Abstract
International student satisfaction has become a widely studied topic with the emergence of English-language study programs in higher education institutions (HEIs). Numerous studies arose in connection with understanding what factors influence international student satisfaction, determining service elements as crucial indicators of student satisfaction. There is limited research on understanding international student satisfaction in Hungary, explicitly focusing on degree-seeking mobility. Therefore, the current study analyses international students' satisfaction through the example of a Hungarian university to uncover the factors affecting satisfaction and to determine points for improvement of unsatisfied needs. Based on the questionnaire findings, an importance–satisfaction analysis (ISA) was conducted to depict international students' pain points visually. The focus group discussion and the affinity diagrams revealed that international students need more free-time activities and opportunities to connect outside the university. In addition, usability testing highlighted crucial missing information from the university mentor organisation webpage, while the results of the online questionnaire showed that there is an urgent need to develop university services. Besides determining points for improvement, this study provides insights into utilising a comprehensive, novel methodology in researching degree-seeking mobile students in Hungary.
Introduction
International scholarship-holder students are not fully integrated into the host country's cultural milieu and its higher education communities, which might have a negative impact on their satisfaction (Lapina, Roga, & Müürsepp, 2016; Lin, Huang, Othman, & Luo, 2020). The situation is similar in Hungary, even though many domestic higher education institutions provide a variety of English-language courses for international students. Unlike most Hungarian programmes, the number of leisure or community-building activities (e.g., self-governed student groups, college for advanced studies memberships, etc.) for international students is scarce, despite their potential to encourage international students' professional development and cultural integration (Kovács & Kasza, 2018). These activities would assist international students in naturally integrating and blending into the university community, consequently increasing their well-being (Grüttner, 2019).
Integration is more challenging because domestic and international students are fully segregated in and outside the classroom (Stamenkovska, Llerena, & Gordon Győri, 2022). The integration challenges and the feeling of inadequate well-being also affect educators, who have experienced numerous negative instances of incomprehensible behaviour and habits of international students (Gong, Gao, Li, & Lai, 2021). International students' social and cultural integration can also significantly positively affect their overall satisfaction (Yılmaz & Temizkan, 2022).
For this reason, within the framework of the student self-governments of higher education institutions (HIEs) in Hungary, there is an ongoing discussion between senior university administrators and mentors of international students. Due to this, for the academic year of 2020 in Hungary, an attempt was made for the first time to fully integrate international students by mandating a Hungarian culture and language course to provide multiple benefits for students receiving a government scholarship in Hungary (Stamenkovska et al., 2022).
In addition, it is worthwhile to consider other measures that help effective integration and well-being, not only from the institution's perspective but also from the viewpoint of international students. As pointed out earlier, thriving social and cultural integration positively affects satisfaction (Yılmaz & Temizkan, 2022), and satisfaction can lead to positive word-of-mouth advertisement and loyalty (Faizan et al., 2016). It is of the highest concern for institutions to carefully measure international students' satisfaction to improve the university's related services and reach better global visibility (Lannert & Derényi, 2021). If international students are satisfied, they can profit from positive word of mouth, attracting additional scholarship holders or self-funded students from their origin (Appuhamilage & Torii, 2019), leading to an institutional revenue increase. This makes it abundantly evident that measuring student satisfaction and developing university services are top priorities for higher education to preserve international competitiveness.
By examining a Hungarian university, the present study seeks to identify the causes of international students' dissatisfaction and locate opportunities for improvement.
Satisfaction in higher education
Satisfaction was defined first by Cardozo (1965) in connection with customers, who stated that customer expectations and efforts for getting a product influence satisfaction significantly. Oliver (1980) later claimed that the perceived quality of products and services is determined based on the comparison to consumers' expectations. If this comparison is favourable, satisfaction occurs. Satisfaction is usually measured with validated scales and methods, from which the service quality gap model (SERVQUAL) and performance-based measure of service quality (SERVPERF) are the most used techniques. While SERVQUAL measures expectations and perceived quality (Parasuraman, Berry, & Zeithaml, 1991), SERVPERF only relies on measuring perceived quality (Cronin Jr & Taylor, 1992). Besides quantitative methods, qualitative measurement techniques in consumer satisfaction have risen, including focus group discussions, in-depth interviews, and journey mapping (Rosenbaum, Otalora, & Ramírez, 2017).
Satisfaction has been studied in the higher education literature for a long, as student satisfaction can increase positive word-of-mouth recommendations and, thereby, the reputation of the HEIs (Schlesinger, Cervera-Taulet, & Wymer, 2023). Similarly to its general definition referred to in the preceding paragraph, satisfaction has mainly appeared as a comparison between expectations and perceived quality in the higher education literature (Tsiligiris, Kéri, & Cheah, 2022). Therefore, we can conclude that student satisfaction can be determined by Oliver's (1980) Expectation Disconfirmation Theory, and when measured, factors closely related to the university services are measured almost exclusively.
