The Antecedents Affecting University Reputation and Student Satisfaction: A Study in Higher Education Context

This study aimed to identify the variables that influence the reputation of universities and student satisfaction, which in turn affects the loyalty of students of higher education. The study uses a convenience sampling technique to collect data from 387 students of higher education institutions of Pakistan. Data analysis was done using SmartPLS software. Findings indicate that social contributions, research and development, and university service quality significantly affect university reputation and student satisfaction. However, environment, student guidance, and university trust significantly affect university reputation, while leadership and university heritage significantly affect student satisfaction. Moreover, university reputation does not directly influence the level of satisfaction of students. Furthermore, university reputation mediates the relation among social contributions, environment, research and development, student guidance, university heritage, university trustworthiness, and satisfaction of students. Also, findings show that student satisfaction demonstrates a significant influence on loyalty. The administrators of the university should pay more attention to developing policies regarding communication and management. Moreover, for managers responsible for developing the university brand image, they must remain transparent in developing a university’s sincere image. The study findings provide a basis for university decision-making to students. It implies that universities must strive to build their reputation to satisfy students’ perceptions and develop a competitive advantage to survive in the competitive educational market.