Abstract
Universities today devote serious effort to attract international students. The purpose of this research is to understand the motivation factors that impact international student choices in selecting Indian higher education as a study-abroad destination. This quantitative study examines the choice criteria of 249 full-time international students from the countries of Asia and Africa. A number of choice factors were identified. Results indicate that international students at Indian universities consider ‘university characteristics’ and ‘influence of social networks’ as the most important motivation factors that determine destination choice. The study findings suggest a value proposition canvas consisting of teaching quality, university rankings, safety and availability of academic courses as its foremost constituents. The paper notes decision-making influences and identifies implications for marketing actions of a developing host country operating in a competitive international student market.
Introduction
Enrolling international students has become a priority for countries and institutions from across the globe. In 2017, over 5.3 million students crossed international borders for their higher education needs (United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO), 2019b). This number is projected to reach an estimated 8 million per year by the year 2025 (Tremblay et al., 2012). Mobile students have traditionally travelled from east to west and from the developing to the developed world, particularly from the Asian regions to the USA and the UK. One of the prime reasons for this flow pattern would be the great inequality in educational capacity and quality standards that has for long prevailed between the developed and the developing world. Interestingly, recent years have seen the emergence of additional student flow trends created by the inbound mobility of students into regional and emerging education destinations. Asia, a major source region of international students, has seen a trend of horizontal student flow within the region (Chan, 2012). Asian destination countries such as China, Malaysia and Singapore have assigned substantial human and financial resources to create high-quality higher education institutions (Verbik and Lasanowski, 2007). A number of emerging higher education destinations from this region have set ambitious international student recruitment targets. Overall, the international student market scenario in the Asian region is that of increasing competition.
India, a developing Asian country and now a globally significant economy, has been a major driver of global student mobility, primarily as a sending country. In 2017, India sent about 330,000 students to campuses of various countries and mainly to institutions in the USA (UNSECO, 2019b). The inflow of international students into Indian higher education, however, has been comparatively small. Presently, the number of foreign scholars in Indian campuses stands at around 46,000 (UNESCO, 2019c). Indian policymakers have actively sought ways to draw international students and over the years have undertaken multiple initiatives towards it. In 2018, India launched the ‘Study in India’ initiative to facilitate the inflow of Asian and African students into Indian campuses. The goal of this initiative is to attract 200,000 international students by the year 2023, which is about four times the current inflow number.
A useful way to determine a strategy to attract overseas students is by gaining an in-depth knowledge of the factors that influence the decision on destination choice of the intended international student set. There is, however, an insufficient research base to build this understanding. This paper specifically aims to answer a seemingly plain question. What are the motivations of international students to select Indian higher education as a study-abroad destination? The paper argues that answering this question would enable host country and institution to propose the right value proposition to the target international student set. There have been several studies on the choice criteria of international students to select a host country and institution (Wilkins et al., 2012). However, most empirical studies have been in the context of developed, western and English-speaking host countries (Ahmad and Shah, 2018) and seem to have overlooked the emerging education regions in Asia (Singh et al., 2014). Moreover, empirical studies on international student motivations to study at Indian universities have been rare. Marketing concept-oriented discussions on international student decision-making in an India setting are almost non-existent. This research thus contributes to the literature by offering insights about international student choice criteria and its strategy implications in the context of an emerging higher education destination.
The investigation of motivations that drive international students to choose Indian higher education is the basis of this study. The paper begins with a generic review of inbound student mobility to Indian higher education. It then turns to presenting a theoretical outline of the motivational factors that influence destination choice decision-making. Thereafter, the researchers give an overview of the cross-border marketing of higher education and the concepts of value proposition and positioning. The next section details the analysis of the factors that influence decision-making of international students on Indian campuses. This is followed by relevant discussions on the findings of the study, and a presentation of its marketing strategy implications. Subsequently, the key takeaways of this research, and limitations and recommendations for future research, have been presented in the conclusion section of the paper.
