Are business and management students getting value for money?
Students largely say no. In the National Student Survey (NSS), comments on costs and value for money are 88.3% negative with a sentiment index of −46.7, and business and management students mirror this pattern, recording −49.0 across 458 comments. Within the business and management (non-specific) subject classification used across the sector, Feedback accounts for 10.6% of comments and Marking criteria trends strongly negative at −46.5, shaping how price, quality and outcomes are judged.
Do high tuition fees align with what students receive?
The escalating costs of tuition, which range from £9,250 to an eye-watering £19,000 per annum, present a significant hurdle for many students embarking on their studies in business and management. Students ask whether the instruction and resources they receive justify the high fees, especially as more content shifts online. Institutions need to use student evidence to explain where fees flow and how spend translates into better modules, assessment, learning resources and career outcomes. Transparency over what is included, what is optional, and when costs arise reduces friction and supports perceptions of value.
Why do students criticise course content and delivery?
Where expectations are not met, students point to gaps between advertised standards and actual delivery, and to teaching that feels disconnected from industry practice. In this discipline, the student voice consistently returns to assessment clarity: Feedback draws sustained attention and sentiment around marking criteria is strongly negative. Programmes improve confidence when they publish exemplars, tighten assessment briefs, calibrate markers against the rubric and turn feedback into timely, actionable guidance.
What shapes value-for-money perceptions?
Value judgements typically combine price, teaching quality, assessment clarity, and the predictability of additional costs. Students want a simple “total cost of study” view per programme, a “no surprises” policy on extras, and faster, standardised reimbursement operations. Open communication about how budget decisions protect contact time, learning resources and employability support helps align expectations. These steps shift focus from fee levels to the outcomes and experiences students can see and use.
How did COVID-19 alter the university experience?
The rapid move to online teaching exposed uneven practice. Business education relies on peer interaction, applied tasks and live discussion; where those are reduced, students report lower perceived value. Providers that re‑designed sessions for interaction, kept assessment criteria stable and explained changes clearly saw fewer concerns. The lesson endures: prioritise design for engagement, not just modality, and evidence how redesigned delivery sustains learning outcomes.
What specific issues affect international students?
International students face higher fees and strict payment timetables alongside substantial living costs, intensifying value-for-money scrutiny. Institutions strengthen trust when they provide early, detailed cost guidance, flexible payment options where feasible, and tailored academic, careers and visa support that students can access quickly and reliably.
Do parking and other charges undermine perceived value?
Additional charges such as parking and specialist materials can accumulate and erode confidence. Concerns surface when services feel unreliable or distant from learning needs. Programmes should review these costs, align charges with actual benefit, and extend equipment loans, print/material allowances and software access to reduce out‑of‑pocket spend for commuting and commuter‑belt cohorts.
What changes would address these concerns?
- Make all costs visible and predictable at programme and module level; keep one source of truth in the VLE and module handbooks.
- Prioritise assessment clarity: publish annotated exemplars, checklists and brief “how to improve” notes aligned to criteria; monitor turnaround and close the loop.
- Protect operational strengths: stable timetabling, consistent communications, and clearly signposted student support underpin perceived value.
- Use short pulse checks after high‑cost activities and act quickly on what students report; feed back on changes made.
How Student Voice Analytics helps you
Student Voice Analytics pinpoints where value-for-money concerns bite hardest by subject, mode and cohort, and shows how they move over time. It surfaces the topics that drive perceptions in business and management—assessment clarity, delivery, resources and collaboration—and provides anonymised, export‑ready summaries for programme teams and finance/operations. You get like‑for‑like comparisons across the sector, clear priorities for action, and a shared evidence base to track improvements in value, experience and outcomes.
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See all-comment coverage, sector benchmarks, and governance packs designed for OfS quality and standards and NSS requirements.
More posts on costs and value for money:
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- Do UK medical students feel they get value for money?
- Do psychology students feel their UK degree offers value for money?
More posts on business and management (non-specific) student views:
- Does embedding personal development in business and management studies improve student outcomes?
- What student support most improves business and management education?
- What did COVID-19 mean for business and management students?
- What learning resources do business management students say they need most?