ABSTRACT This study examines the interplay of university brand name and ranking on behavior intention in both social media (e.g. Facebook) and traditional media (e.g. Magazine) contexts. One pre-test and two experiments were performed to test the interaction effect of brand name and raking on behavior intention and the underlying mechanism of the effect with the sample of US business school students in the Midwest. The findings demonstrate that brand name does not matter very much in lower-ranking universities. But in higher-ranking universities, brand name adaptation leads to higher behavior intention. In addition, the mediation test demonstrates that processing fluency (pronunciation fluency and meaning fluency) is the underlying mechanism to determine the behavior intention. In traditional media (e.g. magazine) context, the processing fluency effect is more dominant in lower-ranking university brands. Several theoretical and managerial implications are discussed.

ABSTRACT This paper develops a neutralization framework of the effects of shareholder pressures on ethical climate, organizational behaviours, and student outcomes in the for-profit higher education (FP) industry. Using a qualitative interpretative approach, we interviewed twenty former and current FP employees with direct insight and experiences into FP. We present empirical evidence showing how employees realized their organizations’ unethical climate and used neutralization techniques to rationalize their continued participation in these organizations. This paper advances ethics research in higher education marketing by unpacking how profit maximization goals lead to unethical recruiting tactics, creating a cascade of ethical problems throughout the organization.

ABSTRACT The paper assesses the importance and performance of education service quality. Career preparation is a key part of the school experience. Thus, the study conducted an importance-performance analysis with career preparation as the key variable of interest. A survey instrument was used to collect responses at a Canadian University (N = 394), and the data were analyzed with PLS-SEM. Findings indicate that assessment and service quality are less critical in developing core competencies (and preparing students for their future careers). Relationship quality, however, is essential in developing these competencies, but the performance was low in the IPMA. Thus, universities should enhance this weakness to improve graduates’ employability. The indicator variable level analysis enables more managerial action. A contribution is made to an understudied area of education research that focuses upon students as the products, not just the customers, of higher educational institutions.

ABSTRACT Drawing upon service-dominant logic, this study examines the direct and indirect (via process and outcome values) effects of student participation on quality of college life (QCL). Furthermore, the study investigates the moderating roles of negative student-to-student interactions in the effects of student participation on the aforementioned values. The findings, based on a dataset collected from 709 business students, indicated that both process and outcome values fully mediated the relationship between student participation and QCL. Additionally, negative interactions among students were found to diminish the positive impact of student participation on process value but not on outcome value. These findings contribute to the literature on value co-creation in higher education and QCL by clarifying how student participation helps enhance QCL through the mediating roles of process and outcome values.

ABSTRACT In the context of an increasingly competitive environment in higher education, this article looks at the determinants of student satisfaction in European business schools. We analysed one French and one Georgian business school through a survey of 551 students. Structural equation modelling was used to test the research hypotheses, with qualitative data analysis further explaining the findings. The results identify the determinants of student satisfaction and confirm a positive and significant influence of student satisfaction on their loyalty. However, the findings reveal an asymmetrical relationship between the two constructs and suggest that, in addition to a high level of satisfaction, affective ties need to be ensured between HEIs and their students to generate loyalty. The study contributes to the literature by emphasising the importance of customer satisfaction in a service industry from an affective standpoint through the lens of customer expectations. It also demonstrates the importance of dissatisfier elements, especially when it comes to examining loyalty. The results are of vital importance for business school management to develop strategies aimed at attracting and retaining students, which will in turn improve financial performance and successful positioning.

ABSTRACT This study aims to contribute to the existing literature on higher education marketing by proposing and empirically testing a theoretical model linking higher education quality, student satisfaction, and subjective well-being. The bottom-up spill over theory, the stimulus-organism-response theory, and the expectancy-disconfirmation theory, inform the development of the theoretical model of the study. A cross-sectional survey design is adopted, and data are collected from a sample of students from Mauritian Universities. The model is estimated and tested using a variance-based and prediction-oriented approach to structural equation modelling, specifically partial least squares structural equation modelling (PLS-SEM). The results demonstrate that approximately one-fifth of university students’ subjective well-being is explained by the quality of their student life and their satisfaction with higher education services. Based on these empirical results, we discuss and present key implications for higher education marketing.

ABSTRACT Studies have been conducted on university students’ acceptance of e-learning systems during COVID-19. However, less attention has been paid to students’ use of e-learning post-pandemic. This research provides a more comprehensive framework to investigate the effects of e-learning students’ various quality perceptions on attitude, learning engagement, and stickiness toward e-learning platforms. A survey-based quantitative method is adopted by this study in which sample data are collected from students in Australian universities. A total of 403 valid samples were analysed using covariance-based structural equation modelling. This study found that students’ perceived educational quality, service quality, information quality, and technical system quality play different roles in their attitudes and behaviours towards e-learning. It expands the information system success model by comparing the effects of students’ various perceived qualities on their ongoing commitment to e-learning. It provides insights to e-learning providers in pursuing better designs and more sustainable development of educational information systems.

ABSTRACT This study aims to explore the factors influencing transfer intention to other universities among undergraduate students by utilizing the push–pull–mooring (PPM) model. Previous studies have applied the PPM model to various services; however, limited research has examined its use in studying the transfer behavior of undergraduate students in higher education institutions. This study surveyed 208 undergraduate students in Taiwan and conducted structural equation modeling (SEM) to test the hypotheses. The results showed that push and pull effects positively affect transfer intention, with the impact of the push effect being greater than that of the pull effect. Moreover, switching costs have a moderating effect, with students who perceived high switching costs having less of an impact on the relationship between push-and-pull effects and transfer intention. This study advanced the extant knowledge on the PPM model in the context of higher education.

ABSTRACT The competitive levels in the higher education market have intensified over recent years. There is a need to develop innovative strategies for communicating the institution's value proposition. Market mavens play a significant role in the marketplace and can be part of a communication strategy. They are individuals who facilitate the exchange of information and willingly provide help to other marketplace participants. A sample of 346 responses from online students at a university in the southwestern United States was utilized. The results support the influence of affinity for technology in market mavenism in a higher education setting. In addition, the antecedents of self-efficacy, altruism, and marketplace involvement were confirmed to impact market mavenism. Market mavens communicate positive word-of-mouth, making them an attractive target for marketing communications. Higher education institutions have an opportunity to identify and focus on market mavens, who in turn can assist other students’ decision-making and give the institution a promotional advantage.

ABSTRACT The Voluntourism (VT) phenomenon combines volunteering with travelling. Students’ education as global citizens challenges universities for community-engagement programs to enrich participants’ personal and professional development. The present article addresses the issue of how universities can retransform VT into a win-win scenario based on co-creation experiential learning programs. A lexical analysis of 28 semi-structured interviews reveals universities’ positive influence on the progress of the VT industry by extending their mission toward the inclusion of communities. The findings reported here advance an opportunity together with VT operators’ operational support that goes beyond knowledge transference while embracing a mutual education in socio-cultural skills for students as volunteers and local communities.