The core objectives of the survey were to:

• Test perceptions and satisfaction levels of students towards catering services provided by FEDICS at nine UCT residences.
• Identify ‘real’ concerns versus what are perceived to be concerns (drawn from past research and student feedback).
• Develop an understanding of student expectations.
• Identify gaps between student expectations of the services provided by FEDICS and the service level agreement underpinning FEDICS’s contract.
• Offer recommendations designed to improve FEDICS’s service delivery at UCT residences.

Mthente conducted the survey using the following methodology:

• Reviewing past research conducted by FEDICS and developing an appropriate questionnaire for the current survey.
• Identifying a statistically representative sample based on the larger student population of 4,100 students at UCT’s nine residence halls.
• Selecting and preparing Mthente staff for the fieldwork to be conducted at UCT dining halls.
• Deploying Mthente’s fieldwork team at identified sites at UCT and administering approximately 350 survey questionnaires to students who meet the criteria for participation in the survey.
• Conducting in-field and office-based quality control (QC) of conducted surveys and capturing collective information on the Epidata® interface.
• Conducting qualitative workshops and interviews to test key themes that have emerged from the quantitative data analysis.
• Using all the data collected to create a project report highlighting key themes and findings for FEDICS, along with a presentation of key research findings and recommendations for FEDICS.

Mthente’s final report will aim to allow students to voice their opinions about FEDICS catering in order to allow FEDICS to continuously improve their provided services at UCT dining halls.