Branch campus students ‘less satisfied’ with academic experience

International students at branch campuses are significantly less satisfied with their academic experience than their peers at their institution’s home campus, according to new research.

A study, based on a survey of 2,145 international undergraduates at four home campuses and their six affiliated international branch campuses (IBCs), found that those at home campuses reported higher levels of satisfaction with three key areas of academic experience.

Students based at an institution’s main campus gave a higher mean satisfaction score for academic and teaching quality (3.2 versus 3.02 out of 4), academic environment (3.4 versus 3.1) and academic engagement (3.12 versus 2.95). Academic environment includes aspects such as the quality of lecture theatres and library facilities, while academic engagement includes problem-solving and feeling part of a student community committed to learning.

The research, conducted by academics at the University of Groningen and NHL Stenden University of Applied Sciences Emmen and published in the Journal of Studies in International Education, drew on data from i-Graduate’s 2018 International Student Barometer.

Respondents’ comments in the survey also support the findings on satisfaction, with 66 per cent of comments from students enrolled at IBCs expressing negative sentiment, compared with 57 per cent of comments from students at home campuses. Meanwhile, positive sentiment was identified in 16 per cent of comments from branch campus students and 27 per cent of home campus students.

Some students at IBCs commented on perceived differences between the home campus and overseas outpost, while no such comparisons were found in comments from students at home campuses, the study adds. One student at an IBC said that they “expected the same services and facilities” as the main campus, while another said that their optional modules were “too limited” compared with the home campus.

The research found that dissatisfaction with teaching ability was more common in comments from IBC students, while some related specifically to the fact that non-native English speakers were employed as lecturers. The authors say “it may be that IBC students are more sensitive to perceptions of receiving an ‘authentic’ Western education and, as a result, comment on it more”.

Previous studies have highlighted concerns over the branch campus model, including the lack of support given to IBC leaders and university staff at IBCs being less motivated and committed than their counterparts at home campuses. However, the authors of the new research say that this is the first large-scale quantitative study investigating satisfaction with academic experience among international students at home and branch campuses.

Rachael Merola, a PhD student at the University of Groningen and co-author of the research, said the findings prove that “academic satisfaction is shaped by much more than academic equivalence between campuses – something that most institutions with IBCs claim to have”.

“While it is clearly important to ensure that learning outcomes are the same across all campuses, focusing solely on this element can paper over the importance of student perceptions and the lived student experience,” she said.

However, Ms Merola added that some of the changes brought about in response to the Covid-19 pandemic, including the switch to online and asynchronous learning, “may have a levelling effect on student satisfaction across IBCs and home campuses”.

ellie.bothwell@timeshighereducation.com