Students' preference for online course in Iran and Ghana: A conjoint analysis

Abstract

There is now intense competition among tertiary education providers due to proliferation of private and public universities offering online and offline courses. The role of marketing is becoming more important among universities as competition in the environment is getting more intense. One main approach that can facilitate the universities marketing activities is understanding what determines students' online course preference. This study aims at examining the factors that influence student's preference for online education. The purpose of this research is two fold: to investigate the number of attributes that are important for a student in opting for pursuing online course and to help universities marketing effort and the understanding of what determines a student's preference for online education. Conjoint analysis was used to investigate the number of attributes in prospective students in Ghana and Iran. The results indicate that the four most important determinants of preference for online course were course suitability, quality of teaching, quality of the course and library services which are important for education strategist to consider when developing and rolling out marketing campaigns and programmes. Keywords: Online education; Course selection; Conjoint analysis