Overview of inbound mobility in Indian higher education
Students and scholars have been moving across national borders for centuries. During the early part of the first millennium, scores of students from different regions have been said to have come to the Indian education centres of Takshashila and Nalanda. More recently, though, India has become known more as a source country of international students than as an education destination for foreign students. Compared to its high outbound mobility, the inbound numbers have not been impressive. The number of overseas students coming to Indian universities has risen rather unimpressively from around 12,000 in 1990 to about 46,000 in 2017 (UNESCO, 2019b). Asian countries, particularly countries of the South Asian region and countries from some regions of Africa, have been the traditional source areas of student inflow to India. Representation from Europe and the Americas has been low. A graphical representation of this source region specific flow pattern during 2012–017 is presented in Figure 1.
Continent-wise international student enrolment trends in Indian universities.
Nepal, Afghanistan, Sudan, Bhutan and Nigeria were the top sending countries in 2017. This international student composition indicates that the nature of student flow is more ‘regional’ than ‘global’. International students like to enrol in education institutions located in and around the metropolitan cities of Pune (where this study is based), Delhi and Hyderabad and some smaller cities like Manipal. With the country having an estimated 36 million students enrolled in tertiary education, the inbound student mobility rate is only about 0.1%. This number can be termed as diminutive compared to that of Australia, UK and Malaysia (UNESCO, 2019c).
Factors that guide international student choice
A fair amount of empirical research on the choice criteria to select a host country and institution has been documented in the literature. A lot of research in this area is based in the leading English-speaking host countries of the USA, UK, Australia and Canada. McMahon (1992) was one of the earliest researchers to identify the factors that have guided international student decision-making and destination selection. Her US-based study examined mobile students from 18 emerging countries and found economic and educational aspects, international assistance and scholarships as important factors. In their multi-method UK-based study, Binsardi and Ekwulugo (2003) found the standard of education, the recognition of qualifications, ease of admission procedures and immigration, employment, cost, safety and culture to have influenced the choice of international scholars from developing and developed countries. Interestingly, this study was based on the 4Ps (product, price, promotion and place) marketing framework. Among the most cited studies in this area is that of Mazzarol and Soutar (2002). This study analysed the motivations of tertiary-level international students from four Asian countries who enrolled in Australian universities. The researchers identified and presented the influences as ‘push’ and ‘pull’ motivation factors that determine decision-making in host country and institution selection. They emphasized the criticality of the ‘pull’ elements in attracting foreign students. The factors of awareness and reputation of the host country and institution, alumni referrals and reputation for quality were identified to be the most important. Yang (2007) found the top three motives for Chinese learners to study in Australia to be the high quality of education, migration prospects and cost-related matters. Chen (2008) in his Canada-based study discussed the concepts of internationalization of higher education, the marketing of higher education and its impact on the choice criteria of mobile students (East Asian and various other countries). The study rates the characteristics of Canada (safety, studious and multicultural environment, and quality of life as important variables), the marketing information characteristics (information on Canada, costs and living expenses as important variables) and significant other factors (friends, teacher’s and family recommendation) as influences on choice of destination country (Canada). The internationalization factor (the quality and reputation of institution and programme as important variables), the marketing factor (costs, rankings and degree impact on career prospects as important variables) and significant other factors (recommendation from teachers, friends/alumni) were found to impact the choice of institution.
The reasons reported by researchers for international students to study in developed and English-speaking countries include: the quality of education (Shanka et al., 2005; Wilkins and Huisman, 2011); quality of teaching (Maringe and Carter, 2007; Pimpa, 2005); rankings (Wilkins and Huisman, 2011); recognition of qualifications (Maringe and Carter, 2007); reputation (Gatfield and Chen, 2006; Mazzarol and Soutar, 2002; Pimpa, 2005); culture of the host country (Gatfield and Chen, 2006; Yang, 2007); admission-related procedures (Maringe and Carter, 2007; McFadden et al., 2012); employment during and post study (Maringe and Carter, 2007; Pimpa, 2005; Wilkins and Huisman, 2011); awareness and knowledge about host country, social factors (recommendations from friends and family) (Mazzarol and Soutar, 2002); influence of the agent (Mazzarol and Soutar, 2002; Pimpa, 2005); proximity to home (Shanka et al., 2005; Mazzarol and Soutar, 2002); safety (Abubakar et al., 2010; Binsardi and Ekwulugo, 2003; Chen, 2008); living costs and tuition fees (Shanka et al., 2005); opportunity to enhance English-language proficiency (Gatfield and Chen, 2006; Wilkins and Huisman, 2011); courses and the variety of courses offered (Abubakar et al., 2010; Pimpa, 2005); the number of international students enrolled on campus (Mazzarol and Soutar, 2002); image and brand (Cubillo et al., 2006); the countries’ attitude to international students (Hobsons, 2014); and the intention of the student to migrate to the host country (Yang, 2007).
