The Impact of Quality Services on Customer Satisfaction in Higher Education Sector: A Case of Private Universities in Kenya

A Research Project Submitted to the Chandaria School of Business in Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements for the award of a Master of Science in Management and Organizational Development (MOD)Most developing countries are facing challenges in keeping to the required standards of education. In Kenya especially, the Commission for University Education (CUE), had once and several times closed campuses and stopped accreditation of some universities. This study focused on determining the factors that influenced students’ perception on service quality. In specific the study sought to establish how assurance dimension affected students’ perception to service quality, how responsiveness dimension impacted students’ perception on service quality, how reliability dimension affected perception of students on service quality, how tangibility dimension played a role in determining students’ perception on universities’ service quality, and how empathy dimension affected the students’ perception on service quality. The study adopted a descriptive design and employed a stratified approach in grouping private universities based in Nairobi region in order to obtain responses randomly from different strata identified covering a sample size of 300 respondents. Data was obtained through the use of structured questionnaires and was analysed using Statistical Package for Social Sciences (SPSS) based on descriptive techniques, and results were presented on tables and figures to enhance easy interpretation. The study found out that assurance is one of the major dimensions that determine the perceptions of students with regard to service delivery. About 67% of the respondents had indicated that their institutions were always involved in giving surety of delivering quality services, however most of the institutions did not live up to their commitments in practice. About 43% of the students thought that university lecturers and faculty members had above minimum qualifications that are required to teach in higher institutions of learning. Based on responsiveness, the research established that students were of the opinion that universities were not responsive to the students’ expectations, since about 60% of the respondents were for the opinion that universities were rarely committed to provide prompt services to students. It was indicated that management and faculty members’ willingness to have students’ needs was not to the expecations, a fact that should be further investigated to establish why services were not willingly provided to satisfaction since private universities were generally believed to be sensitive to student needs in order to attract and retain more clients as they were actually operated with profit objectives. On empathy, the study established that the most important factor on empathy is the ability to understand such student needs separately and provide unique assistance to each group meant to provide attention to each person. Such a move enhances satisfaction and self-esteem among the helped students provided higher levels of confidence are maintained in order to minimize chances of embarrasments to students. Reliability was however closely linked to assurance dimension as well as empathy dimension in which students’ confidence was sought to be won by universities especially in terms of service quality delivery. Factors considered in this case were the attractiveness and promising nature of university vision statements; the level of dependability by the students on their universities; the capacity of universities to offer quality education; ability of the universities to help students realign academic and professional goals; ability of university management and faculty to win student loyalty; as well students’ opinion on the overal performance of respective universities management. The study concluded that responsiveness dimension is as impoirtant as assurance dimension on service quality in private universities. It was established that responsiveness creates a sense of appreciation and postive regard on university efforts to deliver quality services by the students. Management of private universitiies are always expected to responsibly manage student affairs in a manner that promotes confidence and hence winning trust of students. Based on the research findings and conclusions, reccomendations to enhance service quality and improvement of nature of education services are given. Reccomendation is given to university management to ensure that students needs are given priority by addresing their needs and being treated as cusmores to universities. Further, an indepth study to establish the fasctors that makes faculty members not to perform to students’ expectations despite them being highly qualified was given under the study’s reccomendations

Behavior, preference for, and use of alfalfa, tall fescue, white clover, and buffalograss by pregnant gilts in an outdoor production system 1

