Students at Chester, Hull and Glasgow also came out well for satisfied students.
Nationally, courses with some of the most satisfied students have the fewest contact hours (philosophy, theology and religious studies).
The University of Buckingham, which at under 1,000 students is one tenth the size of the average UK university, has the most satisfied students.
There were also worries about the impact of Moocs and about confusing satisfied students with students who had actually learned something.
The data, generated from answers to a survey, seem inconclusive when it comes to demonstrating a link between fancy premises and satisfied students.A number of caveats.
"The less satisfied students were the ones who said, 'My tack was to get all the requirements out of the way,"' Professor Light said.
The obsession with league tables gives students false expectations: League tables pointing to very satisfied students across the sector allow students to think that when they show up, they'll be 83% satisfied on every course.
He said universities would have to publish 17 pieces of information, including data on how satisfied students are with their courses, the number of graduates out of work for each course and the hours students spend in seminars and lectures.
"Research shows that the more satisfied students are about their contact with professors," the College Guide's explanation of the category begins, "the more they will learn and the more likely it is they will graduate".
The most satisfied students in the Harvard interviews sought detailed feedback and asked specific questions of professors and advisers -- not "Why didn't I get a better grade?" but "Point out the paragraphs in this essay where my argument faltered".
