Factors Influence the Satisfaction of International Students at Private Universities in Malaysia

Satisfaction of students in an educational institution has become a strategic issue for university to survive and thrive. Few studies investigate the factors that influence the international student satisfaction. The purpose of this study is to investigate the international student satisfaction. Building on the literature, the study incorporated service quality, price or fees, student-lecturer relationship, and university characteristic as independent variable affect the satisfaction of international student. Data was collected from seven private universities in Malaysia. A total of 202 respondent participated in this study. Using regression analysis, the findings of this study indicated that the most important factor is the university characteristic followed by student-lecturer relationship, prices, and service quality respectively. A practical recommendation was given to decision makers to enhance the international student satisfaction. For future research, it was suggested that to conduct qualitative studies to identify the dimension of international student satisfaction.