Determinants of the choice to enroll in Tourism education among students in Public Universities in Kenya

Abstract

Dismal and unpredictable enrollment rates characterize today's tourism education in Kenyan universities, partially caused by overemphasis on science-related careers by education stakeholders, including the government. This has seen reduced tourism graduates and inadequate understanding of why students shy away from tourism courses, despite a clarion call by the Kenyan National Tourism Blueprint 2030 to promote tourism education. Therefore, the present study examined determinants influencing students’ choice to enroll in tourism education in public universities in Kenya. Specific objectives of the study established the influence of socio-economic factors (employment, tuition fees, parents and family background), psychological factors (ability, skills, efficacy, and personal interests), and demographic factors (ethnic background, religion, and gender) on students’ choice to enroll in tourism education in selected public universities in Kenya. The study was anchored on a human capital theory supported by status attainment theory and social cognitive career theory. The study focused on 12 public universities and targeted 719 undergraduate tourism students and 12 heads of departments (HODs). The study adopted a pragmatist paradigm and used an explanatory-descriptive survey design. A study sample encompassed 204 respondents: 192 students and 12 HODs. Multiple sampling techniques were adopted; the purposive sampling technique was used to select public universities offering tourism degrees and HODs, while simple random sampling was used to sample first-year students. Data was collected using quantitative (semi-structured questionnaires for the students) and qualitative (semi-structured interviews for the HODs) methods. Data analysis followed the structural equation model (SEM) to establish the relationships between the study variables of the hypothetical model. Model fit indices of the SEM revealed that the model was appropriate (χ2/df = 3.654; IFI = 0.985; TLI = 0.943; CFI = 0.976; RMSEA = 0.0541). The findings indicated that the three latent variables; demographic factors, psychological factors, and socioeconomic factors combined, accounted for 82% (R² =.82) variability of the student's decision to enroll. Further, at a confidence level of 95% (p<0.05), the correlation analysis coefficient path values showed that psychological factors (β =1.742; t=9.107; p=0.027) and demographic factors (β= 1.433; t=9.111; p=0.042) had a stronger positive statistically significant influence on student's enrollment decision than socioeconomic factors (β= 0.872; t=9.176; p=0.031). The findings rejected the three null hypotheses; thus, alternatives were accepted; socioeconomic factors, psychological factors, and demographic factors influence students' choice to enroll in tourism education. Qualitative findings identified poverty levels, counsellor career guidance, marketability of the course, prior linguistic skills (German and Dutch languages) and computer studies as thematic determinants of enrollment trends. The study concluded that for public universities to attract more students to enroll in tourism programs, they must clearly understand and prioritize the proponents of psychological and demographic factors while marketing tourism programs. Further, continual support for needy families through bursaries will go a long way to support a sizeable number of students joining universities to pursue tourism education. The study has theoretical and practical value and recommends that stakeholders in public universities must be willing to facilitate students’ transition from high school to university and support rigorous tourism programs’ awareness in prospectus candidates. The study recommends future studies to incorporate private universities and mid-level colleges offering tourism programs while assessing other factors determining enrollment decisions like the reputation of a university and government policies that might mediate the direct relationship, using longitudinal and in-depth approaches.