by pregnant gilts in an outdoor production system Behavior, preference for, and use of alfalfa, tall fescue, white clover, and buffalograss 2005, 83:2225-2234 ABSTRACT: Sustainable outdoor pig production requires vegetation that can maintain ground cover, assimilate manure nutrients, and prevent soil erosion. Two experiments were conducted to evaluate the suitability of four forages: alfalfa (Medicago sativa), tall fescue (Festuca arundinacea), white clover (Trifolium repens), and buffalograss (Buchloe dactyloides) for grazing or ground cover in pastures for pigs. Each forage plot covered 7.5 m 2 , with nine replicates in a randomized block design. In Exp. 1, eight pregnant gilts had free access to all forages during a 2-d adjustment period. Immediately thereafter, pairs of gilts were assigned randomly to one of each of four blocks of the four forages during a 2-d measurement period. The percentage of ground cover for each forage was visually estimated at 0, 24, and 48 h of study. Behavioral data, including walking, eating, grazing, rooting, drinking, standing, lying, and time spent in hut were video-monitored continuously for 48 h. Initial percentage of ground cover was 100% for all species. By 48 h, percentage of ground cover decreased (P < 0.001) for white clover (11.3 ± 0.88%) and alfalfa (36.3 ± 0.88%), but not for tall fescue (98.0 ± 0.88%) or buffalograss (98.0 ± 0.88%). Gilts spen

Balance de nitrógeno, emisión de amonio y olores de cerdos alimentados con dietas bajas en proteína

The  effect  of  reducing the  crude  protein (CP)  levels  in diets  fed  to  growing  pigs, was  evaluated  in two  experiments,each  using  two  diets  formulated  to  contain  either  a  normal  (19%)  or  a  reduced  CP  level  (14%),  with  constantlevels  for  standardized  ileal  digestible  lysine  (0.85%),  and  metabolizable  energy  (3.37  Mcal  ME/kg).  Exp  Imeasured  the  N  balance  of  pigs  (n=  24)  initially  weighing  17.7±1.29  kg,  while  Exp  II  used  24  pigs  from  17.9±0.76kg  to  assess  aerial  ammonia  (NH3)  emissions  and  odor  levels  in  dynamic  airflow  chambers  for  21  d.  InExperiment  I,  N  intake  (26.6  %),  urinary  N  (56  %),  and  total  N  excretion  (41  %)  were  lower  (P0.4).  In  Experiment  II,  reducing  dietary  CP  did  not  affect(P>0.10)  growth  performance,  but  tended  to  reduce  (P0.4). En el estudio II, reducir la PC no afectó (P>0.10) el comportamiento roductivo, pero tendió a reducir (P<0.10) el pH de los purines (6.71, normal a 6.21±0.186 PC reducida) y las emisiones de NH3 luego del día 9 (interacción dieta y día de estudio, P<0.001). El olor en muestras tomadas a 14 y 21 días, no difirió (512 y 540±115.6 diluciones al umbral de olor, para PC reducida y normal), pero sí aumentó (P<0.01) con el tiempo de alimentación (440 y 612±111.3 diluciones a 14 y 21 días). Los resultados sugieren que por cada unidad porcentual de reducción en la PC se reduce la excreción de N (8 %) y las emisiones de NH3 en purines (15 %), sin cambiar la intensidad del olor

Activity of Tagetes minuta Linnaeus (Asteraceae) essential oil against L3 Anisakis larvae type 1

Abstract Objective To evaluate in vitro effects of Tagetes minuta L. essential oil (TEO) on L3 Anisakis larvae type 1. Methods In order to evaluate the potential use of Tagetes minuta essential oil against L3 Anisakis larvae three different media were tested: 1) a saline solution (SS); 2) an industrial marinating solution (MS); 3) sunflower seeds oil (SO). For each media and concentrations of TEO (0.1%, 0.5%, 1.0% and 5.0% v/v), 20 parasites were introduced into plastic Petri dishes (diameter 90 mm) and maintained at room temperature. As controls, larvae were maintained without TEO under identical experimental conditions in SS, MS and SO. A total of 900 larvae were tested. The normalized mean viability, LT100, LT50 and the percentage of inactivation at 24 h were calculated. Results In vitro tests revealed a complete inactivation of parasites in saline solution after 2 h with 5% and 1% of TEO. In marinating solution, a complete inactivation of parasites was observed after 4 h at all concentrations used. A slower activity for all TEO concentration was reported in SO. Conclusions The results obtained, showing a strong activity against Anisakis larvae, confirm TEO as a larvicidal agent in the treatment of human anisakidosis and in the industrial marinating process