Talking specifically of the developing Asian host countries, China gathers a lot of significance on account of its success in becoming a top destination country. In their mixed method study of tertiary-level overseas students studying in two key Chinese universities, Ahmad and Shah (2018) state the Chinese language, the rankings of universities and the country’s economic progress as determinants for China becoming an important study destination to overseas students. They specify the quality of the learning environment and the quality of academic staff as the top two factors found to influence the choice of China as an overseas study destination. Jiani (2017) studied why and how international students picked mainland China as their host country. The qualitative study found that the nation’s future development prospects, the Chinese language, access to scholarships, self-development and professional growth and the country’s cultural aspects drove international scholars to seek education abroad/in China. Wen and Hu (2019) found the quality reputation of China’s higher education to be the major force that determined inbound mobility to China. A study on host country choice variables that have influenced destination selection of international students in India (Pawar et al., 2019) found ‘structural elements’, quality of education, cultural appeal, job in the destination country and the opportunity to learn English as important factors. Research by Jianvittayakit (2012) on international student motivation factors to study in Thailand identified the ‘push’ motivation factors to be the educational experience, self-development opportunity and increased knowledge. The ‘pull’ motivation factors were identified as the Thai culture, value for money and safety. Padlee et al. (2010) in their study found the excellence of the education environment, influencers, customer centricity, cost, amenities, socialization and location to have a strong influence on the choice of Malaysia as an overseas study destination.
The factors that determine decision-making are fairly regulated across host country types and yet the choice criteria are dynamic and multi-dimensional. A large number of the above-mentioned factors are within the control of the international education provider (country and institution) and hence can be used as a means to attract overseas students. Very little information about the choice behaviour of tertiary-level cross-border scholars in Indian education is available as published empirical literature. With the ongoing ‘internationalization at home’ of some Indian higher education institutions and the country having set up an ambitious enrolment target for the coming years, it is imperative for education policymakers to research the decision-making behaviour of the target student set.
Value proposition and positioning strategies in international student markets
As is merited, several authors have discussed the international marketing of higher education in their empirical papers (Binsardi and Ekwulugo, 2003; Cubillo et al., 2006; Mazzarol, 1998). In congruence with the marketing concept, an ideal marketing strategy should be based on consumer research and consequent value deliverance. Understanding the choice variables and preferences of international students can enable education providers to create effective research-based marketing activities. Determining the comparative position of each element and factor would be a vital source of data in cross-border marketing (Cubillo et al., 2006).
The exchange that takes place between the buyer and marketer involves receiving something of value (Solomon, 2016). Consumer value has been explained as a subjective assessment by the consumer about the ‘positive and negative consequences’ of the purchase and use of a product (Sheth et al., 1991). From the business organization perspective, value propositions are benefit promises of marketers to attract the target consumer set. Organizations offering superior and accurate customer value are more successful, as is spoken of in the marketing concept. The steps proposed in identifying an accurate value proposition and a suitable positioning strategy for the international student market would involve first identifying the most important motivation factors that determine customer (international student) value and then developing a value proposition (proposed by the education provider) based on the identified value attributes. Successively, a suitable positioning strategy would be derived based on the proposed value canvas.
