‘Erm, that question... I think I probably would’ve just put something in the middle and sort of moved on to the next one, because I think it’s really unclear’:how art and design students understand and interpret the National Student Survey

Blair, Bernadette and Orr, Susan and Yorke, Mantz (2012) ‘Erm, that question... I think I probably would’ve just put something in the middle and sort of moved on to the next one, because I think it’s really unclear’:how art and design students understand and interpret the National Student Survey. The Higher Education Academy, York.

Abstract

Since the introduction of the National Student Survey in 2005, it has been noted that the average satisfaction scores vary across different disciplines (see, for example, Vaughan and Yorke 2009, p.8). And for just as long, it has been noted that art and design graduates’ satisfaction is among the lowest scoring disciplines. As the influence and reach of the NSS has increased - most recently in its inclusion as a key component of the government’s Key Information Set initiative - the art and design community has become increasingly concerned to explain the satisfaction gap experienced by many students studying in this area.