BRAND SELECTION OF GHANA’S PREMIER BUSINESS SCHOOL: POSTGRADUATE STUDENTS’ PERSPECTIVE

ABSTRACT

Brand Selection of Higher Education by students has become an important concept in this service institution. This is basically due to the fact that students are paying higher tuition fees especially for their postgraduate studies and as such they increasingly see themselves as customers in the service delivery and encounter process. This research centred on postgraduate students brand selection of Ghana‘s Premier Business School also known as University of Ghana Business School (UGBS), focusing on the decision process, and, in particular the factors that influenced them in their selection of this institution for their postgraduate studies. In conducting this study, a qualitative research approach using an in-depth interview was conducted on twenty (20) postgraduate students currently enrolled in the institution. The data were audiotaped, transcribed and analysed using various themes drawn from the interview. The findings established that the factors that influenced postgraduate students in their brand selection of Ghana‘s Premier Business School included; Good image/reputation, Knowledge about UGBS, tuition cost, emotional bond / attachment, premiership of UGBS, expert/knowledgeable faculty, conducive environment/ availability of educational facilities, proximity / convenience and course content/ career prospects ranking and that they go through a decision making process during their brand selection and that the decision process is based on a combination of information, word of mouth, individual attitude and institutional reputation at each stage.

The new theoretical and empirical insights into factors that influence postgraduate students brand selection of Ghana‘s Premier Business School from the study will be significant to Higher Education institutions especially business schools in developing countries such as Ghana.