Factors Affecting the Satisfaction of Undergraduates Education of Maritime Transportation Management and Logistics Degree with Special Reference to Ocean Universitiy of Sri Lanka

Abstract

In terms of social and economic development, as well as a potential source of excellent employment and career opportunities, the maritime sector is critical to modern societies. Several million people worldwide are employed in activities and businesses that are directly or indirectly related to oceans and seas. Approximately 90% of global trade is carried by sea nowadays, and the sea is a common heritage of mankind that is managed by the international shipping industry. Due to the booming demand of knowledge-based economies as well as highly skilled and competent workers, the demand for higher education in Sri Lanka is increasing rapidly by opening a vast opportunity for Sri Lankan higher education industry. There are now over 200 educational institutions offering maritime education and training in over 80 countries, ranging from basic safety and seamanship training to the highest certification standard, which is now equivalent to an academic degree level. The Ocean University of Sri Lanka is also one of the state-owned universities dedicated to producing human capital for fisheries, marine, maritime and allied fields. However, it was found that most students do not meet 80% of the regular attendance required for the semester. Further, a significant number of students do not register for the semesters of the degree program on time the undergraduates of Maritime Transportation Management and Logistics at the Ocean University of Sri Lanka. As students are considered the primary customers of a university identifying factors that influence students' satisfaction with their learning environments is critical for universities to compete. This study is based on quantitative data obtained from the primary discussions with selected academic and non–academic officials of the students in the maritime and logistics department of the Ocean University of Sri Lanka in order to find out factors affecting student satisfaction and to measure the satisfaction level for undergraduates’ education. This study will help to improve the whole procedure of Ocean University in Sri Lanka to cater to more students in future by satisfying their needs and wants. Through this study, Ocean University in Sri Lanka can improve the quality of the overall program and it will lead to having more customers for the institute. Furthermore, it will help to improve the on-time registration of the students for the Maritime Transportation Management and Logistics Undergraduate programs. The findings of this study will also help to make “Loyal Students” for the institute who can make a significant impact to enhance the brand image of the Ocean University of Sri Lanka. The respondents of this study are the students in the Department of Bachelor of Science in Maritime Transportation Management and Logistics at the Ocean University of Sri Lanka and the quantitative research method is used to analyses the factors that influence the satisfaction of the undergraduates. The dataset is collected from the population directly using the structured questionnaire from 2nd January to 28th February 2022. The survey was conducted via an online google form to collect data. The questionnaire was prepared to measure dependent and independent variables using 41 items. Academic staff and their involvement, administrative staff and their involvement, facilities, quality and degree program reputation, university location and university image are the independent variables while student satisfaction is the dependent variable. Statistical analysis is performed using SPSS version 25. The reliability and validity of the items in the questionnaire are tested initially. Relationships of variables and impact on model variables are measured using correlation and regression analysis respectively. The correlation coefficients between academic staff and their involvement, administrative staff and their involvement, facilities, quality and degree program reputation, university location, university image and student satisfaction are significant positive. Therefore, there are significant correlations between all independent variables and dependent variables. Regression analysis reveals that only two independent variables namely administrative staff and their involvement and university image are found to be significant predictors of student satisfaction while the other four variables are insignificant predictors. Descriptive analysis shows that student satisfaction for the five variables namely university image, administrative staff and their involvement, university location, availability of facilities are below the middle point while academic staff and their involvement, quality and the reputation of the degree programme are on the middle of the satisfaction scale. It can be recommended to enhance student satisfaction by improving the service quality and the image of the university through appropriate measures. Finally, it is recommended to carry out a study to measure student satisfaction at the university.