution than international students from advanced economies (and that these differences were significant).
The current research confirmed and extended a previous study of ours, which found that student satisfaction was related to experiences associated with teaching – e.g., “quality of lectures” and “expertise of faculty” – while institutional recommendation by students was influenced by variables connected to employment – e.g., “employability skills” and “work experience during studies.” Therefore, it might be that international students from non-advanced economies are more interested in later work-related employment while international students from advanced economies are more interested in high quality teaching experiences.
Interestingly, our current research that divided international students into two categories – from advanced vs. non-advanced economies – replicated that previous research. This means that “quality of lectures” and “expertise of faculty” influenced satisfaction while “employability skills” and “work experience during studies” influenced recommendation for both international student groups. In other words, international students from non-advanced economies were less satisfied with similar teaching experiences than international students from advanced economies while students from non-advanced economies were more likely to take into account employment-related experiences than students from advanced economies.
While we do not know why this is so, we can offer some possible explanations. One possible reason, according to the Pew Research Center is that people from more advanced economies are generally happier and more satisfied with their experiences due to economic growth and stability in their home country.
Another possible explanation could be based on Cialdini’s principle of “liking”, which argues that people prefer others that are similar to themselves. That could simply be translated by students from advanced economies being more satisfied with their host institution, which were predominantly (over 99.8%) located in advanced economies. Yet, this does not explain the interaction we are finding where international students from non-advanced economies are more likely to recommend their institution than international students from advanced economies.
A further explanation is that the language of instruction in higher education is predominantly English (see 2014 OECD webinar on this topic) and it is possible that international students from advanced economies might be better prepared to follow courses in English language.
No matter what the reasons are for these differences in institutional satisfaction and institutional recommendation, this research has the potential to broaden, in part, recommendations for administrators and policymakers. Indeed, in competitive market, institutions must know what influences satisfaction and recommendation.
From our previous and current research, it is clear that an international student’s home country’s economy, and specifically, whether it is an IMF-defined advanced economy, can significantly influence satisfaction and institutional recommendation. Work-related experiences influences recommendation, and this seems to matter most for students from non-advanced economies, while teaching quality is what is most important to international students from advanced economies.
From a marketing and recruitment perspective, these differences can really help structure the pitch made to international students as a basis for a wholesome educational experience that should address both academic excellence and career readinessfor all students. With regards to staffing and support services, these results imply that investments need to be made to increase funding for the recruitment, training and retention of faculty who can deliver high quality teaching experiences. At the same time, providing students with work-related opportunities during their course of study seem vital for institutional recommendation.
International student enrollment is fundamental for economic, political, cultural and academic reasons. Although international students might be seen as “transient visitors,” they are integral for most universities. Therefore, a purposeful approach to international student integration can facilitate the global and intercultural competence of the campus community, including domestic students, faculty and staff.
However, for these benefits to be realized, institutions need to be strategic in incorporating international student perspectives throughout their institutions, including an understanding of what students value, how these values influence their satisfaction, and how likely students are to recommend their institution to others based on their experiences.