International Students’ Satisfaction Level towards Service Quality in Academic Aspect and Loyalty to Universiti Teknologi Malaysia

In recent years, the number of international students has increased greatly in Universiti Teknologi Malaysia (UTM). Despite the international dimension of higher education gaining more importance nowadays, there have been limited studies exploring the satisfaction of the international students. Therefore, the purpose of this study was to identify the international students’ satisfaction level towards the service quality in UTM. In addition, this study aimed to investigate the relationship between the students’ satisfaction level and their loyalty. A quantitative research methodology was adopted whereby a questionnaire consisting of three parts was utilized: Part A described the demographic data of the samples; Part B (44 items) investigated the international students’ satisfaction level which was adopted from the Parasuraman’s SERVQUAL model and; Part C (10 items) identified the students’ loyalty. A total of 334 international studentsstudying in UTM, Johor Bahru Campus participated in the questionnaire and the results were analyzed using descriptive statistics, Pearson correlation, and multiple regression analysis. The findings showed that international students were not satisfied with the service quality provided in UTM. The expectation score was greater than the perception score in five dimensions of SERVQUAL model, namely tangibles, reliability, responsiveness, assurance, and empathy. Furthermore, multiple regression analysis results showed that responsiveness, assurance, and empathy were the three dimensions which had significant relationship with the students’ loyalty. In conclusion, the findings of this study suggested that the administrators of UTM should improve the service quality in UTM to increase the students’ satisfaction