Higher Education Major Preferences of Students in UAE: It’s Implication to Recruitment

Abstract

Recruitment of sufficient number of qualified students in   United Arab Emirates (UAE) is challenging because of the number of available Higher Education Institutions (HEIs). The number of majors offered by the HEIs have grown extensively in a short   period of time . In order to remain competitive, HEIs must identify and develop majors that would attract prospective students and optimize the effectiveness of offered majors. While most of the studies were conducted in developed countries, there is a lack of published research in GCC countries and particularly in the UAE. This paper attempts to determine the factors that impact UAE students’ choice of majors in HEIs. Descriptive method was utilized on 510 sample size. The findings of the study may prompt the HEIs to assess the currency of the offered majors in the light of factors influencing students’ choice of majors and identify new majors that would be attractive to prospective students.