Measurement of student satisfaction in HEIs includes various techniques that build on the previously mentioned general methods. Besides the Consumer Satisfaction Index (CSI), SERVQUAL and SERVPERF measurements can be found in the higher education satisfaction literature (Negricea, Edu, & Avram, 2014). Additionally, there has been a growing trend of developing and applying scales in the higher education industry. The Higher Education PERFormance-only (HedPERF) scale measures student satisfaction with the whole HEI service environment, while the CUL-HedPERF scale takes cultural nuisances into account when measuring student satisfaction (Randheer, 2015). Recently, Tsiligiris et al. (2022) used the Education Quality (EDUQUAL) model to determine the importance of Hofstede's cultural dimensions (power distance, uncertainty avoidance, individualism-collectivism, masculinity-femininity, and short versus long-term orientation) influence on student satisfaction (Hofstede, 2011). The Net Promoter Score (NPS) is also used to measure satisfaction by gaining insight into the consumers' willingness to promote a particular product or service on a 10-point Likert scale (Reichheld, 2003). Even though some examples of its usage can be found in the higher education literature, NPS is rarely applied (Kara, Mintu-Wimsatt, & Spillan, 2021). NPS has the benefit of being very brief, consisting of only one question, but the disadvantage is that a single score is insufficient (Fisher & Kordupleski, 2019).
Qualitative methods, such as focus group discussions (Dericks, Thompson, Roberts, & Phua, 2019), in-depth interviews (Darawong & Sandmaung, 2019), and unique solutions (e.g. Critical Incident Technique, CIT for collecting observations of behaviour (Islam, 2014)) have appeared in the literature, as according to Sultan and Wong (2013), quantitative methods have limitations if applied in higher education. The focus group's application in measuring international student satisfaction has been studied by Winke (2017), who concluded that its application is quite rare, even though it could provide a deeper understanding of the notion at hand and a solid basis for developing measurement scales.
International student satisfaction
International student satisfaction can be influenced by several factors that the methodologies mentioned above shed light on. There is an overall predominance of studies that measure international student satisfaction based on the perceived service quality of HEIs. Besides the satisfaction with education, many studies place student-teacher communication, equipment, environment and assisting students into the centre of the research (Aboubakr & Bayoumy, 2022). Some studies examine international student satisfaction based on country of origin or destination (Teeroovengadum, Kamalanabhan, & Seebaluck, 2016). Other factors, such as trust in university management, willingness to improve the HEI services and teaching ability, affect international student satisfaction (Singh & Jasial, 2020).
Expectations, perceived quality, value, institutional image, and reputation are examined broadly as factors influencing international student satisfaction. It was revealed that university image, expectations, and perceived quality influence satisfaction (Faizan et al., 2016). Moreover, HEI reputation, student expectations, student activity and perceived value influence student satisfaction (Schlesinger et al., 2023). Interestingly, student support services and administrative faculty members can influence students' perceived quality the most (Doña-Toledo, Luque-Martínez, & Del Barrio-García, 2017).
We can conclude that recent studies focus on the measurement of international student satisfaction at HEIs (Abu-Rumman & Qawasmeh, 2022; Li & Wang, 2023; Wong & Chapman, 2023), as both researchers and practitioners have recognised the need to understand international students better, which can result in better HEI reputation, improvement of HEI services, positive word-of-mouth recommendations and steady or increasing international student numbers (Tong, 2021). The current study aims to provide new insights into international student satisfaction by testing the applicability of novel qualitative international student satisfaction measurement methods, such as an affinity diagram and usability testing, together with more traditional methods like the NPS and focus groups.
Research questions
The current study aims to analyse international students' satisfaction through the example of a Hungarian university to uncover the factors affecting satisfaction and to determine points for improvement of unsatisfied needs. Consequently, the research sought to answer the following questions:
What are the general concerns of international students regarding their university studies in Hungary?
What are the international students' perceptions of the mentoring organisation of the examined university, and what aspects of its operations do they think could be improved?
What are the differences in satisfaction levels between first- and upper-year international students?
Characterising the population
Nowadays, various Hungarian university scholarship programmes offer international students the opportunity to pursue their studies in Hungary, attracting a growing number of students from across the world. At the time of the study, the population (n = 1,681) enrolled at the examined university on scholarship through the ‘Scholarships Christian Young People’ (SCYP) and ‘Stipendium Hungaricum’ (SH) programmes.
These full-degree programs provide financial incentives and coverage for the entire study-abroad process. The SH scholarship programme was established by the Government of Hungary in 2013. The programme's primary objective is to promote academic excellence among Hungarian HEIs and increase the number of international students. The fundamental aim of the SCYP is to facilitate access to higher education in Hungary for Christian youth who are either persecuted in their home countries or residing in crisis-stricken regions of the world due to their faith.
This population includes 73.34% of the examined university's international students, arriving from 27 countries (e.g., Jordan, China, Kazakhstan, Azerbaijan, Brazil, Pakistan, Mongolia, France, Syria, Iran, and Iraq).
The population is highly diverse in terms of educational attainment, as these scholarships provide the opportunity to pursue studies at the bachelor's (BSc), master's (MSc), and doctoral (PhD) levels, as well as preparatory courses (PC).
The university's mentoring organisation oversees the students who have received these scholarship programs, allowing us simple access to the research base through them. Sampling is therefore considered convenient for all the related research methods.
Method
In this study, both qualitative and quantitative research methods were utilised. The qualitative part of the research investigated user satisfaction and needs consisting of a focus group study and usability testing to determine the general problems of students (Fig. 1). Applying the focus group was the collection of difficulties and issues with the university and the mentoring organisation and later improvement ideas to be implemented via affinity diagram. In parallel, the usability study examined the adequacy of the mentor organisation webpage as the main information transfer interface for international students.
Research design
Citation: Hungarian Educational Research Journal 14, 4; 10.1556/063.2024.00284
A quantitative investigation was carried out to validate the findings obtained from the qualitative methods using a comprehensive online questionnaire (Fig. 1). The questionnaire inquired about the overall assessment of the activities conducted by the mentoring organisation and the university and the corresponding satisfaction levels using Likert scales. However, it was explicitly designed to be appropriate for examining differences between first-year and senior students. Furthermore, the questionnaire also evaluated overall satisfaction levels by employing the NPS question.
