Factors that Influence University Students’ Program Choices: The Case of IBSU, Tbilisi, Georgia

Certain decisions made by teenagers as they plan their careers can be hard to change or compensate for later. Wrong choices may lead to the waste of time and money as well. The aim of this piece of research is to find out the factors that influence the individual’s choice of major and university, which is an important step in t he educational process by which they orient their future. It is essential for universities to know what students are influenced by because the information is useful in determining where the prospective students can be found and improving their overall standards. The sample population was 316 second, third-and fourth-year students studying at the International Black Sea University (IBSU) in Georgia. The study employed a mixed methodology, which included qualitative and quantitative research methods. The data were collected through a survey and then analyzed with SPSS. In this research, Georgian teenagers prioritized their personal characteristics and ideas when they made decisions. It has also been found out that outgoing students are especially good at making the right decisions and thus do not consider changing their major or university. Teachers and the community have been found ineffective in the preference for the major, yet they ask for family advice.


Introduction
Universities produce most of the occupational groups in various areas of expertise that the society demands.The universities that have built a good reputation on time are becoming more popular.Students who get closer to graduation dive into a quest of finding the best university knowing that they need to choose a good one and a program on demand.This very period is probably the most important phase in their lives in which they have to choose a university and a program that will have a significant effect on the rest of their lifetime, as being a graduate of a good university and a highly demanded program would make them skilled employees, thus, it paves the way to a prosperous job.It is also clear that not every student is satisfied with his/her university or the program of study; this is why some students change their programs of study or university after a while.Such a change may cause problems for the country and the university, because bo th the student and the family lose money, time, and hope whereas the country (if the student received a state grant) deprives of addressing the need for skilled people, and the university fails to meet its strategic goals and possibly loses credit in the society.The more students leave a certain university, the more likely that university loses its ranking within the country.
Universities strive to attract more students before the registration date is over.Becoming popular requires universities to devote more time and money to PR activities.However, are all those PR activities adequate and even necessary?Is it ever possible to reach out to the student and at the same time decrease the costs?In order to prevent any kind of loss by the parents, studen ts, universities, and the governmental institutions, relevant research must be done on, for instance, what the factors are that influence students when they are about to choose a university, what kind of students universities expect / need, and what the areas of expertise are that the government needs, when and how many.Having the answers of these questions in hand, parents and students can be offered seminars on how to choose the future profession and program of study in order to raise their awareness on the issue.Such an effort may contribute to prevent the loss of time and unnecessary struggle of everyone.

