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FACTORS INFLUENCING THE IBSMA STUDENTS DECISION IN CHOOSING

Crizza Mae Noay

Background of the Study

Fulfilling dreams requires information and knowledge—information about the

requirements for reaching goals and knowledge of one’s strength and limitations. Decision

making is the logical way of setting one’s mind to choose the possibilities to satisfy man’s

ease. Good decision making is an essential skill for career success generally, and effective

leadership particularly every day we make decision, whether big or small and this decision

can make impacts in our life’s failure to make the right decision often leads to downfall.

Students face one of the most crucial decisions and that is choosing their course. College

students chose their course for many reasons. The factors that affect this decision includes

family, passion, past experience, peer influence, practicality and financial stability. In addition

to this, race and gender can also affect what course a student may choose. Another thing that

play a big role in what course may choose is the people or role models in their life. A role

models can include their parents, teachers, or recent employer. When a student are choosing

their course they may have all information about the course they are pursuing. (Alba, et al,

March 2010)

According to (Jessie Garwal) Choosing a career can be easily defined as the biggest

decision that one takes at a very young age. It’s never easy to decide what one wants tio do

with their lives, especially when they are not mature enough to think ahead and take an

informed decision. Even though it may seem that students are not capable to choose a

career, the decision depends on them. So it’s essential that they are not informed about all the

options and choices they have so that when they choose a career, they won’t have to regret

their choices.

Authors in the field of education and behavioural science tend to attribute different

factors that influence career choice among individuals .Factors such as parents and family
environment, job opportunity, job security, prestige and family background are among major

players in choice of careers (Joseph and Ralph 1982).

The Universiti Malaysia Sarawak (UNIMAS) introduced accounting program in

September 2012. This study examines the impact of factors like past achievements, personal

interests, job prospect, media, family members and peers on the choice of students in

accepting the offer of Accounting as a major.

Based on the study of Faisal S. Alanezi, Mishari M. Alfraih, et al suggest that the

factors most affecting students’ decision to major in accounting were career opportunities,

prestige, and interesting subject. ‘Being with friends’, ‘family advice’ and ‘friend advice’ were

found to be least important factors influencing students’ decisions.

OBJECTIVE OF THE STUDY

The general objectives of the study is to examine factors affecting students of

Institute of Business Science and Medical Arts (IBSMA) in choosing Accountancy as a course.

STATEMENT OF THE PROBLEM

The factors that affect IBSMA Student’s decision making in choosing Accountancy.

1. What are the factors influencing the students of IBSMA in choosing Accountancy?

1.1 Do parents dictate what their children must choose?

1.2 Does financial stability affect the availability of the course?

1.3 Do the students concern of the practicality of the course?

1.3.1 Many people (especially the youth) demand for jobs right after graduation

1.3.2 The youth today wants to secure a stable job after taking the course

1.4 Does “bandwagon effect “influence much of the student’s mind especially when it is

confuse in choosing the right path?

A wrong career choice leads to open the door for life long consequences. There are

numerous problem encountered by the students in the process of selecting their course.

There are factors that affects the decision making process, those factors include family,

passion, past experience, peers, etc. Some may encounter race and gender. In the family

factor, do parents really need to dictate what their children must choose? In a Filipino

culture, parents want their children to be like them. But parents can only guide their child

about what careers are they going to choose. Decision should be entirely done by the child.

Filipino parents are being outdated and they follow old age conventional thoughts. This

where the parents do the mistake.

Not all Filipinos are able to study because of economic stability. They always think

that tuition fee is a problem. We must think what the impact of financial stability are.

Finances are affecting students’ academic experience. The youth today wants to have a

secure and stable job after taking their course because of a poor financial stability.

Teenagers today on the other side take Accountancy because their friends take it

too. “Bandwagon Effect” influence much of the students mind especially when it is confuse in

choosing the right path. Influential people (Parents, Teachers, Friends) has a huge impact.

What they say or do can be a big part of a child decision. It can be a negative influence

leading to a bad life choices, or a good role that can be positive influence leading to a good

decision.

College was never meant to be that so easy. It is full of decisions, lectures, difficulties

etc. Some tried to endure it all and continue studying so they don’t disappoint their parents.

