Student satisfaction at Scotland’s colleges has remained at over 90 per cent and even risen in the past year, new figures from the Scottish Funding Council (SFC) have shown. But student representatives say many feel their voice is not being heard and are concerned about a drop in satisfaction among higher education students.
According to the Student Satisfaction and Engagement Survey 2017-18, published today, 93.1 per cent of full-time further education students are satisfied with their college experience - 1 per cent more than in 2016-17. Meanwhile, overall satisfaction among full-time HE students is 86.3 per cent, down 1 per cent on the previous year.
Colleges deliver a significant proportion of Scotland’s higher education.
“The level of satisfaction for full-time HE students is lower than the results for full-time FE students at all colleges,” said the SFC.
Over nine in 10 full-time FE students say their time at college has helped them develop knowledge and skills for the workplace, and 94.9 per cent say staff encourage students to take responsibility for their learning; 88.7 per cent feel they were able to influence learning on their college course.
‘Falling on deaf ears’
NUS Scotland president Liam McCabe said: “While we must be cautious about direct comparisons between the data sets, it is disconcerting to see a drop in satisfaction rates between further and higher education college students.
“What’s more concerning is that over 33 per cent of students believe that their suggestions to improve their college experience are falling on deaf ears.”
He added: “Student wellbeing should be at the front and centre of their education. Students are ideally placed to offer constructive suggestions to best improve their course and their ability to learn. We would implore institutions, staff and faculty to listen closely to the concerns of students and work positively to improve the student experience.”
‘Excellent experience’
Shona Struthers, chief executive of Colleges Scotland, said: “With 80 per cent of students in colleges studying further education, this report indicates that the sector is delivering an excellent experience for its learners.”
She added: “It is also encouraging to see that around 92 per cent of full-time further education students consider that their time at college has helped them develop knowledge and skills for the workplace. A key priority for colleges is to provide opportunities for people to gain work-ready skills and prepare them for the labour market through working closely with employers to deliver high-quality industry-standard training and qualifications.
“Going to college is a first choice for many people and the sector will continue to ensure that its learners are the heart of everything it does.”
Response rates
The SFC’s report highlighted that “survey response rates were extremely variable across colleges”.
“Response rates are poorer for part-time and distance/flexible-learning students, and more work is required to improve response rates before SFC can publish these results,” said the report.
An SFC spokesman said: “We’re pleased to see overall satisfaction levels remain extremely high and that Scotland’s colleges are continuing to meet learners’ expectations, and provide a high-quality learning experience.
“Overall, there has been an increase in the number of people responding to the survey. However, we recognise that more needs to be done to improve response rates, and we will continue working with colleges and students associations towards achieving our target of 50 per cent return.”
