Critical factors of service quality in a graduate school of Malaysia

Abstract Purpose – This paper aims to evaluate the service quality of a higher educational institute in Malaysia based on the seven dimensions, namely administrative service, tangibles, academic programmes, academic staff, delivery of teaching, assurance, and empathy of academic staff. Design/methodology/approach – This study surveyed 221 students of IIUM Graduate School of Management (GSM) based on the self-administrative research questionnaire. The research data were analyzed by using exploratory factor analysis, reliability analysis, independent samples t-test, and multiple regression analysis. Findings – Results indicate IIUM GSM students have positive and significant perception on administrative service, tangibles, delivery teaching and assurance, but they do not have significant perception on academic programmes, academic staff and empathy of academic staff. Research limitations/implications – This research only conducted in a graduate school of Malaysia and this result might not represent all Malaysian graduate schools. Originality/value – This study’s major contribution is that it focuses on the critical factors of service quality in a graduate school of Malaysia and measures the service quality according to the Malaysian contexts. Keywords: Service quality, Education management, Student satisfactio