What Do Prospective Students Want? An Observational Study of Preferences About Subject of Study in Higher Education

Author(s):  
Alessandro Vinciarelli ◽  
Walter Riviera ◽  
Francesca Dalmasso ◽  
Stefan Raue ◽  
Chamila Abeyratna
Author(s):  
Yoshiaki Obara

Many Japanese private higher education institutions also face a risk of falling into the "losing group." It seems that small/rural colleges end up receiving less extra income from admissions over the tei-in (the quota for first-year students) level. This loss creates less scholarship money for capable students. The small/rural institutions are likely to lose prospective students as a negative cycle works against them. This tendency, in turn, augments the opportunities available to large, metropolitan higher education institutions. In Japan, a clear division is anticipated, with the larger institutions getting much larger and the smaller and rural ones getting much smaller. This is a hard fact that we will face in the foreseeable future.


2016 ◽  
Vol 4 ◽  
pp. 422-430 ◽  
Author(s):  
Nadezda Rika ◽  
Jana Roze ◽  
Irina Sennikova

Because of increasing competition among Latvian higher education institutions (HEIs), the administrators of these institutions are becoming increasingly interested in understanding how their potential students choose their institution. Comprehensive knowledge of consumer behavior allows institutions to become more effective at making good strategic marketing decisions and to better respond to customers’ needs. The purpose of this study is to understand what factors affect the decision of secondary school leavers in choosing a particular higher education provider and the variables that might predict a student’s choice. The research is based on data collected by the means of a survey distributed among final year students of Latvian secondary schools, with 644 responses analyzed using Spearman correlation and stepwise regression analysis. Analysis of four major groups of factors: cultural, social, psychological, and organizational, revealed that psychological and organizational factors are the best predictors of the choice of HEI. These explained 48% of the variance of the dependent variable (R2 = 0.48; F (1; 641) = 293.46; p < 0.001). The results provide details of the factors with great importance to young people of Latvia in choosing their higher education provider. The HEI can use these factors for designing various student attraction strategies, and thus increase their market share and competitiveness.


Author(s):  
Edward Lock ◽  
Kate Kelly

The widely held view that higher education constitutes a gateway to employment has underpinned the dramatic widening of access to university in recent decades. However, globalisation and technological development have complicated the task of enhancing the employability of students, as the future world of work has become ever-more dynamic and unpredictable. Given such conditions, the delivery of employability teaching has become a central focus of many higher education providers (HEPs). To meet their responsibilities, HEPs must understand how students perceive their respective courses in relation to the employment pathways that they seek to follow. The present study aimed to gain an understanding of prospective students’ perceptions regarding this, but also to evaluate the accuracy of these perceptions. Because some course types are more narrowly vocational than are others, a subsidiary aim was to investigate whether or not student expectations and knowledge varied depending on course-type. The findings gathered from 462 students enrolled into a wide range of courses at 15 Australian universities were profound. They highlight that, while most students commence university with a career goal in mind, many have a poor understanding of the education-employment pathways on which they have embarked. Students demonstrated a limited understanding of the careers to which their courses might lead, and of the relevance of postgraduate study to their chosen career goals. These findings varied significantly across different course-types. Overall, these findings highlight the need for HEPs to educate their students explicitly about the education-employment pathways that are available to them.


Author(s):  
Edward Lock ◽  
Kate Kelly

The widely held view that higher education constitutes a gateway to employment has underpinned the dramatic widening of access to university in recent decades. However, globalisation and technological development have complicated the task of enhancing the employability of students, as the future world of work has become ever-more dynamic and unpredictable. Given such conditions, the delivery of employability teaching has become a central focus of many higher education providers (HEPs). To meet their responsibilities, HEPs must understand how students perceive their respective courses in relation to the employment pathways that they seek to follow. The present study aimed to gain an understanding of prospective students’ perceptions regarding this, but also to evaluate the accuracy of these perceptions. Because some course types are more narrowly vocational than are others, a subsidiary aim was to investigate whether or not student expectations and knowledge varied depending on course-type. The findings gathered from 462 students enrolled into a wide range of courses at 15 Australian universities were profound. They highlight that, while most students commence university with a career goal in mind, many have a poor understanding of the education-employment pathways on which they have embarked. Students demonstrated a limited understanding of the careers to which their courses might lead, and of the relevance of postgraduate study to their chosen career goals. These findings varied significantly across different course-types. Overall, these findings highlight the need for HEPs to educate their students explicitly about the education-employment pathways that are available to them.