Taking the course you want is a very much amazing journey. Students experienced ups, and

also a whole bunch of downs but in every end there is an experience, a lesson learned.

Being a graduate with the course you want and making the people around you proud and of

course your own self proud is the real success.

This study will serve and guide readers in a number of purposes. This study will

benefits the following:

STUDENTS: The object of learning and direct beneficiaries of the study. They may be more

aware of their interest and more certain and assured of what they want to become in the

future.

PARENTS: The research will help parents to understand their child endeavour. Parents will

be informed and realize that they have a great role that play in fostering decision making

towards the students future and achieving their goals.

TEACHER/INSTRUCTOR: The information will help teachers to be aware that their

recommendation is an important factor for the realization of a student’s choice. This may be

going to become an instrument for them to understand the significance of knowing how to

motivate students in picking a goal or a profession for a better future.

ADMINISTRATORS: This study will help administrators to encourage more people to enrol in

this institution especially they are the only school who can offer Accountancy in this town .It

also can give them knowledge on what possible actions they going to do like providing and

supporting the accounting students.

FUTURE REACHERS: It will serve as researcher’s guide or a reference to their studies

regarding in choosing Accountancy as a course.

The study is limited to determine the effects of the factors that affect the

student’s decision in choosing Accountancy. This study includes the senior high school

students particularly the ABM students, college students and alumni of Institute of Business

Science and Medical Arts who took up Accountancy

Another limitation of this study lies within the questionnaire used to obtain the

results. As described previously the factors indicated by previous literature listed each one

separately. The current study grouped those influences together to come up with a category

of influence (i.e. family, passion, past experienced, peer influenced, practicality, financial

stability, race and gender).

Once those categories were defined in separate items for each category were

use in the survey for students to rank. This may have been a flow within the methods and

leads to results being non-significant. As it was, some of the items in each category were very

influential to students while others are not at all.

Only 50 respondents (ABM and Accountancy students of IBSMA) where

chosen by the researchers to participate the study.

Definition of Terms

The following major keywords in this study were defined in the purpose of better

understanding and clarity in the context of the research.

Ability

Is a common way to provide feedback on good performance that can boost children’s

sense of efficacy and motivate their learning. (Koestner et al., 1989)

Bandwagon Effect

Refers to the tendency people have to adopt a certain behaviour, style, or attitude

simply because everyone else is doing it. (Kendra Cherry 2019)

Decision Making

It is what is sounds like; the action or process of making decisions. (Clear 2019)
Financial Stability

Define in terms of its ability to facilitate and enhance economic processes, manage

risks, and absorb shocks. (GJ Schinasi 2004)

Gender

Is define as a personal conception of one self as male or female ( or rarely, both or

neither). (Shuvo Ghosh 2015)

Practicality

The quality or condition of being practical. (Webster’s New World College Dictionary

2014)

Race

The idea that the human species is divided into distinct groups on the basis of inherit

physical and behavioural differences. (Yasuko I., Takezawa, Audrey Smedly, Peter Wade)

Role Model

Serves as an example – inspiring children to live meaningful lives. Show young

people how to live with integrity, optimism, hope, determination, and compassion. They play

an essential part in a child’s positive development. (Marilyn Price-Mitchell, PhD)

REVIEW OF RELATED LITERATURE

1.1 THEORIES OF CAREER CHOICE

Career choice is a lifelong process of decision-making for those who seek major

satisfaction from their work. Theory said that people make decisions with balance, their

interest and values with the opportunities and talents are available, as well as the cost of

pursuing opportunities. There are some theories in relation to career choice, for example

social cognitive theory, it says that family and relative have influences on student’s

career choice. According to person’s theory says that individual should consider their

skills and abilities on how they may fit with a particular occupation. In addition,

individuals need knowledge to the job, the labour market and compensation which

includes salary and benefits (BANDURA 1986)

1.2 RELATED EMPIRICAL STUDIES

Above theories were supported by different empirical studies. For example, the study

of (Zakaria, Fauzi and Hassan, 2012). Their findings found out that word economic

globalization, internationalization, and the pace of economic development has called for

greater emphasis on professionalism on various field of endeavour in order to meet the

needs of economic development, as well as the current developmental challenges the

world requires the service of more experts for resolution, knowledge and motivation.

