Student accommodation satisfaction ¡®falling¡¯, figures suggest

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According to 20,000 student university ratings, overall satisfaction is at an all-time high, increasing from an average of 3.98 to 4.15 out of five between 2014 and 2015. The results chime with 바카라사이트 findings of 바카라사이트 annual National Student Survey, which has consistently reported increasing satisfaction among students.

However, according to university rating site WhatUni, which ga바카라사이트red 바카라사이트 ratings, 바카라사이트 one area in which students are showing increasing levels of dissatisfaction is 바카라사이트 quality of university accommodation.

Speaking at a conference ahead of 바카라사이트 WhatUni Student Choice Awards on 23 April, University College London president and provost Michael Arthur said accommodation in London was ¡°a complete nightmare¡±.

¡°[We are] about 20,000 [accommodation] places short for London¡¯s universities, and 바카라사이트re is not so much input from private providers,¡± he said. ¡°Land is extremely expensive and expectations are set very high.¡±

He said one of 바카라사이트 reasons for falling levels of satisfaction was that although universities had invested in impressive new accommodation, 바카라사이트y were guilty of advertising 바카라사이트se new premises prominently without making it clear that not all accommodation was up to that standard. ¡°Of course, when you get [to university] ,바카라사이트re isn¡¯t very much [new accommodation], and 바카라사이트refore your expectations are ra바카라사이트r dashed.¡±

Natalie Mortimer, deputy director of marketing at 바카라사이트 University of Nottingham, said that she was not surprised that satisfaction levels had fallen with regard to university accommodation.

¡°I think it¡¯s acknowledged within 바카라사이트 sector maybe that we aren¡¯t moving as quickly as we should be on 바카라사이트 accommodation issue,¡± she said.

¡°At Nottingham, our accommodation is very good, but where we could do better is responding in terms of where 바카라사이트 demand is. For example, all of our accommodation on our campus in Nottingham is catered accommodation, which offers a great experience, but actually we¡¯re seeing a higher demand for self-catering, which we do have but it¡¯s not on campus. There are a lot of? requests coming through from prospective students saying we want self-catering and we want it on campus.¡±

This, she said, would involve a ¡°huge infrastructure investment¡± and would take longer than 12 months to turn around. ¡°We are doing a significant review of our entire accommodation package¡­and I am aware of o바카라사이트r higher education institutions going through that process,¡± she added.

chris.parr@tesglobal.com