2018 ◽  
Vol 51 (1) ◽  
pp. 49-61 ◽  
Author(s):  
Silvana Tarlea ◽  
Annette Freyberg-Inan

We discuss the political economic development of Romania since 1989, with a focus on the evolution of higher education (HE). First, we place this evolution in the context of demand for HE by prospective students and employers, focusing on the low demand for skills in the MNC-dominated Romanian economy. Second, we provide empirical insight on indicators of quality, enrolment, and funding as key features of the HE system. We argue that Romania has evolved into a dependent market economy entrenched in a low-skills equilibrium, and that the weakness of the HE system is a key element in this process.


Author(s):  
Wayne Perry Webster ◽  
Zach P. Messitte

This chapter will examine emerging new norms across higher education in the United States following the recession of 2008-09. Colleges and universities face an environment increasingly made up of prospective students and their families shopping and bargaining for the best college deal; institutions are struggling to control student costs by raising discount rates; administrators are seeking to find new sources of revenue and programmatic niches; and faculty are increasingly focused on how to make their curriculum more unique and relevant. Finally, higher education leaders should closely examine long-held recruitment and financial aid strategies, cost structures, academic calendars and mission to meet the new situation. This chapter will summarize the development of the new landscape in public and private higher education, including the growing similarities facing public and private institutions including their common efforts to keep higher education affordable and accessible, and conclude with recommendations for administrators as they navigate their way through the new norm.


Author(s):  
Jose Manuel Saiz-Alvarez ◽  
Oscar Alberto Hoyos-Villa

The zero moment of truth (ZMOT) is a concept related to marketing that is changing gradually the traditional strategy used to select a product or service offered in the market. This concept has gained popularity among consumers due to the internet, but ZMOT has been barely analyzed during the selection process of prospective students choosing an international HEI (higher education institution). The objective of this chapter is to reflect how the combination of ZMOT, FMOT (first moment of truth), and SMOT (second moment of truth) is a successful strategy for global universities based on digital marketing to attract prospective students. An educational procedure that can be followed by technology-driven international HEIs, and by universities aiming to attract prospective students. In this sense, the authors propose a brand-new concept entitled PSA (potential for student attraction) that they apply to two campuses (Guadalajara and Mexico City) of the Tecnológico de Monterrey, Mexico.


Author(s):  
Terrence S. McTier ◽  
Chelsea T. Smith ◽  
Gabrielle Smith ◽  
Ariel Hodges ◽  
Samba Bah

There are major assumptions that housing opportunities in higher education are equally accessible and available to all students. However, these accessible housing opportunities are not available to current and prospective students who possess a criminal record. Many college students with criminal records are deemed ineligible for adequate housing opportunities even before their applications are submitted. This study uses a qualitative layered analysis approach to explore how denials from on-campus housing affect college students with criminal records. Using the perspectives of this marginalized and invisible student population, we draw the reader’s attention to how students with criminal records are affected as a result of being denied on-campus housing, and we provide tangible recommendations for future research, housing practices, and housing policies in higher education.


2018 ◽  
Vol 89 ◽  
pp. 435-441 ◽  
Author(s):  
Paulo Lopes Henriques ◽  
Pedro Verga Matos ◽  
Helena Mateus Jerónimo ◽  
Pilar Mosquera ◽  
Filipa Pires da Silva ◽  
...  

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