This study sought to advance understanding of student perceptions around their engagement in the move towards blended and online mode learning in higher education. Therefore, the research aimed to explore the extent to which different demographic groups of students have engaged in blended and online methods within a cross-section of courses within a higher education context. More specifically, the study endeavored to investigate specific student preferences around the move from traditional face-to-face to more blended and online learning environments. Furthermore, the research aimed to gather student perceptions of internet use in their learning to consider how to more effectively use blended and online modes to aid in student transition and engagement whilst driving satisfaction. The project adopted a mixed method design of both quantitative and qualitative research to explore the extent to which students feel engaged and satisfied when adopting blended and online learning techniques within a variety of courses in the business school of a large Australian university. Initially, study 1 focused on a quantitative approach collecting data from a mix of 767 undergraduate students segmented across different groups. The main established scale items proposed were adapted from Krause and Coates (2008) around key areas of student transition, academic, peer, student-staff, intellectual, online and beyond class engagement. The results from the surveys aimed to suggest that student levels of engagement and satisfaction differ across the use of traditional face to face versus blended and online modes. Findings from this research looked to identify that despite the high daily use of internet among students this is not necessarily their first preference for learning as they value traditional modes. Additionally, study 2 used semi-structured interviews conducted with 50 full-time and part-time students from across various years within their degrees in a randomly selected sample that self-nominated from study 1. The research highlighted that students are influenced by the ability to interact with their lecturers and tutors as well as their peers to gain the necessary support they feel impact on their success. The outcomes of the study acknowledged that students value the ability to ask questions, be involved in group work as well as the wider university community, whilst also being able to access learning online. Despite these preferences that propose that students still value face to face mode, the interview results also suggested that students value the convenience, accessibility, and flexibility of blended and online modes. However, it was evident that institutions need to offer a variety of mode preferences to suit the mix of students needs in the current higher education market.

Ultimately, the study looked to consider student preferences towards the move to more blended and online learning in higher education. Whilst having explored the interplay among students, academics and the university to determine student learning transformation in different modes. Consequently, the purpose of the project was to gain a better understanding of the key strategy’s universities can adopt to manage their students more effectively and drive engagement in a blended mode, mixing face-to-face and online learning environments. This research has both theoretical and practical implications by informing institutions of student preferences around adopting blended and online modes in order create better practice, which remain under-researched in the marketing and business education literature. Subsequently, the discussion in this study endeavoured to investigate student learning preferences around the move to blended and online learning in higher education and the impact their overall engagement and satisfaction.