Qualitative research
Focus group and affinity diagram
A focus group is a qualitative data collection method in which a small group discusses a specific topic in response to a carefully constructed series of questions under the direction of a trained moderator. The methodology helps understand people's feelings and thoughts about an issue (Moser & Korstjens, 2018). The purpose of implementing this methodology online using MS Teams software was to acquire a more profound comprehension of the requirements and issues related to international student satisfaction and examine the underlying causes of these concerns.
An affinity diagram was created as a complementary method after the focus group discussion. The affinity diagram (the K-J method) is a popular grouping method for summarising and quickly organising research results and user requirements (Takai & Ishii, 2010). In this instance, everyone was allowed to write an unlimited number of Post-it notes with their ideas on them using the Conceptboard visual workspace software. Participants then reviewed and discussed all ideas and grouped the related items into themes.
This part consisted of nine international students selected based on their diversity (nationality, age, level of education, and beginning of university study). Participants ranged from 19 to 28, most of whom were men. Eight different nationalities were represented among the group members, most of whom had been enrolled in university since 2020 at PC, BSc or MSc level (Table 1).
Information on the demographics of focus group participants
| ID | Age | Gender | Level of education | Nationality | Beginning of university study |
| 1 | 28 | Male | MSc | Iran | 2020 |
| 2 | 22 | Male | BSc | Pakistani | 2018 |
| 3 | 20 | Female | BSc | Mongolian | 2019 |
| 4 | 22 | Female | MSc | Azeri | 2020 |
| 5 | 21 | Male | BSc | Pakistani | 2018 |
| 6 | 19 | Male | BSc | Indian | 2020 |
| 7 | 19 | Male | BSc | Kazakh | 2020 |
| 8 | 23 | Male | BSc | Bolivia | 2018 |
| 9 | 20 | Male | PC | Kyrgyzstan | 2020 |
Usability testing
Usability testing is one of the most comprehensive and widely used method for evaluating the suitability of a software product (Szabó & Hercegfi, 2023). This method assesses the appropriateness of the mentoring organization's website for its intended purpose (Rogers, 2022). In this study, the task-based usability was supported by a concurrent think-aloud (CTA) protocol and moderated online via MS Teams. The essence of CTA is that the participant speaks continuously throughout the test, allowing the tracing of their thoughts (Jääskeläinen, 2010). The usability tests concluded with a brief interview that allowed the international student to express their opinion about the website.
The usability testing included seven participants from six countries with varying levels of education (BSc, MSc, PC or PhD). The ages of the participants ranged from 20 to 28, and five were male (Table 2).
Information on the demographics of usability testing participants
| ID | Age | Gender | Level of education | Nationality | Beginning of university study |
| 1 | 29 | Male | PhD | Egyptian | 2020 |
| 2 | 20 | Male | BSc | Kyrgyz | 2020 |
| 3 | 22 | Female | BSc | Tunisian | 2018 |
| 4 | 25 | Male | MSc | Palestinian | 2020 |
| 5 | 22 | Female | BSc | Kazakh | 2017 |
| 6 | 20 | Male | PC | Kyrgyz | 2020 |
| 7 | 28 | Male | PhD | Lebanese | 2020 |
Quantitative research
Online questionnaire and Net Promoter Score (NPS)
The questionnaire is a quantitative research instrument that can gather numerous responses to a problem (Evans & Mathur, 2018). In the present study, this method was used to explore students' overall perspectives on student life in Hungary, the university, and the mentoring organisation. Additionally, it aimed to measure the difference in satisfaction levels between first-year and upper-year students.
As input for an importance-satisfaction analysis (ISA), the importance scores were gathered for various statements related to three main themes: students' expectations, evaluations of teachers and university professional relationships and mentoring organisation's services and activities. Satisfaction ratings for the same statements in the second section of the survey followed this. In both ratings, a 5-point Likert scale was utilised.
The questionnaire for this study included NPS questions for both the university and the mentor organisation examined. A simple question (‘How likely are you to recommend the university/the mentor organisation to a friend?’) can be answered on a Likert scale ranging from 0 to 10 by the respondent (Reichheld, 2003). Based on the answers, the students could be categorised as ‘promoters’ (9–10: extremely likely to recommend), ‘passively satisfied’ (7–8), and ‘detractors’ (0–6 rating-extremely unlikely to recommend). On a scale from −100 to +100, the NPS score obtained after evaluating the results is interpreted. The resulting score can be compared to competitors (such as other HEIs) or previous scores for the same organisation to monitor progress.
The questionnaire was distributed to all active recipients of SH and SCYP scholarship programmes. The survey was available between April 25–28, 2021, when 311 responses were received. This sample comprises 68% male and 30% female respondents, with 2% not disclosing their gender. The mean age of the respondents was 25.74 years, with a standard deviation of 4.93 years; the youngest respondent was 19, and the oldest was 50. Most participants were Jordanians and Azeris, but there were also many Egyptians, Brazilians, Chinese, and Iraqis. 25% of respondents had previously attended other university programmes in Hungary, and 13% had studied at European universities. Most respondents have either an MSc/MA (49%) or a BSc/BA (33%), while 17% are PhD and 1% are PP students.
Ethical permission
The research was supported by the Directorate of Sales and Services of the Budapest University of Technology and Economics and received approval from the dean's office of the Faculty of Economic and Social Sciences as a diploma thesis supervised by the Department of Ergonomics and Psychology.
