Comparing the effect of support on student satisfaction in online and face-to-face universities

Abstract

The faculty-student relationship is very important in distance education. The effects of faculty support to the student have received less attention in the literature. The purpose of this study was to develop a better understanding of how online distance education faculties can provide better support to increase student satisfaction in an online university. Five participants that attended both face-to-face and online post-secondary education at the undergraduate level were interviewed regarding their level of satisfaction with the support their faculties afforded them. The four themes uncovered surrounding the factors that influenced student levels of satisfaction were faculty service and support, student attitude, auxiliary support, and course design and setup. All four themes exhibited positive correlations with the presence of these categories and the level of student satisfaction. The strongest of these correlations was the positive effect that the timeliness and involvement of the faculty has on the increase in student satisfaction.