The Determinant Factors of School Choice and Studen's Perception(s) of USBE : - Finding Out What Really Counts for Prospective Students

Sammanfattning: Prompted by increased competition, universities around Sweden are beginning to recognize that marketing and branding are strategic key components. This recognition is of great importance for Umeå School of Business (USBE) given that it is often perceived as both geographically and psychologically distant for many prospective students. A committed brand management initiative by the management of USBE could therefore serve to strengthen the school’s competitive ability and increase its brand equity in the long run, making it more attractive to prospective students. In order to create a foundation for this work, this study sets out to answer; what are the relevant brand equity dimensions of a business school, and what is the general perception(s) of them with regards to USBE? The study is limited to prospective and present students making it possible to interpret these relevant brand equity dimensions as determinant factors of school choice given that it is the most obvious use prospective students will make of them. In the study, existing brand equity theories are used to construct a conceptual brand equity framework applicable to a business school’s brand and organization. A quantitative survey is then performed to collect empirical data from over 450 students at nine Swedish universities including USBE. After performing a series of factor analyses on the empirical data, the study shows that the relevant brand equity dimensions for prospective business students are awareness and loyalty in addition to associations in the form of the Outcome & Prestige of the education, its Versatility, Performance, and Expertise as well as its ability to instigate Assurance. The study also indicates that there are considerable differences between the general perception(s) of these dimensions with regards to USBE between USBE’s present students and prospective students – implying that strategic actions are necessary to correct for this. Toward the end of the study, the author therefore provides the management of USBE with brief suggestions of how these actions could be undertaken.