Factors Influencing Students’ Choice of a Federal University: A Case Study of a Nigerian Federal University

Abstract

Various research across the world has been carried out to understand how students select their preferred universities for tertiary study; however, there is a shortage of insight from an African perspective. Specifically focusing on a federal university in Nigeria, this study aims to explore factors influencing students’ interest in the school and why they selected it as their study location. A structured questionnaire from undergraduate students was used to understand these choice factors. The study found that personal interest greatly influenced students’ decisions, followed by parental influence, university reputation, university ranking, and fees. This would enable stakeholders working in the Nigerian education sector including academics, administrators and practitioners and international collaborators to understand the most effective ways to reach out to prospective students and draw useful lessons for universities’ marketing strategies, which could be recommended not only in Nigeria but in Africa at large.