Literature Review
Much research has been done on the program/university preferences of high school graduates.They started in the 1960s with an ever-increasing number and variety of papers on the topic and continue until today.The literature review below reveals various factors that influence students' preferences, such as family, friends, and social environment as well as what the universities do and what kind of universities are mostly preferred.Those factors were resonated in many studies.
Students will need to think about the decisions they will make very seriously as their program preference will affect their jobs, their jobs will shape their careers, and their careers will be the main part of their lives (Super, 1990).
Studies into choices of universities are important tools used by higher education institutions in helping to identify the factors that influence prospective student populations.These factors have been researched since the late 1960s (Lee et al. 2013, Stordahl 1970;Cabrera & La Nasa 2000, Perez & McDonough 2008).Especially prominent among the factors identified by relevant studies to influence choice of college are ethnicity, academic achievement and unique family characteristics (Flint 1992;Kim & Schneider 2005).It is, therefore, crucial for universities to measure student expectations and identify their current status before embarking on advertising and promotion, etc. (Halstead 1993).
Along with aforementioned factors, to identify the career selection, various theories and models were designed, such as psychologically and sociologically based approaches.The psychology-based approaches have long dominated the mind-set of psychologists and career counselors (Lent, Brown, & Hachett, 2002).Sociology-based approaches have likewise been updated and developed dynamically by numerous research teams (Bordin, Nechman & Segal 1963;Lent, Brown & Hachett 2002).Cabrera and La Nasa (2000;2001) investigated many aspects of the process of choosing a university as experienced by students and families.The three stages of making a choice identified by them are academic ability, high school graduation an d application to a higher education in stitution.
In another research study (Hossler, Braxton, & Coopersmith 1989), the three stages of making a choice named are predisposition, search, and choice.At the predisposition stage, students decide whether to continue their education after high school.In the search stage, they collect more information about probable institutions.Finally, in the choice stage, the selection is actually made.Some researchers made initial contributions to the literature by investigating the factors influencing college choices under seven headings, namely: the sufficient size of the campus, the adequacy of the facilities on campus, the effect of the family, the social activities available at the university, the financial assistance offered by the university, specific cu rricula provided for the student and the location of the university (Maguire & Lay 1981).
Studies into how parents contribute to the college choice process are of a great importance.In their research Bers and Galowich (2003) found that the family makes a significant contribution to college choice and career decision.A similar study carried out by Tan (2015) revealed that advice from family and friends turned out to be a primary aid in college choice.Yet other studies have identified little impact of family and friends (Demirci, 2017).Most probably, it depends on the culture that the students belong to.Soutar and Turner's (2002) study is probably one of the most comprehensive conjoint analyses carried out to identify students' college choices.The primary factor was identified to be the fact that the student's favorite program was at the university of preference, followed by the location of the university, its reputation in society, the appealing campus atmosphere, technological equipment, its being preferred by friends, positive opinion of the family, and ability to transfer to other programs and even universities.
College choices vary according to gender.Çatı et al. (2016) discovered that males and females valued different characteristics in universities.Female students were found to highlight especially the reputation of the university as well as the facilities on campus.It was observed in another study that female students preferred gender-appropriate majors compared to male students, who preferred professions that bring in more income (Korkut-Owen et al., 2012).
Research has shown higher graduation rates for students who made their choice after taking their time, collecting all the necessary information, thinking it over, and waiting until the last moment.Kozak (2009) found that the leading factors that influence college choice were academic reputation, location of the university and information sources, while the campus and academic conditions were not considered important by students (Akar, 2012).The advertisements on the program websites were found to have a positive impact on choice, while those at fairs and on TV had little impact (Alkan, 2014).
Universities try to entice students using numerous means.An advertising or promotional tool employe d for this end is the university catalog for prospective students.Almost all such catalogs have been found to be above the students' level of comprehension (Chapman, 1981).Lee et al. (2013) found out in their studies that universities should improve the ir admission policies for prospective students and develop intervention and support programs that serve better for the needs of potential students.
All universities strive to be the most popular one among students before the deadline of the registration date for the unified university examination.Many higher education institutions naturally deal with advertising and promotion activities.Yet, is such an effort sufficient or even necessary?Is it possible to both reach at the potential applicants and reduce the expenses?Besides, countries that generate a large income from education have been losing students, attesting to the fact that identifying student choices is of vital importance (UKCISA, 2014).This very fact demonstrates that it is of vital importance for universities to understand the reasoning behind students' program choices and that they need to shape their PR activities accordingly.

Purpose of Research
The purpose of this study was to identify the factors that influence prospective student population in higher education institutions in general and IBSU in particular so that these institutions can develop policies accordingly.The study was designed to find out what these students had based their decisions on and why they had chosen that university.

Method
A mixed methodology, which included both qualitative and quantitative approaches, was used to identify what students' choices of profession depended upon and why they chose a particular university.It was utilized so that the restrictions in study could be overcome.The blending of these two approaches has also ended the battle of paradigms (Randolph, 2008).In fact, mixing the two approaches has been found to be more efficient than their separate use for a deeper insight into resea rch questions (Creswell & Garrett, 2008).

Population and Sampling
The sample (n) was composed of 316 second-, third-and fourth-year students (the sample constitutes 21% of N=1447) studying education, journalism, law, management and engineering at IBSU in Tbilisi, Georgia.The respondent students filled out the survey during a face-to-face interview.As it would be too early to respond to questions related to program and university satisfaction, the freshmen students were not included in the study.

Data Collection and Analysis
In this study, relevant surveys obtained from the literature were analyzed, namely the ones from Pérez & Mcdonough (2008), Bers & Galowich (2003) and Demirci (2017), and appropriate questions were selected in accordance with the Georgian case; then they were translated into English and Georgian languages.The survey was composed of 5-point Likert scale items about personality structure, personal, family and environmental factors.Reliability coefficients (Cronbach Alpha) were found for the factors and only then were the analyses made.Average reliability was found to be high ( 0.73), which showed that the scale and the findings of the study were reliable.The data were interpreted after factor, frequency and t -test analyses.
The data was first checked for its reliability.Table 1 demonstrates the types of questions used, number of Likert -scale questions asked in that type, and the Cronbach's Alpha values.

