What Matters Most? 20 years of the student experience

Half of students miss one-third of their lectures. 20 years of data show undergraduates are struggling to access the high-quality teaching, in-person interactions and satisfying student experience they expect

The Higher Education Policy Institute and TechnologyOne have jointly published a major new report on the student experience in UK universities over the past 20 years.

What Matters Most? 20 Years of The Student Experience (HEPI Report 200) takes the long view, as it is based on two decades of data collected via the large Student Academic Experience Survey. This Survey first started just before tuition fees rose to £3,000 – seven Prime Ministers ago – and it has been run in recent years jointly by HEPI and Advance HE.

Key findings from the new report cover contact hours, value for money, expectations versus reality and the true cost of COVID on students’ learning:

• in 2006, 63% of undergraduates attended all their scheduled classes but this had dropped to just under one-half (48%) by 2025 – compared to the past, more students have to undertake paid employment during term time while more accessible tech enables some online catch up;
• the average amount of scheduled teaching time missed by all students has more than doubled, from around one hour a week in 2006 to 2.4 hours a week (out of a total average of 15.2 hours a week) in 2025 – this means those students who miss any scheduled contact hours miss, on average, 5.0 hours a week;
• in percentage terms, total missed teaching sessions have doubled from 8% of total timetabled hours in 2006 to 16% in 2025 – meaning missed sessions equal one-third of the weekly timetabled sessions of the one-half of students who miss any contact hours;
• over half (52%) of students who are satisfied with the number of timetabled sessions say their course is ‘good’ or ‘very good’ value for money – compared to just one-in-five (21%) students who are not satisfied with their timetabled hours;
• students who feel they belong on campus, students who feel comfortable expressing their views and students who have a positive sense of wellbeing are all significantly more likely to say their course provides ‘good’ or ‘very good’ value for money;
• conversely, students who do not feel as if they belong at their higher education institution are much more likely to say their experience had not matched their prior expectations – this factor alone explains 17% of the likelihood of having a subpar experience; and
• for those students most directly affected, the impact of the pandemic lingered on for long afterwards, with the COVID cohort of students less likely to report ‘good’ or ‘very good’ value for money throughout their higher education. 

Detailed regression analysis reveals the personal characteristics of students, such as their sex, ethnicity and disability, have much less impact on student experience scores than other factors, such as teaching quality, course content and financial factors (fees and living costs).

The Foreword to the report, written by Cheryl Watson, Vice-President of Education at TechnologyOne, notes: ‘the university experience is shaped less by who students are and more by whether they feel supported, understood and empowered across their academic journey.’

The report, which has been written by Dr Gosia Turner, Head of Surveys at Jisc, and Rose Stephenson, Director of Policy and Strategy at HEPI, concludes: ‘While the context of higher education will continue to evolve, the foundations of a strong student experience remain remarkably consistent. High-quality teaching, in-person interactions and a strong sense of belonging are not only enduring principles – they are the anchors that will enable the sector to navigate the challenges ahead.’

Nick Hillman OBE, Director of HEPI, said:

The Student Academic Experience Survey is the most important of all UK undergraduate surveys. This new report extends the regular annual snapshot into a panoramic vista for the first time.

Sadly, there are some worrying trends, like the gradual hacking away at the traditional university experience – students have to do more paid employment during term time, are less able to attend in-person lectures and have worse mental health than in the past.

Yet the main conclusion is actually a positive one centred on a desire for the deep social attachments and rich learning experiences that a traditional student experience offers – at least, when it is properly resourced.

Rose Stephenson, Director of Policy and Strategy at the Higher Education Policy Institute and co-author of the report, said:

As the higher education sector navigates disruption and uncertainty, the lesson from the past 20 years is clear, protect what matters most: high-quality teaching, meaningful in-person connection and a strong sense of community. The challenge for the years ahead is not to reinvent the student experience, but to strengthen these core elements in a more complex and demanding environment.

