An examination of the congruency between New Zealand ITP practices to attract Chinese students and the criteria employed by those students to evaluate education providers

The export education industry boosts the economies of participating countries. In the current tertiary education environment the reputed institutions enjoy a strong demand for enrolment from overseas Chinese students. Even though this market is still at the growth stage in New Zealand, some tertiary education institutions, especially ITPs, face many challenges in attracting potential students from overseas markets. The aim of this research is to assist underperforming ITPs to enhance their attractiveness and improve the market share by identifying the decision-making criteria used by overseas Chinese students to select their tertiary education providers. This was achieved using a qualitative approach to gather information from a group of overseas Chinese students in New Zealand. The study used a purposive sample. Twenty interviews were conducted with the Chinese overseas students, who were recruited from four language schools based in Auckland. Specific criteria were used to select the sample. A four factor model of decision making criteria was established from the data gathered. This recognizes a range of important influences on the decision-making process of Chinese overseas students when selecting a tertiary education institution in New Zealand. Moreover, the relevant issues effecting promotion strategies of ITPs that are linked to the decision making criteria of Chinese students have been established. The preferences for new media and the Internet were also investigated. The sample size selected and use of in-depth interviews as single data collection method was sufficient to gather the information required to answer the research question. This research provides useful market information to ITPs to improve the effectiveness of their communication programs. Future research should focus on testing the validity of these decision criteria using a large sample, both qualitatively and quantitatively