Online search for information about universities: a Hong Kong study
International Journal of Educational Management
ISSN: 0951-354X
Article publication date: 9 April 2018
Abstract
Purpose
A fuller understanding of the information search behaviour of prospective students in the digital era is one of the keys to success in university recruitment. The purpose of this paper is to investigate students’ university choice factors in relation to the online environment.
Design/methodology/approach
In total, 637 samples from 11 private higher education institutions were collected and tested against assumptions before performing statistical analysis including exploratory factor analysis and mean comparison.
Findings
The findings revealed that there are some significant differences in gender and academic discipline in the use of the internet to search for university information. In addition, four constructs of university information were identified that are perceived as important by students in their search behaviour: “university reputation”, “eligibility and affordability”, “teaching and learning” and “university tangibility”. The outcomes of this research provide some noteworthy insights which have numerous strategic digital marketing implications.
Originality/value
While most existing studies have explored types of social media apps or online channels that prospective students use, little research has touched on students’ university choice factors in relation to the online environment. Responding to Constantinides and Zinck Stagno (2011) and Hemsley-Brown et al.’s (2016) call, this paper aims to address this research gap by investigating students’ university information search in relation to the online environment.
Keywords
Acknowledgements
This paper was partially supported by the College of Professional and Continuing Education, The Hong Kong Polytechnic University.
Citation
Wong, P., Lee, D. and M.L. Ng, P. (2018), "Online search for information about universities: a Hong Kong study", International Journal of Educational Management, Vol. 32 No. 3, pp. 511-524. https://doi.org/10.1108/IJEM-12-2016-0268
Publisher
:Emerald Publishing Limited
Copyright © 2018, Emerald Publishing Limited