Psychometric Analysis of a Scale to Assess Education Degree Students’ Satisfaction with Their Studies

Abstract

This study arises from the need for brief, valid, reliable and specific instruments to assess education degree students’ satisfaction (EDSS) with their studies. With this purpose, an EDSS Scale, consisting of 19 Likert-type items, was administered to a sample of 97 students from the Faculty of Education and Sport Science in Melilla (University of Granada, Spain). The validation of the scale was conducted through an Exploratory Factor Analysis, which identified four factors: (1) Theoretical training and teaching competences, (2) Academic support, (3) Practical training, and (4) Resources and facilities. These factors represent 63% of the total variance explained and present a Cronbach’s alpha value higher than 0.77, showing the good internal consistency of the instrument. Additionally, a confirmatory factor analysis (CFA) of the model was performed using AMOS V24, which confirmed the instrument’s structure. The CFA results indicate an acceptable model fit (CMIN/DF = 1.70, RMSA = 0.068, CFI = 0.878), and internal consistency was high (α y ω ≈ 1.00), further supporting the instrument’s validity and reliability. According to the results, the EDSS Scale appears to be a concise instrument with strong psychometric properties for empirically assessing students’ satisfaction with their studies in the field of education. This highlights its potential usefulness not only for Spanish higher education institutions but also for other European institutions.