Sheth et al. (1991) state that consumer choice encompasses numerous and independent consumption values that generate dissimilar contributions in any particular consumer choice setting. Smith and Colgate (2007) propose a customer value creation framework based on four value types. First, functional value, created through beneficial products, accurate attributes, utility, appropriate performances and outcomes. Two, experiential value, created through sensory value, appropriate emotions, facilitating social relationships and creating knowledge. Third, symbolic value, created through self-identity, concept and worth, own meaning, self-expression, social meaning and cultural meaning. Fourth, cost/sacrifices created through economic value in the form of low prices, minimizing psychological investments through ease of use and access, minimizing individual investment of time and energy, and the curtailing of customer risk. This value framework provides direction to the value proposition discussions in this paper.
Positioning is a basic marketing concept and a part of the segmenting-targeting-positioning framework. Positioning involves creating an appearance which accentuates the marketer’s endeavour to deliver appropriate benefits to the target customer set. In the higher education sector, positioning would involve creating an image of the institution in the mind of the international student. The choice measures and decision behaviour of the international student guide the positioning strategy of the education provider (Maringe, 2006). Thus, institutions seeking suitable positioning strategies require a detailed understanding of the choice motivations of the target consumer market. An update on choice behaviour of successive batches of students would enable education providers to develop more relevant positioning strategies.
Method
The study involved a survey of international students undergoing full-time tertiary education at Indian universities. To identify an international student, the researchers went by the definition put forward by UNESCO which defines international students as ‘those who have crossed a national or territorial border for the purpose of education and are now enrolled outside their country of origin’ (UNESCO, 2019a). International students enrolled in full-time study programmes of a minimum duration of two years were considered to participate in the survey. The main profile characteristics of the respondents (n = 249) surveyed are presented in Table 1. International students from a total of 29 countries were surveyed. The sample constituted of students from 4 South Asian, 7 West Asian and 18 African countries.
Profile of respondents.
The existing literature of empirical studies identifying factors that influence student decision-making was carefully studied and this directed the item development in this paper. In consideration of the high degree of unanimity in the literature on factors influencing choice, it is believed that validity has been attained. The subsequent questionnaire consisted of 28 items which were used for exploratory factor analysis. The questionnaire was separated into two parts. The first part dealt with the personal description of the responding overseas student. The second part consisted of the items that influence the choice of destination country and institution. All the items used a 7-point rating scale where 1 = not important at all and 7 = extremely important. A pilot test with 20 international students was conducted to test the research method in field environments. The respondents were asked to react to the questions and comment on the clarity of the statements. No alterations were needed as the statements and the wordings were found to be clear to the respondents. Pune, a city based in the western part of India, was considered as a suitable location for the study as it has traditionally been one of the most favoured host cities of foreign students in India. Within the city of Pune, six universities were selected. These institutions were selected as they are known to have a noticeable enrolment of international students. Prior permissions from the office bearers of the higher education institutions was sought, following which the international students were met on campus on the decided date and time. The students were first assembled in classrooms for an initial communication by the researchers. During this communication the purpose of the study was explained to the prospective respondents. During this initial briefing the researchers also assured the students that the information obtained from the survey would be used for study purposes only and that the anonymity of the respondents would be maintained. The students were then requested to participate in the survey. The participation was voluntary and it was ensured that nobody was forced to complete the survey. Additionally, some students were met outside the classroom and a similar process was followed to seek responses. All the questionnaires were administered by the researchers themselves. The survey questionnaire was completed by respondents using paper printouts, and the questionnaires were administered during a six-month period from June to November 2018. Purposive sampling method was used for this study. The researchers used their knowledge about the composition of international students at the respective education institutions to maintain diversity of education programmes and nationality. Three hundred international students were approached and requested to participate in the survey, of whom 30 opted out and the remaining 270 participated in the survey, thus yielding a response rate of 90%. Of the 270 administered questionnaires, 249 were found usable.
