Out-of-Province Students' Choice of University for Higher Education: Influencing Factors and Encountered Challenges

Zahra Sadry; Marwah Ahmadi; Zahra Sorosh Amiry; Hadia Waezi; Noorya Amiri

doi:10.55544/ijrah.5.2.22

Authors

Zahra Sadry English Language and Literature Department, Balkh University, AFGHANISTAN. https://orcid.org/0009-0002-2143-8848
Marwah Ahmadi English Language and Literature Department, Balkh University, AFGHANISTAN.
Zahra Sorosh Amiry English Language and Literature Department, Balkh University, AFGHANISTAN.
Hadia Waezi English Language and Literature Department, Balkh University, AFGHANISTAN.
Noorya Amiri English Language and Literature Department, Balkh University, AFGHANISTAN.

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.55544/ijrah.5.2.22

Keywords:

University selection, out-of-province students, factors, challenges

Abstract

Choosing a higher education institution at which to study shapes students’ professional careers and is one of the most complex and major life decisions that prospective students make. In developing countries, it can be an especially challenging choice for female students who want to study at a university beyond their hometown or region. This mixed methods study seeks to investigate the factors that highly influence Afghan out-of-province students' choice of a particular public university for higher education and to analyze the challenges they encounter. An identical concurrent sampling technique is utilized to recruit the study sample. Employing convergent parallel design, the current paper combines a quantitative survey (n=14, analyzed using SPSS 25.0) and qualitative semi-structured interviews (n=14, analyzed using thematic analysis) of Afghan out-of-province female undergraduates regarding the most influential factors for their choice of university, the challenges encountered, and their lived experiences. The findings reveal that economic, personal, university-related, and social factors influence students' decision-making when selecting an institution. Subsequently, these students highlight that they encounter affective, university-related, financial, and social-environmental challenges during their university studies.

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