Dr Gosia Turner, Head of Surveys at Jisc and the lead author of the report, said:

This report highlights the unique value of surveys in capturing what administrative data alone cannot. While the pandemic negatively impacted students’ experience, the recovery has been remarkably swift. What endures, however, are declines in attendance, reflecting a combination of increased flexibility in learning, financial considerations and higher levels of student employment. Just as striking is that a sense of belonging and an inclusive campus are now almost as important as teaching quality in shaping students’ experience.

Cheryl Watson, Vice-President of Education of TechnologyOne, said:

The findings in this anniversary report from 20 years of the Student Academic Experience Survey underline how profoundly the student experience has changed. Today’s student body is more diverse in how they live, study and engage – from those commuting or living at home, to those balancing significant paid work or caring responsibilities alongside their studies. External pressures, from the cost-of-living crisis to the legacy of the pandemic, have further reshaped both expectations and day-to-day realities.

The era of designing higher education primarily around a “traditional” student is behind us. What matters is how effectively institutions respond to a much wider range of needs and expectations, while still delivering high-quality teaching and a strong sense of belonging.

Technology and data have a critical role in meeting this challenge. When used well, they enable institutions to identify where support is needed, improve access to learning, and create more flexible, personalised experiences. Getting that balance right is critical to ensuring students feel supported, engaged and able to succeed.

Bahram Bekhradnia, HEPI’s President, who founded the Student Academic Experience Survey back in 2006, said:

It is remarkable and gratifying that this survey, begun 20 years ago, is still going strong. Instituted at a time when the student fee increased from £1,000 to £3,000, and intended to provide information about what students were getting for their money, it continues to provide an immensely rich source of information about the experience of students while at university. We never imagined 20 years ago that it would still be running strong and producing such valuable insights.

Jonathan Neves, Head of Research and Surveys at Advance HE, said:

The annual HEPI-Advance HE Student Academic Experience Survey provides a wealth of rich data to inform and maximise the potential of our sector, focusing principally on in-year insights and year-on-year changes. This report provides the opportunity to look at things from a different angle, and gain an independent perspective across 20 years of combined data. Looking at the data this way highlights, for example, how the proportion of classes attended is declining over the long term and how student belonging – something we have begun measuring relatively recently – can influence the overall quality of the experience. Above all, the analysis in this report provides compelling evidence of how high-quality teaching lies at the heart of the student experience, and how the scores around this have held up remarkably well over the long term.

On the day of publication, Thursday, 14 May 2026, the results will be discussed in a free lunchtime webinar featuring Dr Gosia Turner (Jisc), Professor Dame Nicola Dandridge (University of Bristol), Professor David Green (University of Worcester), Cheryl Watson (TechnologyOne), Libby Sinclair (Nottingham Trent Students’ Union) and Bahram Bekhradnia (HEPI) – further details, including how to register, are available here.

Reports:

Read the full report (PDF)

Notes for Editors

• The Student Academic Experience Survey is a large (10,000+ students each year) and representative annual survey of undergraduates studying in the UK, run jointly by Advance HE and HEPI, with the fieldwork undertaken in recent years by Savanta (previously YouthSight). The new report, which includes a full methodological section, considers the changing student experience over the 20 years between 2006 and 2025. The 2026 results of the HEPI / Advance HE Student Academic Experience Survey will be released at the HEPI Annual Conference, sponsored by TechnologyOne and Kortext, in central London on Thursday, 11 June 2026 – the remaining places are available to book here.
• TechnologyOne is a global Software as a Service (SaaS) provider delivering enterprise solutions that simplify and transform operations. With offices across six countries, our deeply integrated SaaS platform supports over 1,300 organisations worldwide. Our solution provides deep functionality for the markets we serve, including local government and higher education in the UK. We leverage our unique domain experience and our unwavering commitment to the industries we serve by taking complete responsibility to deliver outcomes with our best-in-class SaaS Enterprise Resources Planning (ERP) solution. With SaaS Plus, TechnologyOne takes full responsibility for the complete outcome of the solution experience, not just the software. 
• HEPI was founded in 2002 to influence the higher education debate with evidence. We are UK-wide, independent and non-partisan. We are funded by organisations and higher education institutions that wish to support vibrant policy discussions, as well as through our own events. HEPI is a company limited by guarantee and a registered charity.