Results
Qualitative results
Findings on mentoring organisation and university issues
Participants were asked to describe the university mentoring organisation in one word at the beginning of the focus group. ‘Helpful’, ‘understanding’, ‘support’, ‘motivational’, ‘integration’, ‘effectiveness’, ‘direction giver’, ‘informative’, and ‘teamwork’ terms were mentioned. This indicates that the participants in the focus group have a generally positive view of the mentors' activities.
The second question asked respondents to describe their best and worst mentorship experiences. The students described a variety of enduring experiences. Notably, the airport welcome was the best experience for students who arrived before COVID-19. The rapid online communication and the organised activities were also frequently cited as positive aspects. Several negative encounters involved office administration, dormitory housing, and medical care.
The affinity diagram of the collection of issues with the mentoring organisation revealed seven distinct themes (Fig. 2). Students did not comprehend the meaning of the corrected credit index (CCI) and specifically failed to recognise that they were not informed of the importance of this indicator about the entrance exam. Moreover, they criticised the administrative procedures and the time required to obtain a Hungarian social security number (TAJ card). The lack of information was also criticised, even though this is an outside competency of the mentoring organisation. In addition, several difficulties were noted on the related Conceptboard regarding housing in dormitories and other accommodations. Here, the process for reserving accommodations and dormitory networking issues are highlighted. In addition to the slow mentor response, the absence of cultural and recreational events for international students and the lack of the learning management systems (LMSs) (in this case, Neptun and Moodle) tutorial were also criticised.
Affinity diagram of difficulties and problems with the mentoring organisation
Citation: Hungarian Educational Research Journal 14, 4; 10.1556/063.2024.00284
Similarly, the participants categorised their concerns about the university into six primary themes. The largest group in the resulting affinity diagram was concerned with the quality of the university's education. The online presence of the university, its international perception, and the stark contrast between their perceptions were brought up as substantial and intriguing topics. Before enrolling at this university, most students viewed it as a high-profile HEI (according to ID1, a ‘luxury institution of exceptional quality and prestige’). However, they were dissatisfied upon arrival because they felt these expectations were unmet. The respondents also cited the method of evaluation (e.g., incomplete course material assignments) and the lack of support from faculty coordinators as problems. They also noted the absence of career guidance and professional career support and the university's lack of industry connections. Furthermore, they drew attention to the increased need for psychological counselling, which they believed many of them would require in the current epidemic situation, and they expressed concern for the mental health of their fellow students. The participants identified the gaps in integrating Hungarian and international students as a common intersection of mentoring programmes and university issues.
After collecting and classifying all the problems, students were allowed to record their suggestions for improvement. Based on the related affinity diagram (Fig. 3), it can be concluded that the majority of students anticipated their mentors to organise leisure activities and events. All sorts of activities (such as organising basketball tournaments or parties) were discussed, and they would be willing to participate in virtually anything that would allow them to get to know their fellow students. In addition, finding accommodation was a strong contingent in the affinity sorting process, within which the necessity to analyse contracts and assist in identifying potential scams arose. Furthermore, the greeting of new students at the airport was discussed. On a longer-term basis, creating a simple mobile app to assist first-year students was also suggested.
Affinity diagram of the improvement ideas
Citation: Hungarian Educational Research Journal 14, 4; 10.1556/063.2024.00284
Findings on mentoring organisation website issues
In Task 1 of usability tesing, participants examined the homepage and mentors' introduction pages. The study revealed that the homepage has notable inconsistencies. The students were especially perplexed by the fact that some icons with short written descriptions were clickable and utilised to navigate between sites, while clicking on other items with a similar appearance had no effect. Several participants mentioned that they would expect to locate the mentoring organisation's contact information (social media, email addresses, etc.) towards the bottom of the homepage; however, the footer is currently empty.
Task 2 required participants to complete the mapping procedure to obtain a residence permit. Students initially struggled to determine which application process applied to them, but with assistance from the moderator, they were able to identify the correct one (first application and appropriate visa type). After that, they had no trouble understanding how to obtain a residence permit, but they lacked specific location information (e.g., ‘R10’, which stands for Room 10 in the R building of the university). Participants believed that, due to the lack of local knowledge of new students, more information should be provided to describe these locations and how to get there. The website was also required to include information on using Budapest's public transportation.
Task 3 also presented various difficulties, requiring participants to locate a place to stay. The ‘booking.com’ screenshot with short-term accommodations appeared to be a functional (embedded) web element; therefore, most participants attempted to click on it. It was merely a static visualisation, which was a minor annoyance during task-solving. Participants pointed out that this subpage lacked further links and textual guidance.
Finding information about student employment was a more significant challenge in Task 4. The sub-menu item was difficult to locate, requiring lengthy searches in multiple locations. This page's ‘BME Job Fair’ title consistently misled students. They believed that this implied that they could obtain employment prospects within the university. Thus, they instantly assumed that opportunities with other companies were meaningless.
Participants were required to locate actual news and regulations on a website for Task 5. There were no usability or other issues, but it is essential to mention that the job demonstrated that students rarely check the website for the latest news and laws. They prefer to obtain information via their friends, Facebook groups for international citizens living in Hungary, and the ‘Daily News Hungary’ communication channel. Several respondents noted during the experiment that they found the COVID-related articles and other content on the website (e.g., tips on online buying) valuable. ID5 stated that, if afflicted, he would read these ‘novel details with great care’.
In Task 6, participants had difficulty navigating the ‘Medical help’ subpage, which gave information about medical assistance. Several of them complained that they could not navigate the Hungarian healthcare system and did not know where to go in an urgent situation. As a result, students frequently travel to the nearest hospital's emergency department for treatment, where they are referred to the appropriate facility.