Results
Exploratory factor analysis using principal component analysis with orthogonal (Varimax) rotation was performed (using SPSS version 22) on the 28 items representing the possible factors of importance for choosing to study in India. The Kaiser-Meyer-Olkin Test produced a value of 0.90, far greater than the cut-off point of 0.70, thus signifying that the sample size of 249 was adequate. In addition, the Bartlett’s test of sphericity (p = 0.000) indicated that the data has a high enough degree of correlation between at least a number of variables, making it apt for exploratory factor analysis. The items with loadings below 0.4, substantial cross loadings and communalities of less than 0.5 were considered for deletion. The final optimal solution, which accounted for 60.01% of total variance, was obtained after deleting five items. The remaining 23 items loaded on 5 factors with eigenvalues ranging from 1.94 to 5.0. The Cronbach’s alpha values of 0.88, 0.81, 0.70 and 0.71 for the first four factors satisfied the acceptable criteria of 0.70 (Nunnally, 1978), thus indicating that the measures of each factor are reliable. The alpha value for the fifth factor (0.56) is lower than the acceptable criteria of 0.70. However, the factor was retained and considered to be important as the loadings of all the three items were above 0.5. International students who were a part of this study reported five factors that are important to them when deciding upon India as a destination country/institution (see Table 2 for detailed loadings and Cronbach’s alpha scores). The first factor was named as ‘university characteristics’ and accounts for a variance of 21.77 %. This factor consists of nine items (teaching quality, university rankings, safety on campus and in the local area, availability of a particular course, self-development opportunity, international brand value, student quality of life on campus and in the local area, affordability of Indian education, and number of international students on campus). The second factor was named as ‘influence of social networks’ and consists of three items (friends and relatives stay or study in the host country and the recommendation of family and friends). This factor accounts for a further 10.11 % of variance. Factors 3, 4 and 5 were named as ‘agent recommendation and economic assessment’, ‘host country attractions’ and ‘Indian life and culture’ respectively. Factors 3, 4 and 5 have variances of less than 10 and the variance percentages are in close proximity to one another.
Rotated component matrix: factors that that influence the selection of Indian higher education as a study abroad destination.
Discussion
The first factor, ‘university characteristics’, has been named so because the items in this factor are intrinsic to the education service offered by an institution. Interestingly, the item composition of this factor is similar to the findings of an Australia-based study by Abubakar et al. (2010) where the factors for international students to effectively pursue studies were determined as the quality and range of courses, quality of lecturers, access to amenities/facilities (computers, library, sports, leisure, food), cost, safety and opportunity to mix with other students. Teaching quality, the top-rated variable within this factor, has been found to be an institution-related pull factor that significantly influences the choice of UK universities (Maringe and Carter, 2007). Teaching quality has been said to contribute to the ‘quality of international education’ and has been found to be a key criterion for Thai students in their selection of Australian universities (Pimpa, 2005). Safety of students has often been reported as an important determining factor in developed (Abubakar et al. 2010; Binsardi and Ekwulugo, 2003; Chen, 2008; Mazzarol and Soutar, 2002) and developing (Jianvittayakit 2012; Pawar et al., 2019) host country selection, thus highlighting the significance of this basic need.
The factors of quality of teaching staff and ranking of universities being associated with a developing host country (India) indicate a progressive outlook towards developing nations. The recent Indian initiative to select and fund 20 universities under the ‘institutions of eminence’ scheme would contribute significantly toward improving the quality of education and ranking of Indian universities, thus making it a strong pull factor. Interestingly and significantly, the items of teaching quality, university rankings and safety on campus and in the local area have been rated higher than the item of affordability of education in India. The ambitious ‘study in India’ programme launched in 2018 addresses the monetary cost concern by branding India as an affordable education destination hub for Asian and African students (ICEF Monitor, 2018). The findings of this study, however, suggest that affordability of Indian higher education in itself might not be enough to attract international students and that the quality, ranking and safety elements need to be highlighted.
The second factor was named as ‘influence of social networks’. The constituent items of this factor relate to friends and family influencing decision-making through recommendations or because they have studied/lived in the host country. As personal recommendations have been found to influence the decision-making of this set of students, the alumni of various Indian universities would be suited to influencing prospective students from the respective countries to consider India for their higher education needs. International students from the source regions examined in this study have been coming to India for many years and hence there would be instances where relatives and friends of prospective students have studied at Indian universities. Gatfield and Chen (2006) in their study based on the ‘theory of planned behaviour’ found parents, friends, family and teachers to have influenced Taiwanese students studying in Australia, the UK and the USA. They categorized these variables as ‘subjective norms’ and have recommended this factor to be a part of the marketing strategies of universities.
