Investigating Student Churn Among Business Schools in Higher Education

Year 2023, , 301 - 313, 13.10.2023

Aybüke Yalçın , M. Mithat Üner , Osman M. Karatepe , Mohammed Aboramadan

https://doi.org/10.53478/yuksekogretim.1307202

Abstract

The purpose of our paper is to examine what the reasons for student churn are and why students begin their educational careers in a school of business and then leave and register at another university. Following a qualitative methodology, semi-structured interviews were conducted with 31 students (11 females, 20 males; mean age: 21.12; range: 19 to 25 years) who had switched from one business school to another in Ankara, the capital city of Türkiye, and QSR NVivo 12 for Windows was used to analyze the qualitative data. The findings reveal that the main reason of student churn is associated with obstacles regarding the use of English as the medium of instruction. This is followed by dissatisfaction with the school or the department. The reasons for students preferring another university are also related to having friends at the university chosen, proximity to home, referrals, and family members. The study provides important insights to university administrators pertaining to the reasons associated with student churn in higher education. When the results are examined by university type, it is seen that the dissatisfaction with the university or department was the primary reason for the students who left the state universities, while the foreign language problem was the reason for the students who left the foundation universities. Considering the findings of the study, the university administration should concentrate on how to improve students’ foreign language skills, invest more in research and innovation, and increase social activities to improve communication among students.

Keywords

English as a medium of instruction, private universities, relationship marketing, student churn, in-depth interview

Öğrencilerin Yükseköğretimde İşletme Okulları Arasında Değişiklik Yapmaları Üzerine Bir Araştırma

Abstract

Çalışmamızın amacı, öğrenci değişiminin nedenlerini ve öğrencilerin eğitim kariyerlerine bir işletme okulunda başladıktan sonra neden ayrılıp başka bir üniversiteye kayıt yaptırdıklarını incelemektir. Mart2019 - Mayıs 2019 tarihleri arasında, Türkiye’nin başkenti Ankara’da bir işletme okulundan diğerine geçiş yapan 31 öğrenci (11 kadın, 20 erkek; ort. yaş: 21,12; dağılım: 19-25) ile nitel bir metodoloji izlenerek öğrencilerle yarı yapılandırılmış görüşmeler yapılmış, analiz sürecinde nitel verileri analiz etmek için QSR NVivo 12 for Windows yazılımı kullanılmıştır. Bulgular, öğrenci kaybının ana nedeninin eğitim dili olarak İngilizce kullanımına ilişkin engellerle ilişkili olduğunu ortaya koymaktadır. Bunu okul veya bölümden memnuniyetsizlik takip etmektedir.Öğrencilerin başka bir üniversiteyi tercih etme nedenleri arasında seçilen üniversitede arkadaşlarının olması, eve yakınlık, yönlendirmeler ve aile üyeleri de yer almaktadır.Bu çalışma,üniversite yöneticilerine yükseköğretimde öğrenci kaybının nedenlerine ilişkin önemli bilgiler sunmaktadır. Sonuçlar üniversite türüne göre incelendiğinde, devlet üniversitelerinden ayrılan öğrencilerin üniversite veya bölümden memnuniyetsizliklerinin, vakıf üniversitesinden ayrılanların ise yabancı dil sorununun üniversiteden ayrılmalarında daha etkili olduğu görülmektedir. Çalışmanın bulgularına göre, üniversite yönetiminin öğrencilerin yabancı dil becerilerininnasıl geliştirileceği üzerine yoğunlaşması, araştırma ve inovasyona daha fazla yatırım yapması ve öğrenciler arasındaki iletişimi geliştirmek için sosyal faaliyetleri artırması gerekmektedir.

Keywords

İngiliz dilinde eğitim, özel üniversiteler, ilişkisel pazarlama, öğrenci kaybı, derinlemesine mülakat

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