| Higher education administrators face challenges in providing a welcoming environment for doctoral students in higher education institutions. Administrators need to identify factors influencing satisfaction of this group of students to provide a supportive environment, reduce attrition rates, and promote persistence. The purpose of this quantitative correlational study is to identify predictors of doctoral student satisfaction using demographics and attitudes about aspects of the campus environment. The population was doctoral students from two private nonprofit universities in the New York metropolitan area of the United States. The respondents were 132 doctoral students from these institutions. Results of regression analysis on attitudes indicated 3 statistically significant predictor variables: university services, advisor, and students. The null hypothesis was not rejected for faculty, programs, and diversity. Results of regression analysis on demographics indicated 3 statistically significant predictor variables: years in graduate school, race, and ethnicity. The null hypothesis was not rejected for academic discipline, age group, and gender. Higher education administrators and institutional planners may use the findings to inform their decisions on developing a welcoming campus environment for doctoral students. |
