How Do Students Perceive the Quality of Their Business Program Courses?

The knowledge gained from EBI's Management Education Assessments will drive and sustain continuous improvement programs and support accreditation efforts. This report concentrates on key data from the assessment that focuses on course quality and satisfaction.

EBI Management Education Assessments measure program effectiveness from the student’s perspective. The results illuminate which learning outcomes and key dimensions of the program are the strongest and which areas need to be improved. Management Education Exit Assessments are comprehensive evaluations of the learning outcomes, effectiveness of institutional resources and the overall educational experience of graduates. In 2009-10, the EBI Undergraduate Business Assessment was completed by 21,727 respondents from 121 institutions.

Overall, the majority of respondents rated the quality of teaching and the feedback on assignments highly for both their required and major courses. However, respondents were more positive in their assessment of the quality of their major courses. Although the majority of respondents were satisfied with faculty responsiveness, grades and student effort in both required and major courses, higher levels of satisfaction were observed for major courses. Respondents with higher SAT/ACT scores were more likely to rate the quality highly and be satisfied with their major courses than those with lower SAT/ACT scores. Respondents who reported satisfaction with the level of camaraderie with fellow classmates were significantly more likely to be satisfied with their courses and rate the quality of courses highly.

1. Students rate the quality of the undergraduate business courses in their major higher than their required courses.

   • Approximately 26% of respondents rated the quality of teaching in their required courses as excellent or exceptional, compared to 50% who rated the quality of teaching in their major courses as excellent or exceptional.

2. The majority of students are satisfied with both their required and major courses in terms of faculty responsiveness, grades, and student effort.

   • More than half of the respondents indicated they were satisfied with their required courses regarding instructor availability, responsiveness to student concerns, instructors’ relating concepts to the real world, and grades accurately reflecting students’ performance.
   • Similarly, more than six out of ten respondents were satisfied with the major courses regarding accessibility of instructors, instructor responsiveness to student concerns and grades accurately reflecting student performance.

3. Students with higher incoming SAT/ACT scores rate the quality of their major courses higher and are more satisfied with their major courses than those students with lower SAT/ACT scores.

   • Significantly more respondents, with SAT scores above 1170, or ACT scores above 26, than respondents with lower SAT/ACT scores, rated the quality of teaching and feedback on assignments in their major courses as excellent or exceptional.
   • No significant difference existed between respondents by SAT/ACT scores in terms of their assessment of the quality of required courses.
   • A significant higher percentage of respondents with SAT scores above 1170 or ACT scores above 26 than respondents with lower SAT/ACT scores were satisfied with the accessibility of both major course and required course instructors outside of class, with major course instructor’s responsiveness to student concerns, and that grades accurately reflecting student performance in both major and required courses.

4. Students who are satisfied with the level of camaraderie with fellow classmates rate the quality of their courses more highly and are more likely to be satisfied with their required and major courses than other students.

   • Respondents who were satisfied with the level of camaraderie with fellow classmates were significantly more likely than other respondents to rate the quality of faculty and instructors excellent or exceptional. This included teaching and feedback on assignments in both required and major courses.
   • Similarly, respondents who were satisfied with the level of camaraderie with fellow classmates were significantly more likely than other respondents to be satisfied with faculty responsiveness, grades and student effort in both required and major courses.
   • Respondents who were neutral about the level of camaraderie with fellow classmates, were equally likely as respondents who were dissatisfied with the level of camaraderie, to rate the quality of faculty and instruction as excellent or exceptional, or to be satisfied with faculty responsiveness, grades, and student effort in both required and major courses.

Conclusion

Most respondents assessed the quality of their courses (both required and major) highly. Respondents were more likely to rate the quality of faculty and instruction in their major courses highly, than in their required courses. Respondents were also more likely to be satisfied with their major courses regarding grades, instructor availability, and instructors’ responsiveness to student concerns. Respondents with higher SAT/ACT scores were more satisfied with their major courses and assessed the quality of those major courses more highly than other respondents. Finally, respondents who were satisfied with the level of camaraderie with fellow classmates were also more likely than other respondents to be satisfied with their courses and rate the quality of those courses highly.

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