Overall, the usability testing highlighted several issues. It was also especially surprising that the students did not visit the website frequently, preferring to seek information from other forums.
Quantitative results
Findings on international student satisfaction and preferences
A total of 37.6% of the respondents of the quantitative research were first-year students who commenced their studies online as a result of the COVID-19 situation. Therefore, in evaluating the questionnaire, this attribute was employed as a categorising factor, with 117 participants in the first year and 194 (62.4%) in the upper-year category. We conducted this grouping to investigate whether first-year students' satisfaction level differs from their upper-year classmates who have received in-person instruction.
The representation of satisfaction and importance scores on a two-dimensional graph is used as input to ISA to facilitate visual interpretation of the results. According to the ISA, the importance and satisfaction scores should be equal, so the students' ideal scores are located along the diagonal. When interpreting the results, however, the points along the x = y line are still regarded as optimal (light blue stripe) (Fig. 4) (Aktaş, Aksu, & Çizel, 2007).
Importance-satisfaction analysis (ISA) of students' general expectations
Citation: Hungarian Educational Research Journal 14, 4; 10.1556/063.2024.00284
As seen in Fig. 4, the factors ‘welfare in Hungary’ (point 7) and ‘getting help from mentors’ (point 9) can be moved into the ideal range by increasing the satisfaction scores. Satisfaction can be increased by developing the services or infrastructure underlying a given aspect, such as ‘welfare in Hungary’ by increasing the number of programmes to assist international students in integrating and ‘getting help from mentors’ by recruiting and training more supervisors for the mentoring organisation.
In the case of ‘good living conditions in dormitories’ (point 6) and ‘well-developed international student community’ (point 4), it is worthwhile to highlight these aspects from a marketing perspective (e.g., on the website and in other informational materials) so that their significance can be elevated in the eyes of the target audience over time.
It is worth mentioning that even the points that exceed the optimal range in this case are so close to the diagonal that it may not be practical to address them. Leaders of the related organisation should always consider this.
Most of the criteria (such as ‘teachers’ attitude towards international students' and ‘teachers’ English language skills') for the following ISA regarding evaluations of teachers and university professional relationships fell within the ideal range, as depicted by a point cloud similar to Fig. 4. In this ISA, only ‘professional practical opportunity via university (summer internships, part-time jobs)’ and ‘industrial collaboration at university’ had lower satisfaction values. To increase student satisfaction, it is apparent that more resources should be allocated to fostering industry connections and highlighting internship opportunities.
The final questions investigated the importance and satisfaction of the mentoring organisation's services and activities. According to the ISA, the mentor organisation's communication activities and orientation support are practical, whereas several mentoring components have been rated as providing low levels of satisfaction. Therefore, it would be advantageous to increase the satisfaction scores for ‘organising sports events’ and ‘help in the administration of governmental offices’. This could be accomplished by organising more sports programmes, but it would also be beneficial to support better the administrative procedures related to integration (e.g., by describing the steps of the administrative procedures and providing a 24-h helpdesk for questions).
Applying a t-test to independent samples showed a significant discrepancy in satisfaction levels between first-year and upper-year students regarding three distinct areas (general expectations, HEI services, recreation and leisure).
The mean (M) rating among general expectations for ‘great student life in Budapest’ among first-year students in the current sample was 3.52, with a standard deviation (SD) of 0.99. In comparison, upper-year students gave higher scores (M = 3.75, SD = 0.85). The same was true for the aspect of ‘getting help from mentors’, as it garnered a lower score (M = 3.64, SD = 1.12) from first-year students compared to their upper-year classmates (M = 3.90, SD = 0.97). These findings indicate a statistically significant difference (t (215.956) = -2.043, p = 0.042 and t (217.439) = -2.056, p = 0.041), emphasising the need for increased support in these areas to improve the satisfaction of first-year students in the future. In addition, first-year students rated the aspect of a 'well-developed international student community' higher (M = 3.2, SD = 1.03) compared to the members of the upper-year group (M = 2.95, SD = 1.09). The observed difference was deemed statistically significant (t (309) = 1.992; p = 0.047), suggesting that this particular aspect should be enhanced among the cohort of senior students to uphold satisfaction levels.
There was a significant difference in satisfaction scores between the two groups for two statements regarding HEI services (t (309) = 2.510, p = 0.01 and t (309) = 2.078, p = 0.039). First-year students rated ‘instructors' English language skills’ and ‘internship opportunities’ statements higher (M = 3.66, SD = 1.00 and M = 2.82, SD = 1.24) than the international students learning in higher years (M = 3.35, SD = 1.10 and M = 2.53, SD = 1.20). In this case, it would be beneficial to provide English communication development training for lecturers and add more internship opportunities that upper-year students could pursue.
In addition, among first-year participants, several recreation and leisure-related aspects received significantly lower satisfaction ratings (t (225) = -2.829, p = 0.005; t (229) = -3.254, p = 0.001). This group obtained an average score of 3.17 (SD = 1.25) for the ‘organisation of trips in Hungary (e.g. sightseeing)’, whereas the other group achieved a higher mean value of 3.61 (SD = 1.08). The same remained true regarding the ‘organisation of major events (e.g. Christmas party)’ (M = 3.13, SD = 1.25 and M = 3.49, SD = 1.14 for the two groups).
