EC Link: A Digital Platform for Enhancing Student Concern Management in Higher Education

Abstract

Higher education institutions require efficient mechanisms for collecting and responding to stakeholder concerns to improve service quality and institutional accountability. However, many universities lack real-time and systematic feedback systems that enable timely reporting and resolution of service-related issues. This study aimed to develop and evaluate EC Link, a digital platform designed to enhance student concern management and improve the responsiveness of university support services through real-time feedback and monitoring. A Participatory Action Research (PAR) approach was employed following the Plan–Act–Observe–Reflect–Replan cycle. EC Link was developed using Google Forms, Google Sheets, and QR code technology to facilitate real-time reporting of concerns by students, teaching personnel, and non-teaching staff. A stratified random sample of 337 participants evaluated the system’s usability. Data were collected through a researcher-developed survey instrument with high internal consistency (Cronbach’s α = 0.905) and analyzed using descriptive statistics, including frequency, mean, and standard deviation. Findings indicated that EC Link was positively evaluated across all stakeholder groups. Participants rated the system as Fairly Satisfactory to Very Satisfactory in terms of accessibility, ease of navigation, interface clarity, and functionality. Teaching and non-teaching personnel reported particularly high satisfaction levels, while students demonstrated favorable but more varied responses. Areas requiring improvement included system responsiveness and acknowledgment of submitted concerns. User feedback informed several enhancements, including improved accessibility, system reliability, and automated confirmation notifications. EC Link demonstrates the potential of low-cost digital technologies to strengthen transparency, stakeholder engagement, and service responsiveness in higher education. The platform provides an effective mechanism for real-time concern management and supports continuous improvement initiatives. Future work should focus on scalability, advanced analytics, and integration with institutional information systems to further enhance service delivery.