Abstract

Knowing the institutional perception of the agents building up a community is important to improve educational services provided, and allows for the establishment of monitoring, control, and innovation mechanisms within universities to achieve continuous improvement. The objective of this research was to determine the institutional perception of students of Pedagogy in Physical Education from Chile. A total of 908 students (317 women [34.9%]; and 591 men [65.1%]) with average age of 20.1±2.4 years old, enrolled in first-year (359), second year (316), and third year (233) at different higher education institutions in Chile filled the Perception of Physical Education Degree Scale. Results: Significant differences were found comparing private and public universities (private institutions showing more favorable perceptions) in university management (p=.000) and students' protests (p=.000); on the other hand, it can also be emphasized that students perceive that they need to know study techniques, especially students from municipal schools (p=.049) in relation to private institutions. As a conclusion, the most relevant institutional perception of students of pedagogy in physical education regards academic management. Future research with other variables and longitudinal character is necessary.