Exploring Student Entitlement at an Ontario College

The purpose of this study was to explore the concept of student entitlement specifically within the context of an Ontario College, focusing on conceptualizing student entitlement from the faculty perspective, and then determining the extent to which students report entitled attitudes. The study followed a mixed-methods methodology. Faculty were invited to participate in a concept mapping exercise and the resulting concept map proposed a four-factor model for student entitlement; including, “Tuition Equals Outcomes”; “Knowledge is a right that doesn’t require effort”; “I am a customer, serve me”; and, “Problems are due to others, not me”. A Student Entitlement questionnaire was assembled using highly rated items from each factor. From the results of the questionnaire, confirmatory factor analysis and exploratory principal components analysis were conducted, and the analyses suggested that the model for student entitlement at the Ontario college would be best be described by a three-factor model, with the “Knowledge is a right” factor identified by faculty being removed and the items under that factor fitting well within the three remaining factors. Based on the three-factor model, raw and standardized student entitlement scores were assembled. The distribution of entitlement was normal, with approximately 15% of respondents in the High or Very High categories. When controlling for age, over 18% of respondents in the Traditional age category (18-24) were in the High or Very High categories. The impact of entitlement includes harm to the student’s learning, which could ultimately impact society as a whole, particularly in fields where students are working with vulnerable populations, such as in health care or social services. Student entitlement also impacts faculty in terms of lower job satisfaction and a pressure to succumb to students’ demands, particularly when faculty feel a lack of support from the administration. This study made suggestions for practice; including, changing the way we market to students; focusing on a transition/orientation program that would specifically address the transition from customer to student; using students’ customer orientation strategically by improving services for students; and, a review of student feedback questionnaires and the process surrounding their administration.Ph.D