The NPS value calculated for the entire sample from the questionnaire was 0 for the university and 16 for the mentoring organisation. Based on the overall responses, the NPS value for the university was 3, compared to a 12 for the mentoring organisation. These low NPS scores also highlight the need to improve the university's relevant services and the mentoring organisation's reach.
Discussion
The qualitative and quantitative research methods used in this study effectively addressed all the research questions, demonstrating the appropriateness of these methods in higher education research. Participants in the focus group study mentioned several problems and needs. The data collected via the questionnaire and the ISAs have thematically validated the qualitative results and highlighted other areas that should be addressed to increase the overall satisfaction of international students.
General concerns about the university
Qualitative results regarding the university highlighted concerns about the quality of education, inadequate assistance from faculty coordinators, absence of guidance for career growth, and dissatisfaction with the university's global reputation. The quantitative results validated these findings. The ISA revealed additional areas in which welfare in Hungary can be enhanced, including mentor support, improved living conditions in dormitories, and a stronger international student community.
Mentoring organisation and related webpage
The qualitative findings revealed generally positive reviews of the mentoring organisation's activities, with participants characterising it as 'helpful', 'understanding', and 'supportive'. The affinity diagrams uncovered problems such as a limited understanding of educational indicators, administrative procedures, delayed mentor feedback, and a lack of cultural and recreational activities.
The usability testing revealed inconsistencies in the mentor organisation webpage, a lack of contact information, and challenges locating specific information such as accommodation and medical assistance. The usability testing showed that students prefer obtaining information from sources other than the mentoring organisation's website. This emphasises the need to improve website navigation, expand the provision of comprehensive data, and enhance the accessibility of crucial services.
Differences between first-year and upper-year students
The quantitative findings revealed differences in satisfaction levels between first-year and upper-year students about general expectations, services provided by the HEI, and recreational activities. First-year students exhibited decreased satisfaction in areas such as receiving assistance from mentors, the English language proficiency of instructors, and engaging in recreational and leisure activities (e.g. organising community events) compared to upper-year students.
From the overall research findings, it is apparent that international students are dissatisfied and often have a slightly negative perception of the university, the quality of education, or the services offered. The low NPS scores further support this.
Conclusion
Consequently, many suggestions for improvement may be devised by the research findings and executed across various domains in collaboration with stakeholders. First, the university mentoring organisation experiences an extremely high turnover rate. This is because mentors typically begin working for a shorter duration (1–2 years) during their university studies in return for a scholarship. Valuable experience, knowledge, and relationship capital acquired individually with the university or external partners are susceptible to loss due to the high turnover rate.
Therefore, it would be advantageous to strengthen mentoring programmes. It would be beneficial to allocate financial resources to mentors to compensate them with a fixed salary. Additionally, it is crucial to provide systematic training to enhance their understanding of education. This is crucial because mentors usually have comprehensive expertise in their field of study, which often makes them unable to address inquiries concerning different academic programmes. International students can contact the university administrators responsible for handling SH and SCYP programmes in such instances. However, these administrators primarily focus on the administrative aspects of academics. Hence, it is crucial to implement a well-organized support system for international students, which can be achieved by assigning faculty coordinators to ensure that proficient instructors are available for consultation regarding course-related questions.
Although the mentoring organisation has specific mentor leaders (e.g. in charge of programme organisation), it would be advantageous for them to collaborate with faculty coordinators so that the university establishes long-lasting connections with cultural clubs to expand programme opportunities and relevant professional cooperation (e.g., internship possibilities) at the faculty level.
Even though the university offers international students sports, they are not always available and might not assist the integration. Therefore, creating orientation programmes (e.g. international ball) designed explicitly for first-year international students would be beneficial. These programmes would offer them extensive support and guidance in adapting to university life.
The mentoring organisation involves diverse activities, preventing each mentor from fully understanding every work process. For this reason, the mentoring organisation functions by utilising working groups, where each mentor specialises in a particular aspect of the organisation's activities. Due to a high turnover rate, newly appointed mentors acquire knowledge of work processes through verbal communication. To ensure systematic and deliberate learning and development of the organisation's key processes, it is essential to establish a process model and description for these activities. Through the procedure of documenting the processes, it becomes feasible to allocate responsibility, decision-making authority, and specific roles.
Despite being well-maintained and regularly updated, the mentoring organisation's website had numerous issues. When creating a website for diverse user groups, it is crucial to gather requirements before proceeding with the improvement or redesign of it. When designing the information architecture, it is vital to prioritise easy access to essential information, including contact details, accommodation choices, and sources of medical aid. When creating the website, it could be advisable to integrate interactive features (e.g., campus map, chatbot). Furthermore, instructors must offer professional development opportunities to improve their English language proficiency. This can be achieved through language courses or workshops to enhance effective communication with international students.
Developing a comprehensive marketing strategy to improve the university's global reputation is also essential, emphasising its international education's strengths and unique offerings. Enhancing online presence through social media platforms and targeted advertising is necessary to attract prospective international students.
By using their available capacity and respective strategic performance, the university and the mentoring organisation can prioritise these ideas and implement them in the future to increase student satisfaction. All HEIs should systematically address the measurement of international student satisfaction, which can be accomplished comprehensively by applying the methodology presented in this article.
Limitations and future work
Due to COVID, the measurements were conducted online, which meant there was less opportunity for face-to-face interaction and many more technical barriers than with qualitative methods (e.g., internet connection failures and difficulty using online tools). As the focus group was conducted via group video call as opposed to the traditional facial expression format, participants were less able to open up and frequently interrupted one another. During the usability test, participants typically had a single screen, meaning that during the screen-sharing tests, they could only hear the moderator's voice, reducing the ecological validity of the tests.
