Parents’ Economic Status and Undergraduate Selected Courses in Private Universities in Western Uganda. A Case study of Kampala International University Western Campus

Margaret Nuwamanya; Gershom Atukunda; Johnson Atwiine

doi:10.37284/eajass.7.1.2065

Margaret Nuwamanya Bishop Stuart University
Gershom Atukunda, PhD Bishop Stuart University
Johnson Atwiine, PhD Bishop Stuart University

DOI: https://doi.org/10.37284/eajass.7.1.2065

Keywords: Social-Economic Status, Undergraduate Selection of Courses, Parents’ Income Level, Parents’ Education Level and Parents’ Occupation

Share Article:

Abstract

This study assessed the effect of Parents’ social-economic status on undergraduate selection of courses in Private Universities in Western Uganda, with a case of KIU Western Compass. The study was guided by the following specific objectives: (i) to determine the effect of parents’ income level on undergraduate selection of courses by University students at KIU, western campus, The study adopted cross-sectional survey design for quantitative approach. The study considered 205 students of Kampla International Univesity. Quantitative data was analysed using linear regression using SPSS version 25. The study found out that parents’ income level had a strong positive significant relationship between Parents’ income level and undergraduate selection of courses since the p-value is less than 0.05. The study recommends that students from lower-income backgrounds may prioritize majors that they perceive to have more immediate economic value, such as those leading directly to a specific job or career path, rather than majors in the liberal arts or humanities, which may be seen as less practical

Downloads

Download data is not yet available.

References

Akhtar, I. (2016). Research in social science: Interdisciplinary perspectives. Chapter: Research Design’ Research in Social Science Interdisciplinary Perspectives, 1-84.

Amin, M.E. (2005) Social Science Research: Conception Methodology and Analysis. Makerere University Printeryafd, Kampala.

Budhrani, K., Martin, F., Malabanan, O., & Espiritu, J. L. (2021). How did parents balance it all? Work-from home parents’ engagement in academic and support roles during remote learning. Journal of Online Learning Research, 7(2), 153-184.

Cooper, M., & Pugh, A. J. (2020). Families across the income spectrum: A decade in review. Journal of Marriage and Family, 82(1), 272-299.

Coupe, N. (2020). Promoting dietary behaviour change in low socioeconomic status groups (Doctoral dissertation, University of Manchester).

Dagawa, B. G. (2015). Influence of home background on course choice of undergraduate students in Islamic University of Uganda. Islamic University in Uganda.

Dudovskiy, D. (2016). The Ultimate Guide to Writing A Dissertation In Business Studies. A Step by Step Assistance (1st ed.). Research methodology.

Jackson, D., & Wilton, N. (2017). Career choice status among undergraduates and the influence of career management competencies and perceived employability. Journal of Education and Work, 30(5), 552-569

Jamabo, T. (2014). Relationship between parental socio-economic variables and adolescents’ vocational aspiration. Journal of Education and Practice, 5(13), 169-172.

Manoharan, S., Arockiam, K., & Head, A. P. (2017). Influence of Income and Education of the Parents on the Career Aspirations of Industrial Aspirants.

Mbabazi, A., Asiimwe, A., & Mwesigye, A. (2023). Exploration of the factors influencing access to university education by students from rural secondary schools: A case study of Kasese District in Uganda. IDOSR Journal of Humanities and Social Sciences, 8(1), 14-32.

Misran, N., Sahuri, S. N. S., Arsad, N., Hussain, H., Zaki, W. M. D. W., & Aziz, N. A. (2012). The influence of socio-economic status among matriculation students in selecting university and undergraduate program. Procedia-Social and Behavioral Sciences, 56, 134-140.

Monaheng, R. L. (2023). Factors influencing secondary school learners’ career choices at one tertiary institution in Lesotho (Doctoral dissertation, NUL).

Niu, L. (2017). Family socioeconomic status and choice of STEM major in college: An analysis of a national sample. College Student Journal, 51(2), 298-312.

Nyamwange, J. (2016). Influence of Student's Interest on Career Choice among First Year University Students in Public and Private Universities in Kisii County, Kenya. Journal of Education and Practice, 7(4), 96-102.

Odiri, E. O. (2022). The influence of parents on students’ choice of career in these present occupational challenges. IJIET (International Journal of Indonesian Education and Teaching), 7, 1-7. 10.24071/ijiet.v7i1.4968.

Olamide, S. O., & Olawaiye, S. O. (2013). The factors determining the choice of career among secondary school students. The International Journal of Engineering and Science, 2(6), 33-44.

Omar, M. K., Zaman, M. D. K., & Aziz, M. H. (2021). Factors influencing career choice among final semester undergraduate students of a business management faculty in a Malaysian public university. International Journal of Academic Research in Business and Social Sciences, 10(2), 361-373.

Proctor, H., Roch, A., Breidenstein, G., & Forsey, M. (2023). Parents, schools and the twenty-first century state: comparative perspectives. In Parents, Schools and the State (pp. 1-14). Routledge.

Rosinger, K. O., Sarita Ford, K., & Choi, J. (2021). The role of selective college admissions criteria in interrupting or reproducing racial and economic inequities. The Journal of Higher Education, 92(1), 31-55.

Sekaran, U. and Bougie, R. (2013) Research Methods for Business: A Skill-Building Approach. 6th Edition, Wiley, New York.

Siddiky, M. R., & Akter, S. (2021). The Students' Career Choice and Job Preparedness Strategies: A Social Environmental Perspective. International Journal of Evaluation and Research in Education, 10(2), 421-431.

Sidik, M. I., & Satrianto, A. (2020, November). The Effect of Parents’ Socio-Economic Status on Student Interest Continuing Postgraduate Education. In The Fifth Padang International Conference on Economics Education, Economics, Business and Management, Accounting and Entrepreneurship (PICEEBA-5 2020) (pp. 297-309). Atlantis Press.

Van de Werfhorst, H. G., Sullivan, A., & Cheung, S. Y. (2003). Social class, ability and choice of subject in secondary and tertiary education in Britain. British educational research journal, 29(1), 41-62.

Zulaikah, W., Rebecca, N., & Jill Margret, O. (2023). The study on the effect of child labour on the learner’s academic performance in secondary schools.