Findings and Interpretation
The results were analyzed in four parts.First, basic descriptive statistics was performed.Second, the factors that influenced the students' choices were analyzed.Third, the students' level of satisfaction from their major was examined.Finally, inferential statistics was performed on the data.
Before dealing with the analyses above, a reliability analysis was performed on the collected data.The Cronbach Alpha value obtained from the analysis ( 0.73) showed that the results were reliable, as mentioned above.
We included five additional items in the survey in order to understand the reasons for the applicants' choices of IBSU.The i tems, corresponding frequencies and percentages are listed in table 2. No answer 11 3.5 Table 2 includes important information about the students' opinions about why they chose IBSU.For example, 86.6% of the students entered IBSU right after their first sitting in the exam; most of the students selected IBSU as their 1 -4 choices (48.2%); most of them had only 1-5 different programs to enter in their minds (82.4%); they enlisted 1-5 different institutions before the exam for the program they are currently enrolled at (79.2%); and IBSU was among the first five choices of the students (82.7%).In addition, the percentages of the students who did not answer the questions in table 2 were lower than 5%, while 5.1% and 5.8% of the students did not answer the following questions respectively: how many choices did you make in your last exam and how many of your choices were for your program.
Moreover, two extra questions were asked to the participating students.The data about these questions can be found in table 3.According to the information in table 3, 89.1% of the students who were admitted to IBSU are still studying in the program they enrolled to.Similarly, it can be seen that 86.6% of the students had done some research on IBSU before they entered.The stu dents who chose IBSU were found to be idealistic students who had done research before making their choice.They had high scores and mostly continued to study in the program they entered.The finding implies that idealistic students generally do research on the program they would like to enroll to and refrain from transferring to another program.The effect of the previous information gathered on the program before the enrollment also seems to be an important result, which supports Soutar & & Tourner's (2002) study.
Five items were included in the survey to reveal the reasons underlying students' preference for IBSU.The data are shown in  Of the reasons for students' preferences for IBSU, the fact that it ranked among the few universities that included the program I want was selected the most (49%), followed by positive opinions about IBSU (23%), the effect of family, friends and environment (14%), and opinion that the score would be high enough for IBSU (7%).The reason that influenced their choices the least was the item its proximity to my place of residence (5%).
Six items were offered to the participants to discover their personalities, who marked each item 1 -5 (1-I strongly disagree, 2-I disagree,3-hesitant,4-I agree,5-I strongly agree).The results are shown in table 4. item I try to approach people after analyzing them in depth (3.61).The overall average was 3.77, meaning that the personality structures of the students were solid.

The Factors Acting on the Students' Choices
Three factors were identified that influence student choices in the administered survey (personal, familial and environmental ).All the items in each factor received a score between one and five."1 and 2" referred to negative, "3" -to neutral and "4 and 5" -to positive ideas.Personal factors were further divided into such subparts as personality structures, expectations and necessities.
Table 5 shows average scores and standard deviation values for the items in p ersonal factors.

Expectations
It is mostly likely that I will not be unemployed 3.28 1.26 The working hours will be flexible in the professions I may have 3.62 1.03 The financial income will be high in the professions I may have 3.74 1.05 The social opportunities will be plenty in the professions I may have 3.88 1.02 Opportunities for promotion will be ample in the professions I may have As can be seen in table 5, all but two of the items about personality factors had a score between three and four.It is remar kable that none of the items had a score above 4.Moreover, the overall average shows that personal preference for choosing IB SU had a score of 3.57 out of 5, which is far from having a significant effect.
It can be seen that personal structures played a greater role in students' preference for IBSU, and necessities lagged behind (M=2.94).The main influence among personal factors for choosing IBSU was its being closely related to my interests (M=3.99).
The least powerful reason for choice among personal factors was the type of high school (M=2.53).
Familial factors were divided into further categories as support and lack of intervention.Table 6 shows the average points and standard deviation values for the familial factors that influence student choices.As lack of intervention included negative phrases, the data were entered in reverse.and MME=3.63).Considering the items in familial factors per se, we can see that the mo st crucial factor was 'my family told me that they would respect my decision' (3.88), while the least crucial factor was 'my family encouraged me to learn about the programs' (3.05).Like personal factors, familial factors had a slightly stronger effect than the average did on students' choices.It was revealed that the family's respect for the student's choice had a positive impact as did the family's sharing of opinions, yet the family's lack of information about the program had little to do with the stud ent's preferences.This finding supports Bers's and Galowich's ideas (2003).
Environmental factors were divided into further categories as communication with friends and communication with social circles.
Table 7 shows the average points and standard deviation values for the items in environmental factors.

