The twin research objectives of this paper are: 1) To determine what influences students’ choice of private educational institutions in Singapore. 2) To ascertain what are the marketing implications for private education providers in Singapore. The design of this study is to understand the importance of the factors affecting students’ decisions on the institutions chosen for further studies. A self-administered questionnaire was given to targeted respondents at a private educational institution in Singapore. A sample comprising 245 students took part in the study. The questionnaire contains interval scales, ranging from 1 (least important) to 7 (most important). Descriptive statistics and factor analysis were conducted. Subsequently, cluster analysis was performed to identify the clusters of students who placed different levels of emphasis on those factors identified for choosing the institutions. Factor analysis showed that seven factors were discovered, including academic reputation and recognition, campus environment, reference group influence, programme relevancy, promotional information, financial cost, and accessibility and location. Each factor had Eigenvalues which were greater than one, and together these seven factors explained 64.62% of the overall variance. Cronbach’s alpha coefficients were above 0.7. Subsequently, cluster analysis was performed on the sample using the seven factors. A 3-cluster solution was generated. These three clusters were identified as high expectation seekers, independent thinkers and rational decision makers.The literature comprises similar studies done in many countries but there is still a dearth of related literature on Singapore. This paper will provide preliminary insights and perhaps lead to further cross-disciplinary studies into this area.It will contribute to the understanding of the marketing implications for private education providers, which is unique to some countries like Singapore, where there is huge demand (both local and overseas) for educational programmes run by private educational institutions. The research should provide useful and practical insights into the primary and secondary inputs that influence students’ choice and how these higher education providers can use this information to improve marketing strategies, educational products, pricing, distribution and promotions to segment and target potential students.The research findings will help these private education providers enhance their understanding and use of marketing as a key business function and elevate its importance as an effective tool in a competitive environment.