Overall, the online implementation of qualitative methods made it easier for participants' attention to be diverted by distractions in the physical and digital environment (e.g., noisy housemates, intermittent internet, pop-up notifications).
These factors may have slightly affected the results: on the one hand, participants were more easily distracted from the goal of the experiments, while on the other, some were less enthusiastic and truthful due to the lack of a personal atmosphere.
About the authors
Bálint Szabó, assistant professor at Budapest University of Technology and Economics, delved into user-centred software development in his doctoral dissertation. He specialises in Human-Computer Interaction (HCI) research and focuses on eye-tracking methodologies.
Lilla Paulics, a graduate of the Department of Ergonomics and Psychology, explores the theme of her MSc thesis in this article. Her passion for Human-Computer Interaction (HCI) research during her master's studies propelled her towards a career as a senior UX designer.
Anita Kéri, assistant professor at the University of Szeged, researches internationalisation, higher education, and student satisfaction. Her side projects explore co-creation, gamification, and volunteering among international students and measuring service quality and loyalty.
Acknowledgements
The authors express their sincere gratitude to the international students from the examined university who participated in the research. We would also like to express our appreciation to Éva Anna Magyari and Karina Prémus for their contributions in editing the figures.
References
Aboubakr, R. M., & Bayoumy, H. M. (2022). Evaluating educational service quality among dentistry and nursing students with the SERVQUAL model: A cross-sectional study. Journal of Taibah University Medical Sciences, 17(4), 648–657. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jtumed.2022.01.009.
Abu-Rumman, A., & Qawasmeh, R. (2022). Assessing international students' satisfaction of a Jordanian university using the service quality model. Journal of Applied Research in Higher Education, 14(4), 1742–1760. https://doi.org/10.1108/JARHE-05-2021-0166.
Aktaş, A., Aksu, A. A., & Çizel, B. (2007). Destination choice: An important-satisfaction analysis. Quality and Quantity, 41(2), 265–273. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11135-006-9003-0.
Appuhamilage, K. S. M., & Torii, H. (2019). The impact of loyalty on the student satisfaction in higher education: A structural equation modeling analysis. Higher Education Evaluation and Development, 13(2), 82–96. https://doi.org/10.1108/HEED-01-2019-0003.
Cardozo, R. (1965). An experimental study of customer effort, expectation, and satisfaction. Journal of Marketing Research, 2(3), 244–249. https://doi.org/10.1177/002224376500200303.
Cronin Jr, J. J., & Taylor, S. A. (1992). Measuring service quality: A reexamination and extension. Journal of Marketing, 56(3), 55–68. https://doi.org/10.1177/00222429920560030.
Darawong, C., & Sandmaung, M. (2019). Service quality enhancing student satisfaction in international programs of higher education institutions: A local student perspective. Journal of Marketing for Higher Education, 29(2), 268–283. https://doi.org/10.1080/08841241.2019.1647483.
Dericks, G., Thompson, E., Roberts, M., & Phua, F. (2019). Determinants of PhD student satisfaction: The roles of supervisor, department, and peer qualities. Assessment & Evaluation in Higher. Education, 44(7), 1053–1068. https://doi.org/10.1080/02602938.2019.1570484.
Doña-Toledo, L., Luque-Martínez, T., & Del Barrio-García, S. (2017). Antecedents and consequences of university perceived value, according to graduates: The moderating role of Higher Education involvement. International Review on Public and Nonprofit Marketing, 14, 535–565. https://doi.org/10.1007/s12208-017-0186-y.
Evans, J. R., & Mathur, A. (2018). The value of online surveys: A look back and a look ahead. Internet Research, 28(4), 854–887.
Faizan, A., Yuan, Z., Kashif, H., Pradeep, K., Nair, N., & Ari, R. (2016). Does higher education service quality effect student satisfaction, image and loyalty? A study of international students in Malaysian public universities. Quality Assurance in Education, 24(1), 70–94. https://doi.org/10.1007/s12208-017-0186-y.
Fisher, N. I., & Kordupleski, R. E. (2019). Good and bad market research: A critical review of net promoter score. Applied Stochastic Models in Business and Industry, 35(1), 138–151. https://doi.org/10.1002/asmb.2417.
Gong, Y., Gao, X., Li, M., & Lai, C. (2021). Cultural adaptation challenges and strategies during study abroad: New Zealand students in China. Language, Culture and Curriculum, 34(4), 417–437. https://doi.org/10.1080/07908318.2020.1856129.
Grüttner, M. (2019). Belonging as a resource of resilience: Psychological wellbeing of international and refugee students in study preparation at German higher education institutions. Student Success, 10(3), 36–44. https://doi.org/10.5204/ssj.v10i3.1275.
Hofstede, G. (2011). Dimensionalizing cultures: The Hofstede model in context. Online Readings in Psychology and Culture, 2(1), 1–26. https://doi.org/10.9707/2307-0919.1014.
Islam, A. N. (2014). Sources of satisfaction and dissatisfaction with a learning management system in post-adoption stage: A critical incident technique approach. Computers in Human Behavior, 30(26), 249–261. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.chb.2013.09.010.
Jääskeläinen, R. (2010). Think-aloud protocol. Handbook of Translation Studies, 1, 371–374.
Kara, A., Mintu-Wimsatt, A., & Spillan, J. E. (2021). An application of the net promoter score in higher education. Journal of Marketing for Higher Education, 1–24. https://doi.org/10.1080/08841241.2021.2018088.
