How to Attract Prospective Students? on the Influence of Study Course Image on Behavioral Intentions

As West and colleagues (2001) note, in the higher education market not only institutions, such as universities or business schools, but also academic fields of study and the corresponding study courses, such as engineering, marketing, or psychology, compete for prospective students. Sufficient recruitment rates are not only vital for the social and economic well-being of societies (e.g., Dainty and Edwards 2003; de Grip and Willems 2003; Redford 2005). It is also from utmost importance for universities, schools and their faculties. As a result, the question arises how universities can stimulate and motivate students to start a study in a specific course. More specifically, there is need for identifying relevant determinants that affect students’ intention to start a study course.