An International Graduate Student-Consumers’ Choice Model for Philippine Higher Education Institutions (HEIs): A Business Model
University of Santo Tomas, Philippines
ABSTRACT
This theoretical paper contends the tenet that countries and their respective higher educational institutions should continue viewing international education as a traditional public good. Instead, they must acknowledge intense competition and consider it as a product based on market perspective. The new competitive education landscape compels them to adopt and apply marketing concepts in their operations in order to influence international students in their choice of country destination, university, and study program. Based on the business model concept, this paper highlights the need, develop, and describe a new framework for ‘students-as-consumers’ concept by reviewing the existing literature on students’ choice. The paper shows how students as consumers can be attracted or recruited; and, how host countries and their respective higher education institutions can optimize their resources by presenting the newly developed framework as a new business model. The study offers some managerial and research implications for future study.
KEYWORDS
Internationalization, international students, higher education models, higher education institutions