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Although there is an increasing body of literature looking at the postgraduate student experience, there is a lack of research and knowledge in understanding the impact of postgraduate (taught) PGT students' learning experiences prior to their postgraduate study, and their expectations of studying at PGT level. The research undertaken in the Faculty of Science, Engineering and Computing at a post-1992 institution, which focuses on STEM disciplines (science, technology, engineering and mathematics), aims to correct this deficiency by providing valuable data and insights into this nationally and internationally largely neglected area. This paper seeks to report the notable findings of first and second-generation respondents.

Data were collected via a hard copy questionnaire that had been developed through previous research and with staff and PGT course representative input. It was distributed and completed by new taught postgraduate students during the orientation period in September 2012. It was entered into the Statistical Package for the Social Sciences (SPSS) and a range of tests were run on the data.

This original research highlights the similarities and differences between first and second-generation respondents' prior learning experiences and their expectations of studying at postgraduate taught level.

The findings from the research presented was conducted over a one-year period and the findings are based on the limitations that such a time and financially limited project can offer. The university concerned is a post-1992 institution and has a high concentration towards teaching functions. What is observed at this UK HEI could be replicable in other teaching oriented organisations thus merits further research.

The findings from this original piece of research offer potentially important contributions to the current PGT debate looking at developing and expanding PGT provision and ensuring its sustainability.

The purpose of this paper is to report the notable findings of students with different domiciled status. There is a lack of research and understanding of how prior study experiences and the expectations of new students that are due to embark on an MSc by coursework level (also known as postgraduate-taught [PGT]) can impact on their study and ability to persist and succeed. The research available has mainly been confined to post-experience surveys. By identifying prior study experiences and study expectations, education providers in higher education institutions can use these insights not only to attract more students but to improve retention rates and the overall student experience. The research undertaken in the Faculty of Science, Engineering and Computing at a London-based, post-1992 institution aims to provide valuable data and insights into this nationally and internationally neglected area.

New taught postgraduate students provided data on their previous study experiences, study expectations, opinions of postgraduate-level study and demographic data via a hard copy questionnaire which was distributed and completed during the orientation period in September 2012. It was entered into the Statistical Package for the Social Sciences (SPSS), and a range of tests were run on the data.

The findings in this paper and the project in general will be further explored and investigated as a result of the Higher Education Funding Council for England (HEFCE) awarding a major grant to the post-1992 university to undertake research into these areas amongst nine similar English universities.

As the research was conducted over a one-year period, the findings are based on the limitations that such a time and financially limited project can offer. The institution at which the research was undertaken is a post-1992 institution that has high concentration towards teaching functions. The findings in this paper and the project in general will be further explored and investigated as a result of the HEFCE awarding a major grant to the post-1992 university to undertake research into these areas among nine similar English universities.

The research highlights the similarities and differences in prior study experiences and expectations of studying at PGT level between the UK-, the European Union- (EU) and Non-EU-domiciled respondents. The research offers potentially important findings for similar institutions that are currently looking to develop and expand their PGT provision.

Few studies have evaluated the satisfaction of mature‐aged postgraduate students. The purpose of this paper is to determine postgraduate coursework students' service expectations in regard to academic course quality, university services and industry links.

A case study of 51 taught postgraduate students enrolled in the School of Public Health nested postgraduate courses was conducted. Students completed an online self‐complete survey (response rate of 58 per cent). Descriptive statistics and univariate analysis (chi‐square) were used to explore associations between variables.

Postgraduate taught students come from a variety of career backgrounds. They place a great deal of importance on their educational experience, especially in regard to academic factors: reputable degree; skilled engaging teachers; access to online resources; ready contact with academics; and supportive enrolment processes.

A greater awareness of student expectations equips universities to provide a more meaningful pedagogical experience and to better address the unique needs of postgraduate students. This is likely to enhance lifelong learning and support retention and progression rates.

This research provides a case study of a specific group of postgraduate students and helps understand some of the unique requirements of this postgraduate group, which is largely older, female, domestic students.

The aim of this paper is to assess the motives, expectations and preparedness of postgraduate marketing students, and discuss possible implications for postgraduate marketing education in the UK.

