The notion of the student experience has risen in prominence in response to changing student cohorts, reforms to the higher education system and broader societal and technological trends. Indeed, contemporary notions of the student experience extend well beyond the traditional focus on curriculum, assessment and pedagogy to include the extracurricular activities of students and how universities respond to help students manage their external commitments. Yet, while the term is frequently used, definitions remain elusive. Therefore, the purpose of this article is to deconstruct the student experience by considering the various factors that influence the experience of students in the higher education system. Based on a review of the wideranging literature in the field, this article presents a conceptual framework of dimensions that impact on the student experience. The identified dimensions include: institutional factors, student factors, sectoral factors and external factors, each encapsulating a variety of dimensions. The objective of the article is to provide educators in tourism, hospitality and related fields with a contemporary understanding of the key debates and themes related to the student experience in the higher education field.
Arguably, the notion of the student experience, and indeed what influences the concept, is as diverse as the contemporary university student. The concept is complex and evolving, guided by rapid changes and diversity in student cohorts and higher educational managerialism, among numerous other factors. The changes to the higher education system and the new manifestation of the ‘student experience’ in a competitive higher education system are encapsulated in a blog by Bell (2007) who
reflects on how the student experience has changed over the past several decades. He writes that:
… some 30+ years ago … I recall my first effort at addressing the Student Experience. During that specific campus meeting, the topic was food service … everyone in attendance agreed the food being
served on campus was awful, and it was my job to get it fixed … and keep the students happy so they’d stay on campus and not transfer to another college. That was my introduction to addressing the Student Experience.
Bell goes on to say that: … fast forward three decades and look at what’s happening now: Architects design campuses with “collision points” that physically bring people together. Libraries are designed with food courts and cafes inside. Residential facilities are built to look and feel like independent
apartments. Athletic facilities have work-out centers that put commercial facilities to shame. Stadiums are created to hold 100,000 fans — and they’re always sold out. Campuses are creating ‘one-stop shopping malls’ for students to pay fees, obtain transcripts, ask questions and receive counseling. I have been amazed at what I have seen on campuses as I travel around the country. Every single campus in the higher education sector, from community colleges to professional graduate
schools, is focused on providing the best Student Experience possible — from the time potential students visit the school’s Web site to their retirement, students are the focus of their institution’s attention. Societal, political, economic and technological changes have certainly influenced the student experience and provided new challenges for university administrators and educators. Further, the student experience is becoming an increasingly important determinant in students’ institution
choice. Yet, this article has demonstrated that although the term is frequently utilised the definitions and
concepts are somewhat nebulous and esoteric. Therefore, the objective of this article was to deconstruct the many facets of the student experience and provide educators in the tourism, hospitality and related fields with a contemporary understanding of the key debates and themes surrounding the student experience in the higher education sector. This analysis led to the development of a conceptual framework that identified four key dimensions of the student experience: student factors, institutional factors, sectoral factors and external factors — each of which
encapsulate a myriad of individual dimensions (Figure 1). In order to provide quality educational experiences and respond to changing student cohorts and institutional structures, it is critical for tourism and hospitality educators to stay abreast of the latest academic discourse on the
student experience. Importantly, this requires a recognition that the contemporary student experience is about more than just teaching and learning. As such, educators must be able to respond appropriately to the diversity in the student cohort while coming to terms with changes to the broader
higher education system. Undoubtedly, the literature surrounding the student experience will not remain static and, as such, tourism and hospitality educators, as with educators in other fields of study, must keep well-informed of these developments and respond accordingly.