Factor 3, named ‘agent recommendation and economic assessments’, portrays the significance of agent recommendations in decision-making; the other part within this factor is that of the economic perspective of students with perceptions of the education institutes’ links with employers and scholarship/financial assistance. Wilkins et al. (2012) describe agent recommendation as a personal or human element. Gatfield and Chen (2006) recommend that education agents and universities should be used to influence the feelings of parents to develop positive perceptions about their children graduating from US universities. Factor 4, ‘host country attractions’, and factor 5, ‘Indian life and culture’, have been rated to be of lesser importance as compared to the other key factors identified in this study.
This research paper speaks about mobile students from Asian and African countries as the target customer group. It is important to highlight that the countries from these two regions are still developing countries which may have a limited higher education capacity. The international students who took part in this study stated a number of motives for choosing to study in Indian universities. A mean score analysis of items yields results that generally complement the exploratory factor analysis findings presented earlier. The top items/reasons (mean scores of above 5) among the 28 items are presented in Table 3. Significantly, an enhancement of service benefits through the seven identified items is within the power and control of the education provider and hence strategically meaningful.
Top reasons to study abroad.
Note: Items were measured on a 7-point Likert scale from 1 = not important at all to 7 = extremely important.
Smith and Colgate (2007) say that understanding ‘consumer value’ and suitable ‘customer value creation strategies’ is the essence of the marketing concept. The study findings suggest the following value delivery constituents of Indian tertiary education designed with a view to draw foreign students. The presentation of the value proposition canvas is based on the four value type framework proposed by Smith and Colgate (2007):
The delivery of ‘functional value’ ought to happen through the education service offering. This benefit type should constitute of good teaching quality, wide course availability and an ample opportunity for self-development.
The creation of an appropriate ‘experiential value’ should happen by delivering a secure environment and enhancing the quality of life.
The ‘symbolic value’ should be delivered through participation in regional and global university ranking forums.
‘Economic value’ and minimization of customer risk perception should be designed by communicating the affordability of Indian higher education in comparison to other education destinations.
The framework can be used to discuss generic marketing concepts and competitive advantages, and it can be a basis for designing positioning strategies. The study findings suggest that the positioning of Indian higher education should be that of a provider of high-quality academic teaching that can be availed at a comparatively affordable cost. Additionally, the elements of safety, university rankings, availability of courses, an opportunity for self-development and a good quality of life on offer to international students should be promoted. The promotion policy should be concentrated around dissemination and communication of information through images and pictures to counter the intangibility of educational services.
Conclusions
In a scenario of changing international student market dynamics, it is imperative for provider countries and universities to gain detailed and updated insights on student choice behaviour. The findings of this study indicate that international students who have selected Indian higher education as a study-abroad destination rate the university-oriented traits as the most important influence on decision-making. The choice criteria findings are in line with some of the existing studies conducted in developed and developing host country settings. The findings have been discussed, and marketing implications to host country and institution have been suggested. For a marketer, identifying consumer motives is useful in creating a suitable customer value proposition (CVP) and designing appropriate marketing activities (Rintamäki et al., 2007). The researchers suggest teaching quality, institution ranking and safety as the key value attributes of the value proposition canvas that Indian higher education should offer to international students from the countries of Asia and Africa.
In spite of the contribution of this paper towards creating new knowledge on student decision-making dynamics, the following limitations need to be taken into account when inferring research outcomes. Firstly, the study derived the entire sample from only one Indian destination city, which might pose limitations in relation to generalizability of findings. Secondly, as the respondents were at different stages of their study years, their experiences on campus might have influenced their responses. Examining student decision-making just before or closely after decision-making would most likely generate better information. Finally, international students who did not select Indian higher education for their higher education needs were not surveyed. Future research could investigate the rationales of mobile students who did not select India as a study destination. More extensive use of marketing theory in the context of international student market is recommended.
Footnotes
Acknowledgements
The researchers would like to thank Mr Hassan Wasswa for facilitating access to international students.
Funding
The author(s) received no financial support for the research, authorship and/or publication of this article.