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As a senior administrator in higher education for decades, I spent a great deal of time creating programs and policies that would enhance the student experience. This seemed natural, and it was done in pursuit of boosting student satisfaction and retention. As an instructor, however, reconciling “student satisfaction” within my classroom was not as straightforward. My goal as an instructor was to provide information and build knowledge for students, despite the fact that sometimes the outcome was disappointing for both of us. Since students pay for classes, but not grades, there was never an expectation that students would be universally satisfied.  Enhancing the student experience and customer service on campus is often delegated to administrators and staff who develop policies, procedures, and programs for students that will act as guardrails at the edge of the enrollment cliff. However, many discussions over the years surrounding this important topic have often purposely steered away from the classroom— as though classrooms are shrouded under an invisibility cloak and are not up for discussion when it comes to customer service.  On one occasion, I was meeting with a mixture of administrators and faculty, and I shared my belief that we needed to examine our […]

For the last several years, there has been debate about whether students in higher education should be considered to be “customers.”  I have heard various arguments over the years against this viewpoint, including ideas against that point of view, like, “students aren’t customers, they don’t pay for grades.” As well as, in favor, “students are customers because they are paying for a service.” Recently, I read a thread on Reddit suggesting that some feel that college students aren’t customers, but actually the product of higher education. Still more posit that the products delivered in higher education are the experiences offered and degrees conferred. Either way, what is crystal-clear is that there isn’t consensus in this debate. But does it matter? The fact remains that debating this topic won’t solve the challenges of increasing student satisfaction, retention, and helping to mitigate the enrollment cliff—in fact, the debate likely exacerbates these issues. Today’s generation of students want to be attended to and cared for, and enhancing customer service is pivotal in this regard (Inside Higher Ed, 2023). This doesn’t mean that they want to be coddled—just valued and heard—regardless of whether or not we consider them to be customers. Perhaps this is most […]