Students’ Satisfaction at Ethiopian Public Universities a Case Study at Dire Dawa University

Student satisfaction has been tested and proven as one of the factors that glue students to their University. This study examines the level of student satisfaction in Dire Dawa University using a cross-sectional survey research design. The primary data was collected through structured questionnaire from 1364 randomly selected students of five colleges and one Institute of Technology. The study comprised of three major student satisfaction dimensions, namely teaching-learning (variety of programs, alternative departments, library service, bookstore service, computer facilities, laboratory & demonstration facility, internet and classroom), staff-student relation (welcoming staff, time management skill, subject matter knowledge, tutoring support, responsiveness to student’s need, evaluation system, academic advising and disciplinary system) and augmented facilities (guidance and counseling, peer counseling & support, placement services, registration assistance, recreation facility, student union service, dining & lounge, dormitory, student health service, intervention in risky behaviors, female student support, support to disabled & handicapped, safety & security, media services). Data was analyzed using descriptive statistical and bivariate correlation analysis method. The study revealed that highest satisfaction was due to library service (998, 74.1%), student evaluation system (943, 70.6%) and student placement (879, 68.3%) in teaching-learning, staff-student interaction and augmented facilities respectively. The highest dissatisfaction was due to laboratory and demonstration facility (542, 41.1%), computer laboratory (548, 41.6%) and internet facilities (550, 41%) in teaching-learning. In terms of staff-student interaction and augmented facilities the highest dissatisfaction was reported in tutorial support (491, 36.7%) and lounge services (650, 50%) respectively. The findings indicated a significantly strong positive relationship between teaching-learning and staff-student interaction (r (770) = 0.653, p = 0.01), teaching-learning and augmented facilities (r (678) = 0.663, p = 0.01), staff-student interaction and augmented facilities (r (697) = 0.637, p = 0.01). Keywords: Student satisfaction, Higher Education, Ethiopia, Dire Dawa University