Employee Retention in Institutions of Higher Learning: A Study of Some Selected University Colleges in Ghana

The study investigated the issue of employee retention across private tertiary institutions in Ghana with a focus on Senior Members of some selected university colleges in the Ashanti Region. The mixed-method approach was used in a descriptive survey design. In all, 111 respondents were selected from four university colleges using purposive and convenience sampling methods. Interview guide and questionnaire were relied upon in collecting data for the study, with frequencies, percentages, Kruskal-Wallis test and thematic analyses as analytical tools. The study observed that the expectations of Senior Members before accepting employment in the selected institutions include getting a high salary, better working conditions, more training opportunities, career development opportunities, a favourable working environment as well as obtaining some form of recognition and appreciation in the institutions. Again, several factors such as better remuneration, care and concern from employers, more training and development opportunities, better promotion system, conducive working environment, and increased employee engagement influenced retention of Senior Members in the institutions. However, no significant differences were observed in the views of Senior Members (academic and non-academic) of the selected institutions on the factors influencing employee retention. The study recommends that HR Units of the selected universities should effectively collaborate with the HRM experts of the universities to design fair and proper training and development programs to motivate employees to stay in the organizations. Keywords: Employee retention, tertiary institutions, human resource management, Ghana DOI: 10.7176/JEP/13-5-06 Publication date: February 28th 202