Authors : Dayaneethie Veerasamy, Jeevarathnam Parthasarathy Govender and Magalingam Atheeshey Pillay
Abstract: University sport is affiliated to University Sports South Africa (USSA) which is recognised as the official national co-ordinating sports structure for the regulation and organisation of all university sports activities in South Africa. The university sports department houses a variety of sport and provides for all levels of competition. The university provides a range of pathways for people to fulfil their sporting potential, varying from lunchtime social recreation or right to international competition. Although, the university remains a strong competitor in major sport codes there is a general decline in student physical activity as evidenced by low participation rate by students in competitive sport the number of sport codes being reduced and low usage of facilities for recreational purposes. The aim of this study was to investigate students’ expectations and perceptions of the sport offering at the university. A total of 400 students completed the survey using a questionnaire developed from the SERVQUAL instrument. All the service quality dimensions in the students’ surveys of sport at the university contain negative mean gap scores. From these findings, specific gaps in the service quality dimensions can be identified and closed. Assurance and empathy were identified as good predictors of service quality.
Dayaneethie Veerasamy, Jeevarathnam Parthasarathy Govender and Magalingam Atheeshey Pillay, 2013. Student Assessment of Service Quality in Sport in Tertiary Education: A Developing Country Perspective. Pakistan Journal of Social Sciences, 10: 166-170.