The extent of satisfaction of current students as beneficiaries of Corporate Communication Department at Umm Al-Qura University through Twitter

Abstract

Social media platforms are considered crucial in the modern era and are also highly popular among the younger generations globally. Social media platforms, especially Twitter/X, are gaining popularity among students and universities regarding their use for student engagement with teachers, colleagues, and subject specialists to improve their academic performance and success. This research aims to investigate the student satisfaction level with the public relations (PR) department at Umm Al-Qura University in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia concerning its use of the Twitter platform and how Twitter can be used to improve its interactions with students to increase their satisfaction level. A quantitative research methodology (i.e. a survey questionnaire) was used for the data collection method. Ethical considerations were made before the survey distribution, and 313 students in total participated in the survey. The results show that the majority of the students believed that the Twitter platform is effective in their interactions and engagement with university resources, and they also had positive ideas about and experiences with their Twitter use (62.32%). However, 22.68% expressed negative perceptions. The participants also revealed that the majority of them used the Twitter platform to gain information about university news and events. Although the degree of satisfaction was high among students, still they needed more helpful and interactive content. Several recommendations are made for the university to improve its PR department’s more effective use of the Twitter/X platform, including the use of appropriate hashtags, promoting interactive and collaborative learning processes, and providing training and awareness and face-to-face sessions with key stakeholders. Finally, the research limitations and future research avenues are also discussed.