Analysis of Satisfaction with the Program
In this study, the students' program satisfaction was taken into account in addition to the above-mentioned factors.The average points and standard deviation values for the items that measured student s atisfaction are given in table 8. and that they are successful to a certain extent in their current programs (M=3.74).At an individual analysis, the item 'I would

Inferential Statistics
A t-test was used to analyze whether the participants' personality structures, the sub -factors influencing their choices and their program satisfaction differed according to gender.Table 10 shows the number, average and standard deviation of each dependent variable according to the independent variable (gender).10 shows, there is a difference between the dependent variables of male and female students.To test these differences, a separate t-test was performed for every dependent variable.The results of the t -tests indicate that there was a significant difference between female and male students in only two dependent variables, whereas the scores are similar in all the other variables.In other words, male students were influenced significantly more than female students by communication with social circles, which was an environmental factor (t=-2.13, def=287, p= .03).Similarly, female students considered themselves to be significantly more successful in the category of success, which was a result of satisfaction with program choice (t=2.10,def=285, p= .04).Yet expectations, a personal factor, is the same for males and females.
Correlation analysis was used to investigate the relationship between six variables, such as personal structures, familial factors and satisfaction with program choice.According to the results of the correlation analysis, no significant correlation was observed between familial factors-environmental factors and familial factors-results of program satisfaction, while significant correlations were found between all the other variables.
The correlation of program satisfaction with familial factors and environmental factors was found to be positive, low and significant (0.24 and 0.15, respectively); the correlation of program choice satisfaction was negative, low and significant (-0.17); and the correlation between personal factors and personal structures was found to be positive, moderate and significant (0.42 and 0.37, respectively).
The correlation of personal factors with familial factors, environmental factors and satisfaction with program choice was positive, low and significant (0.20, 0.25 and 0.27, respectively) and with personal structures positive, high and signifi cant (0.65).
A positive, moderate and significant correlation (0.30) was observed between familial factors and personal structures.A posi tive, low and significant correlation was observed between environmental factors and results of program choice satisfa ction as well as environmental factors and personality structures (0.25 and 0.18, respectively).Finally, a positive, low and significant corr elation (0.28) was observed between the results of program choice satisfaction and personal structures.Females were also found to be more successful in the results of satisfaction with program choice -success.The findings in this respect run parallel with those from previous studies (Çati et al., 2016).

Discussion
The results of the study can be beneficial for both the students and universities.Since IBSU is a private university, the results may be helpful for other private universities as well.The fact that the satisfaction rate of IBSU is high obviously poses a big responsibility on the institution.IBSU may ch oose to maintain or improve this rate as a quality goal.
Universities carry out a series of advertisement activities to attract students.However, both Kozak's (2009) study and the satisfaction rate of the students who chose IBSU put forth that informed st udents do not generally change the programs they first register.Therefore, the universities could reach out to their target students with less effort if they do enough research on the issue.
Another point that was observed in the nature of Georgian youth but not mentioned much in the literature is that outgoing students are not influenced by environmental factors.However, it is worth doing research with psychology advisors and experts about why the sociable students do not tend to change their programs of study: whether they are not affected by their environment thanks to their previous research about universities or because of their high self-confidence.Lent et al. (2002) did a similar research advocating that students' preferences should be examined wit h psychological and sociological dimensions.

Table 1 .
Reliability Coefficients It was found out that the factors with coefficient 0.46 (familial factors) and 0.92 (faculty satisfaction) have difference.The low alpha value of familial factors ( 0.46) and environmental factors ( ) urged the researcher to assess the results of both factors more carefully.Nevertheless, because of the average reliability value of 0.73, it is possible to say that the results are reliable.

Table 2 .
Several Questions about Students' Choices

Table 3 .
Yes/No Questions

Table 4 .
The Results of the Personality Structures of the Students make realistic decisions (3.85).The item I have a great interest in arts had the lowest score of 3.35, lying below the second lowest

Table 5 .
Personal Factors Influencing Student Choices

Table 6 .
The Familial Factors That Influence Student Choices Support and lack of intervention, two familial factors influencing students to choose IBSU, had almost the same effect (M D=3.59

Table 7 .
Environmental Factors Influencing Student ChoicesAccording to the findings in table 7, of the two environmental factors that influence students' choices, the sub -factor communication with social circles had a greater effect than the sub-factor communication with friends.Yet given the overall average of environmental factors, an average of 2.72 out of 5 remained too low a score, which means that students were not much influenced by the environment when they chose IBSU.An item-by-item analysis shows that the item that influenced students' choices most with respect to environment was ' I took the reputation of my future job into account' (3.03) and the least was 'I took my teachers' ideas into account '(2.42).

Table 8 .
Student Satisfaction

Table 9 .
Results of Program Satisfaction

Table 10 .
Difference According to Gender