The Brief
Second
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Improved communication from universities during application period may lead to more satisfied students, according to new research.
By John O’Leary
Parents were also one unexpectedly influential source of advice on study plans, with their views proving more important than recommendations from teachers.
A frequent theme in the discussions was that by the time students realised a different decision might have been better for them, or found out about the possibility of transferring, it was too late: at that point they were too embedded in their university lives.
Universities should communicate more with prospective undergraduates before and during the application period, and provide better information about the opportunities to switch courses, according to new research on the decisions students wish they had made differently.
Academics from the University of Bristol asked 2,000 undergraduates and a similar number of graduates from UK universities whether, with the benefit of hindsight, they would have chosen the same course and institution. Almost two-thirds of undergraduates were happy with their choice of institution and course, with only 3 percent wishing they had found a job rather than entering higher education. Graduates aged 25-30 were less satisfied. Although almost half would have chosen the same path at degree level, 12 percent would have preferred a different course and institution. Another 11 percent would have taken the same subject at a different university.
The findings are in line with the answers to similar questions in the Higher Education Policy Institute’s annual student academic experience survey, which was the inspiration for Bristol’s research. But the new report went further to establish what universities could do to improve a largely positive picture, using focus groups to provide a more detailed picture.
Professor Richard Watermeyer, one of the lead researchers, says there were clear differences in the two surveys. Undergraduates’ attitudes were based on whether they felt they had fitted in and were enjoying their course, whereas graduates tended to base their verdicts on the perceived impact on their careers.
Professor Nicola Dandridge, the other lead researcher, adds it was “remarkable” that so many were satisfied with the outcome, given the complexity of the decisions facing prospective undergraduates. Many choices were rushed and taken on the basis of narrow sources of information and little knowledge of what university life would be like. Careers advice should be strengthened, she notes at the launch of the report, and information and communications should be more accurate and realistic.
The largest difference between the undergraduate respondents happy with their choices and those who were not related to the influence of communication and contact with their university. Almost 60 percent of those who were happy with their choice reported “communication and contact with my university/college” as having had a strong influence, compared to less than 40 percent of the students who wished they had chosen differently.
Parents were also one unexpectedly influential source of advice on study plans, with their views proving more important than recommendations from teachers. Ben Jordan, Director of Strategy at UCAS, the admissions body, says it was recognised that more help should be available for parents so that they were better informed in carrying out this role. Jordan notes children often began thinking about higher education at primary school and were more influenced than ever by the cost of living. But he adds: “The report shows that the system works well for the majority of students.”
The research shows that many students who might have considered switching course or even institution were not aware of the options open to them. Others felt that the disruption and potential costs involved made switching too big a risk. Laura Barclay, who is responsible for stimulating the market for the Government’s new lifelong education entitlement, which will be available from September 2026, says ministers were keen to facilitate movement between institutions through credit transfer. Funding will be available for whole courses or single modules to encourage people of any age to acquire new skills and qualifications.
The researchers recommend that work-related learning and the embedding of employability in the curriculum should be scaled up in higher education. Graduates, in particular, favoured greater involvement with employers and some felt that their course had not helped them to find employment.
Undergraduates studying in Scotland were most likely to be satisfied with their choice of course and institution – 10 percentage points ahead of those in England - while graduates’ responses showed little variation by location. Those from the poorest homes were the most likely to be dissatisfied, although the margin was lower than the researchers expected.
There were differences, too, between disciplines. Undergraduate respondents studying health-related subjects were happiest with their decisions, with a rating of 72 percent, followed by 66 percent of those studying a humanities discipline, 63 percent in science, technology, engineering and medicine, and 62 percent in social science disciplines.
Rankings, including those published by QS, were among the influences explored in the research. Only applicants’ own more generalised research, or college results and subject choices, were more powerful influences, with more than half paying some attention to ranking positions and institutional prestige. Students of Asian ethnicity were most likely to be influenced in this way, with almost 70 percent taking some notice of the results. Black students were the next most likely to be influenced by rankings, compared with over 40 percent of mixed race and white students.
The most common reason given by the undergraduate respondents for wishing they would have made a different choice was that they would have been happier or fitted in better, followed by the view that their academic studies would have been more interesting and/or challenging. By far the most common reason given by the graduate respondents was that a different choice would have opened up more career options.
In the focus group discussions, links were made between studentsʼ university choices and what they had enjoyed studying at school, suggesting that students tended, or were encouraged, to look backwards on their experience at secondary level rather than forwards to what might be best for them at university and after graduation. A frequent theme in the discussions was that by the time students realised a different decision might have been better for them, or found out about the possibility of transferring, it was too late: at that point they were too embedded in their university lives. The additional cost of repeating a year was also identified as a concern.
Other countries also conduct regular surveys of students to find out whether they are happy with their decisions, though the questions are framed differently. The 2023 Irish National Survey of Student Engagement, for example, records 83 percent of students saying that they would go to the same institution they were attending, and the Dutch equivalent of the National Student Survey (the Nationale Studenten Enquete) in 2024 found that over 73 percent of students reported being happy with their ‘course programmeʼ decision.