University Education Branding: the Case of University of Novi Sad, Faculty of Science
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UNIVERSITIY OF LJUBLJANA FACULTY OF ECONOMICS MASTER‟S THESIS UNIVERSITY EDUCATION BRANDING: THE CASE OF UNIVERSITY OF NOVI SAD, FACULTY OF SCIENCE Ljubljana, January 2011 OLIVERA KRKLJEŠ STATEMENT I, Olivera Krklješ, hereby certify to be the author of this Master‟s thesis, that was written under mentorship of prof. Vesna Ţabkar, Ph.D. In compliance with the Act of Author‟s and Related Rights - Para 1, Article 21, I hereby agree this thesis to be published on the website pages of the Faculty of Economics, University of Ljubljana, Slovenia. Date: _________________ Signature: ____________________ TABLE OF CONTENTS INTRODUCTION ............................................................................................................... 1 1 MARKETING IN HIGHER EDUCATION .................................................................. 2 1.1 Role of Education in the society .................................................................................. 2 1.2 Key issues in higher education today .......................................................................... 4 1.3 Higher education from marketing perspective ............................................................ 6 1.4 Marketing from higher education perspective ............................................................. 8 1.5 Marketing strategies and marketing mix of higher education ..................................... 9 2 ROLE OF BRANDING IN HIGHER EDUCATION ................................................. 12 2.1 Brand equity definition .............................................................................................. 13 2.1.1 Importance of consumer perceptions in branding .............................................. 13 2.1.2 From satisfaction to loyalty ................................................................................ 14 2.2 Relationship marketing in higher education branding ............................................... 18 2.3 Corporate branding of higher education institutions ................................................. 19 2.4 Corporate Identity of higher education institutions ................................................... 20 2.4.1 Corporate visual identity in context of universities ............................................ 21 2.4.2 Corporate communication in higher education institutions ................................ 22 2.4.3 Influence of employees‟ behavior on service quality ......................................... 24 2.4.4 Benefits of understanding corporate culture of higher education institutions .... 25 2.5 Reputation of higher education institutions ............................................................... 28 2.6 Phases to follow when branding higher education institution ................................... 29 3 ANALYSIS OF MARKETING AND BRANDING AT THE UNIVERSITY OF NOVI SAD .................................................................... 31 3.1 Higher education in Serbia ........................................................................................ 31 3.2 Higher education in Novi Sad ................................................................................... 35 3.2.1 International cooperation and scientific and research projects at the University ........................................................................................................... 37 3.2.2 PEST analysis of higher education in Serbia and Novi Sad ............................... 38 3.2.3 Students of University of Novi Sad .................................................................... 41 3.2.4 University and its facilities ................................................................................. 42 3.2.5 University and labor market ............................................................................... 42 3.2.6 University and personnel .................................................................................... 43 3.2.7 SWOT analysis for University of Novi Sad ....................................................... 45 4 ANALYSIS OF MARKETING AND BRANDING AT FACULTY OF SCIENCES .................................................................................................... 45 4.1 General data about the faculty of Sciences ................................................................ 45 4.2 The Faculty of Sciences‟ marketing beginnings........................................................ 46 4.3 Research at the Faculty of Sciences .......................................................................... 47 4.3.1 Secondary data about students‟ and graduates‟ satisfaction ............................... 48 4.3.2 First year students‟ questionnaire and results ..................................................... 56 4.3.3 Present students‟ satisfaction .............................................................................. 61 4.3.4 Interviews with teaching staff............................................................................. 72 i 4.4 Problems identified from the research ...................................................................... 77 4.5.1 Recommendations regarding promotional activities .......................................... 79 4.5.2 Recommendations for achieving greater satisfaction from students‟ side and increasing their loyalty ...................................................................................... 81 CONCLUSION .................................................................................................................. 83 REFERENCES .................................................................................................................. 86 APPENDICES LIST OF FIGURES Figure 1: Corporate Identity Stakeholders ........................................................................ 20 Figure 2: Model of cultural congruence for organization ................................................. 27 Figure 3: Branding cycle ................................................................................................... 30 Figure 4: Library usage ..................................................................................................... 49 Figure 5: Efficiency of the library service ......................................................................... 50 Figure 6: Studying room usage ......................................................................................... 50 Figure 7: Computer center usage ...................................................................................... 51 Figure 8: Laboratories usage ............................................................................................. 51 Figure 9: Evaluation of the statement “staff behavior is correct” ..................................... 52 Figure 10: Evaluation of interaction.................................................................................... 52 Figure 11: Tutorial attendance ............................................................................................ 53 Figure 12: Evaluation of courses applicability .................................................................... 53 Figure 13: Evaluation of literature adequacy ...................................................................... 54 Figure 14: Graduates‟ evaluation of the applicability of the courses .................................. 55 Figure 15: Graduates evaluation of opportunities for further development ........................ 55 Figure 16: If graduates could choose again, they would choose ......................................... 56 Figure 17: Gender structure................................................................................................. 57 Figure 18: Most frequent secondary schools....................................................................... 58 Figure 19: Region from which students are coming ........................................................... 59 Figure 20: Students‟ first source of information ................................................................. 59 Figure 21: Students‟ decision timing .................................................................................. 60 Figure 22: Motives of enrollment at the Faculty of Sciences ............................................. 60 Figure 23: Gender structure................................................................................................. 64 Figure 24: Students‟ tutorials‟ frequency ............................................................................ 66 Figure 25: Students‟ evaluation of student-teacher ratio .................................................... 66 Figure 26: Students‟ evaluation of whether they are satisfied with internship opportunities ...................................................................................................... 67 Figure 27: Students‟ awareness of Center for Career Development ................................... 67 ii LIST OF TABLES Table 1: Average length of studies per university ............................................................. 33 Table 2: Facts and figures of the University of Novi Sad ................................................. 36 Table 3: Opportunities and Threats for University of Novi Sad ....................................... 41 Table 4: University of Novi Sad Employees‟ facts and figures in 2009/2010 .................. 44 Table 5: Strengths and weaknesses of the University of Novi Sad ................................... 45 Table 6: Sample structure according to department of study ...........................................