Kovács, L., & Kasza, G. (2018). Learning to integrate domestic and international students: The Hungarian experience. International Research and Review: Journal of Phi Beta Delta Honor Society for International Scholars, 8(1), 26–43.
Lannert, J., & Derényi, A. (2021). Internationalization in Hungarian higher education. Recent developments and factors of reaching better global visibility. Hungarian Educational Research Journal, 10(4), 346–369. https://doi.org/10.1556/063.2020.00034.
Lapina, I., Roga, R., & Müürsepp, P. (2016). Quality of higher education: International students’ satisfaction and learning experience. International Journal of Quality and Service Sciences, 8(3), 263–278. https://doi.org/10.1108/IJQSS-04-2016-0029.
Li, Y., & Wang, C. (2023). Foundation programmes and international student satisfaction: Cases from the United Kingdom, Australia, and China. Compare: A Journal of Comparative and International Education, 1–18. https://doi.org/10.1080/03057925.2023.2207212.
Lin, L., Huang, Z., Othman, B., & Luo, Y. (2020). Let’s make it better: An updated model interpreting international student satisfaction in China based on PLS-SEM approach. Plos One, 15(7), 1–13. https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0233546.
Moser, A., & Korstjens, I. (2018). Series: Practical guidance to qualitative research. Part 3: Sampling, data collection and analysis. European Journal of General Practice, 24(1), 9–18. https://doi.org/10.1080/13814788.2017.1375091.
Negricea, C. I., Edu, T., & Avram, E. M. (2014). Establishing influence of specific academic quality on student satisfaction. Procedia-Social and Behavioral Sciences, 116(2), 4430–4435. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.sbspro.2014.01.961.
Oliver, R. L. (1980). A cognitive model of the antedescents and consequences of satisfaction decisions. Journal of Marketing Research, 17(4), 460–469. https://doi.org/10.1177/002224378001700405.
Parasuraman, A., Berry, L. L., & Zeithaml, V. A. (1991). Perceived service quality as a customer‐based performance measure: An empirical examination of organizational barriers using an extended service quality model. Human Resource Management, 30(3), 335–364. https://doi.org/10.1002/hrm.3930300304.
Randheer, K. (2015). Service quality performance scale in higher education: Culture as a new dimension. International Business Research, 8(3), 29–41. http://dx.doi.org/10.5539/ibr.v8n3p29.
Reichheld, F. F. (2003). The one number you need to grow. Harvard Business Review, 81(12), 46–55. https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/14712543/.
Rogers, Y. (2022). HCI theory: classical, modern, and contemporary. Springer Nature.
Rosenbaum, M. S., Otalora, M. L., & Ramírez, G. C. (2017). How to create a realistic customer journey map. Business Horizons, 60(1), 143–150. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.bushor.2016.09.010.
Schlesinger, W., Cervera-Taulet, A., & Wymer, W. (2023). The influence of university brand image, satisfaction, and university identification on alumni WOM intentions. Journal of Marketing for Higher Education, 33(1), 1–19. https://doi.org/10.1080/08841241.2021.1874588.
Singh, S., & Jasial, S. S. (2020). Moderating effect ofperceived trust on service quality – student satisfaction relationship: Evidence from Indianhigher management education institutions. Journal of Marketing for Higher Education, 31(2), 280–304. https://doi.org/10.1080/08841241.2020.1825029.
Stamenkovska, T., Llerena, C. L. A., & Gordon Győri, J. (2022). Exploring the motivation of international students to learn Hungarian: A qualitative study. Hungarian Educational Research Journal, 12(2), 213–228. https://doi.org/10.1556/063.2022.00109.
Sultan, P., & Wong, H. Y. (2013). Antecedents and consequences of service quality in a higher education context: A qualitative research approach. Quality Assurance in Education, 21(1), 70–95. https://doi.org/10.1108/09684881311293070.
Szabó, B., & Hercegfi, K. (2023). User‐centered approaches in software development processes: Qualitative research into the practice of Hungarian companies. Journal of Software: Evolution and Process, 35(2), e2501. https://doi.org/10.1002/smr.2501.
Takai, S., & Kosuke, I. (2010). A use of subjective clustering to support affinity diagram results in customer needs analysis. Concurrent Engineering, 18(2), 101–109. https://doi.org/10.1177/1063293X10372792.
Teeroovengadum, V., Kamalanabhan, T. J., & Seebaluck, A. K. (2016). Measuring service quality in higher education. Quality Assurance in Education, 24(2), 244–258. https://doi.org/10.1080/08832323.1996.10116826.
Tong, L. (2021). Higher education internationalization and diplomacy: Successes mixed with challenges. A case study of Hungary's Stipendium Hungaricum scholarship program. Hungarian Educational Research Journal, 10(4), 382–400. https://doi.org/10.1556/063.2020.00036.
Tsiligiris, V., Kéri, A., & Cheah, J. (2022). Exploring the relationship between student individual culture dimensions and service quality expectations in higher education. Quality Assurance in Education, 30(1), 51–72. https://doi.org/10.1108/QAE-11-2020-0137.
Winke, P. (2017). Using focus groups to investigate study abroad theories and practice. System, 71(12), 73–83. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.system.2017.09.018.
Wong, W. H., & Chapman, E. (2023). Student satisfaction and interaction in higher education. Higher Education, 85(5), 957–978. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10734-022-00874-0.
Yılmaz, K., & Temizkan, V. (2022). The effects of educational service quality and socio-cultural adaptation difficulties on international students’ higher education satisfaction. Sage Open, 12(1). https://doi.org/10.1177/21582440221078316.