The research uses primary data collected from postgraduate marketing students at four British universities. Factor analysis is used to evaluate the convergent validity of the survey questionnaire and Cronbach's alpha coefficient to examine the internal consistency and reliability of the variables composing the major scales.

The results indicate that postgraduate marketing education today faces a culturally diverse student body coupled with a notable lack of relevant work experience. Students are found to have relatively low perception of their preparedness for postgraduate study and high expectations for support and practical experience in marketing.

The sample used is relatively small although the high response rate achieved would help add validity to the study. Further research should examine the ways in which students draw on their prior‐learning experience to make sense of their learning process.

This study should be of interest to postgraduate marketing programme and module leaders. It suggests that a realignment of curriculum design and various support activities on the part of postgraduate marketing education providers are needed to respond to the changing body of students.

The study offers a timely measure of the motives, preparedness, and expectations of postgraduate marketing students. The findings should be of immediate and practical value to postgraduate marketing educators in the UK.

The purpose of this paper is to identify the relative importance of factors that influence the overall satisfaction of postgraduate built environment students and also examine the extent to which demographic backgrounds affect this.

The data used in this paper have been collected through Postgraduate Taught Experience Survey in the UK. Descriptive and statistical analysis methods were used to analyse student satisfaction variables and identify the extent to which demographic factors influenced overall student satisfaction.

Factors related to teaching and learning have the most statistically significant importance for postgraduate built environment student satisfaction in the UK. Other factors imposing statistically significant influence on student satisfaction are related to assessment and feedback, organisation and management, skills development and information related to the course as all factors of these categories have a significance value of 0. On the other hand, students showed a lower level of satisfaction to factors related to Dissertations or major projects although it is not statistically significant. Gender is the only demographic factor, which has a statistically significant influence on student satisfaction for built environment students.

The sample includes data only from a single university. Therefore, it may impose restrictions of generalisability of this research.

This research identifies the factors that affect the satisfaction of postgraduate built environment students. The built environment course directors can use the findings of this research to make recommendations on the redesign and redevelopment of their courses in order to enhance the quality of the programmes in order to make them more attractive and appealing to students.

This is pioneering research that provides a comprehensive overview of the factors affecting postgraduate built environment student satisfaction in the UK.

Measuring service quality in higher education is increasingly important for attracting and retaining tuition‐based revenues. Nonetheless, whilst undergraduates have received substantial academic exposure, postgraduate‐based research has been scant. Consequently, the objectives of this paper are threefold: first, to identify the service factors used by postgraduates in their quality evaluations. Second, to analyse the appropriateness of importance‐performance analysis (IPA) in the measurement of service quality and, final, to provide a working example of IPA's application in a UK‐based university.

Convergent interviews were used to elicit attributes of service that were deemed important by taught postgraduate students. These findings were then tested using an online survey. Exploratory factor analysis was used to group the service attributes into latent “service factors”. Each service factor was then tested for service quality using Martilla and James's IPA technique.

About 20 service attributes were educed from the qualitative stage. From these, four service factors emerged; being, academic, leisure, industry links and cost. Using IPA in a UK university, the findings suggest that the “academic” and “industry links” aspects of service quality are the most critical to postgraduates. The paper's conclusions suggest that IPA is an appropriate tool for measuring service quality in postgraduate education.

Through the application of the IPA framework presented in this research, practitioners can successfully identify areas of service priority and thus allocate appropriate resources to encourage continuous service improvement.

This research provides a valuable insight into the service quality needs of the UK postgraduate segment and also a potential conceptual framework for policy makers to use when evaluating their service delivery.

International postgraduate education in business‐related subjects has grown substantially in the UK. Both MBA and specialist Masters’ programmes increasingly offer entrepreneurship as a core or option. The purpose of this paper is to explore the effectiveness of entrepreneurship education in meeting the expectations and motivations of international postgraduate students.

The authors explored four questions through a survey of international students participating in entrepreneurship courses in two Business Schools: What is the typical profile of the international students’ prior education and work experience? What do students expect from studying an entrepreneurship PG course in the UK? What are their experiences of, and learning outcomes from, the entrepreneurship course? What benefits regarding their skills and knowledge do they perceive result from participation?

