Service quality of administrative staff for student satisfaction a KZN University of Technology

Abstract

Customer satisfaction and service quality are essential concepts that industries and higher education institutions must consider to sustain a competitive edge. Berry, Zeithaml and Parasuraman (1985: 44) aptly cited, “Quality is essential when service is what is being sold”. Assessing the needs and wants and knowing how to measure these from a consumer/student’s point of view is just as important. Considering service quality may be an antecedent to student satisfaction, if the University is successful in attaining a high level of service quality, this can ultimately lead to satisfied students, the profitability of an institution, loyalty and retention. Globally, students’ satisfaction and overall experience within an institution is a highly debated and complex topic in literature, with diverse views presented by various authors on student satisfaction within higher education. Student support services, a division within higher education institutions, provide students with essential administrative support. Therefore, the primary objective of this empirical study is to assess the level of service quality by examining the gap between expectations and perceptions of support staff by gathering data from B-Tech full-time and part-time students registered at a University of technology in South Africa. The results of this study can provide management with reliable data, which can assist in placing intervention mechanisms to monitor, maintain and improve service quality. This study adopted the quantitative data collection method and utilised an adapted SERVQUAL questionnaire designed and distributed to respondents selected using a purposive sampling technique. The SERVQUAL survey instrument was used to measure the gap between students’ expectations of service quality and their perceptions of the actual services delivered by the support staff. Overall, the analysis of the data gathered found that the service quality perceived by students was dissatisfactory, meaning that students’ expectations exceeded their perceptions. The findings indicated that service quality performance dimensions (RATER) are significantly and positively integrated with overall student satisfaction. This study also provides results that the University can benchmark to prevent potential problems and improve results. It can also assist other higher education institutions on the corrective measures central to a University's significant growth. Identifying the gaps in the services offered by support staff can improve service quality delivery and result in a high level of student satisfaction while gaining the University a competitive edge.