Abstract:

There are several factors influencing the specific choice of higher education studies, such as students’ own preferences and skills, family, social environment, future employment expectations and expected earnings. The importance given by the students to these factors is especially relevant to understand the bachelor attraction capability, and to stablish strategies of student recruitment, as well as for improving the quality of the educational offer.

It has been developed a comparative analysis of the motivations and perceptions the students have when they choose a degree from two different fields of study: Social and Legal Sciences and Health Sciences. A questionnaire was elaborated for this research, which included the definition of a short scale of motivations and perceptions. The scale has been proved valid and reliable. Responses of a sample of 1231 first year students from the University of the Balearic Islands allowed contrasting the differences within and between the two groups of degrees considered: Social and Legal Sciences (Law, Economics, Business Administration and Management and Tourism degrees) on one hand, and Health Sciences (Nursing, Physiotherapy and Psychology degrees) on the other.

Results show that motivations related to vocational interests and expected economic returns are considered by students as the most important ones, being the two groups internally quite homogeneous. On the other hand, the comparison between groups shows that there are significant differences in almost all motivations. There are also gender differences, which are particularly significant in assessing the importance of the vocational interest, which is much more important for women.

Keywords:

Educational decisions, degree choice, motivation, perception, fields of study, students, higher education, gender differences.