Canadian Graduate Student Satisfaction with Academic Experience and Student Life

A new report released today by the Higher Education Quality Council of Ontario (HEQCO) shows that graduate students remain satisfied with their education, although satisfaction has dropped slightly since 2007. Using data from the 2007 and 2010 Canadian Graduate and Professional Student Survey (CGPSS), the report explores what influences graduate students’ satisfaction with their universities, programs of study, academic experiences and faculty supervisors; what influences students’ perceptions of the quality of teaching and learning; and how graduate student satisfaction levels differed between 2007 and 2010. The report uses data from 15 Ontario universities in 2007 and 17 in 2010. While the satisfaction levels of doctoral students have decreased slightly, the study showed greater satisfaction with the quality of professional skills development they received in 2010 compared to 2007. This may suggest the success of some institutions’ initiatives – such as the Graduate Professional Skills (GPS) Program at the University of Toronto. Policy recommnendations suugest that the government continue to work with universities and their graduate deans to promote and support initiatives and best practices that improve graduate student preparation for the labour market.