The results confirm that career development is a major motivator for international study in the UK. Entrepreneurship can help to address cultural tensions between postgraduate students’ expectations and their experiences of UK business education.

Suggestions are offered for educators on the effective design and delivery of entrepreneurship for international students in the rapidly changing and competitive postgraduate market.

Cultural integration, learning effectiveness and linguistic capability need to be addressed in designing learning programmes for international students.

The paper contributes new evidence to the debate on meeting the career expectations and motivations of international postgraduate students participating in entrepreneurship education, especially in the light of new curricular guidance and UK government regulation.

Student welfare and wellbeing is crucial to successful postgraduate study, regardless of the global location in which the study is taking place, making it an international issue. This study sought to add to the conversations occurring globally on this topic, focusing particularly on exploring academic faculty participation in higher education postgraduate taught (PGT) student mentoring initiatives.

By applying two theories, social exchange theory (SET) and equity theory (ET), faculty participation in postgraduate mentoring was explored and examined. A qualitative methodology, comprising 19 semi-structured interviews with faculty participating as mentors, was conducted. Data was analysed using template analysis, with SET and ET used to create thematic templates.

The application of SET and ET enabled faculty participation to be understood in terms of the perceived equity, costs and rewards of mentoring. Costs can be significant, sometimes outweighing the benefits, thus endangering the viability and sustainability of the PGT mentoring initiative. Analysis suggested two distinct types of “mentor mindsets” exist, which influence the perception of investments, equity, costs and rewards.

As higher education institutions face increasing pressure to support student welfare, it is imperative that personalised support is put under scrutiny so management practices can be established that support and encourage academic faculty participation in these support initiatives. This paper recommends how institutions can allay the costs of mentoring by considering mentor recruitment, selection, training and other supportive measures.

This study aimed to address three key gaps in existing knowledge about postgraduate researchers’ (PGRs) well-being. It investigated 1) the frequency and nature of depression, anxiety and well-being amongst PGRs, and relatedly, characteristics that convey vulnerability, 2) factors that impact PGR well-being, and 3) factors that influence help-seeking.

The mixed-methods design comprised quantitative and qualitative approaches. Using opportunity sampling, 585 PGRs registered at a large UK University completed an online survey. The perspectives of a purposive sample of academic and Professional Services staff (n = 61) involved in supporting PGRs were sought through in-depth focus groups and semi-structured interviews, which were audio-recorded, transcribed verbatim and analysed using inductive thematic analysis.

PGRs scored lower on measures of well-being and higher on measures of anxiety and depression than aged-matched groups in the general population. PGR well-being was positively affected by personal and professional relationships, and negatively affected by academic challenges and mental health problems. Academic supervisors were the primary source of support for students experiencing well-being difficulties. Thematic analysis revealed four domains that impact upon PGR well-being: postgraduate researcher identity; pressures and expectations of postgraduate research; complexity of the supervisor role; and pinch points in postgraduate research. Each domain had associations with help-seeking behaviours.

This study provides evidence that the PGR experience is perceived to be distinct from that of other students, and this helps understand sources of stress and barriers to help-seeking. It provides a steer as to how higher education institutions could better support the PGR learning experience.

Researchers have opined that the quality of commitment to pedagogical approaches by lecturers is one of the most important factors in determining student academic success. The purpose of this paper is to analyse the mediating effect of research informed teaching on the relationship between lecturer commitment to use of pedagogical approaches and teaching quality, with a view towards enabling delivery of high quality teaching and learning in HEIs.

The research is based on an online survey of the perception of 186 undergraduate and postgraduate students in four major UK universities. Covariance-based structural equation modelling (SEM) methodology was used to quantity and clarify the influence of lecturers' pedagogical attributes on teaching quality, mediated by research-informed teaching.

Findings reveal that: lecturers' pedagogical attributes have significant positive effect on teaching quality, research-informed teaching have significant positive effect on teaching quality, lecturers' pedagogical attributes have weak positive effect on research-informed teaching, and research-informed teaching partially mediates (indirect effect) the relationship between lecturers' pedagogical attributes and teaching quality.

Structural equation models are useful for clarifying concepts in pedagogy and have implications for education managers on how to improve teaching and learning in HEIs.

The paper presents a unique quantitative model for measuring the degree of teaching quality in universities.