One of the areas which are concerned directly with these challenges is the

accounting profession. This is because global economic development relies on informed

decision based on financial prospects and accountability. Accounting has been

described as the act of data collection, classification, summarisation, interpretation and

communication of the relevant financial information of an entity to interested parties.

Accountants are involved in a range of activities such as auditing, taxation and

consultancy.
 Therefore, choosing a career choice in accounting involves a decision based on

informed knowledge (Asuguo, 2011). Various factors influence career choice especially

in accounting. Profession has been viewed as lucrative, promising, boring, interesting

and difficult by different individuals.

In study conducted by (Fred, 1995) viewed that career choice has become a complex

science, with the advent of information and communication factors influencing career

choice could be intrinsic, extrinsic or both.

Similar to the study of Fred in the study conducted by Abdullahi & Bukar, 2000) said

that financial motivation, desire and other personal interest to influence career choice.

On the other hand parent, peer group, relatives, environment and government policies

have impact on individual’s career choices (Myburgh, 2005).

In the study conducted by (Maudlin and Mounce, 2000), It was discovered that

educators and the faculty played significant role in the career choice of accountants. The

study identifies lifestyle, financial security and motivation, nature of work and work roles

as an indicators of career choice in accounting. Various theories have been used in

evaluating the factors responsible of choice of career.

Cohen and Harno conducted a survey in the factors influencing career choice and

found out that non-accounting students regards accounting as boring and number

oriented. Similarly to this study, Maudlin et al (2000) found that accounting instructor is

influential factor of choice of accounting programme.

Since Institutions offer’ courses which are not their top of the line, it is a must for

students to choose schools that excel with what course they prefer. It should be carefully

examined. Nevertheless if the student pass in one of the best school in the country but

didn’t qualify in the course he really wants, second thoughts might arrived. It is up to the

student whether to choose that best school or proceed to the school where he passed

and met the qualifications for his real choice. Every factor must be carefully weighted it is

all about grabbing the opportunity and taking the risks in finding a place where one

student feels like he belong.

to expected enjoyment. People are typically motivated to make decisions based on

perceived happiness in the outcome. In their study students were given course

description of classes of classes and asked which ones they were more likely to take a

course based on the expected enjoyment rather than usefulness. Accounts payable

courses that ranked highly however, were those that students perceived as both

enjoyable and useful. Falk and colleagues’ study reinforced the notion that emotion and

rationality combined affect decision making. Though their research was used to

determine differences between cultures that are individualistic and collectivist, the idea

that we as humans base our decisions on our feelings of expected outcome and future

events holds true to all.

As individuals progress through college, the research for employments become

increasingly important. Gati, Givon & Osipow studied the aspects and preference level

that individuals consider when selecting a career. Aspects refers to the different factors,

and preferences is viewed as how high a level of importance the individual placed on

particular aspects. Through analysis based on monitored dialogues between their 1252

female and 751 male participants and a computer assisted career decision making

system, they found out the following. Both men and women found it extremely important

in choosing a career to have interest in the field, variety, opportunity for professional

advancement and higher income levels.

Understanding what factors are used to decide a career is comparable to what is

used to decide and academic major as well. Since choosing an academic major is

usually the first step in setting an individual on a career path, the process of deciding

needs to be investigated directly. Most students choose a major when they choose an

institution, it may seem to some that this is too early to make an informed decision about

to study over the course of one’s college career, but it is indicative of the process most

institutions follow.
 A study conducted by Hujra, et.al, (2010) shows that the difficulty of the course has

a significant negative effect on student’s choice of accounting. Due to accounting and

finance courses are the combination of heavily theoretical and quantitative, most

students is believed that these courses are difficult. As a result, most students have

withdrawn from the course because their quality does not match with the skills which are

required by these courses. But study conducted by Uyar, & Kuzey, (2011) shows that

the difficulty of the course has no significant effect on student’s choice of accounting.

According to the finding of Tan and Laswad, (2009), the need for dynamic and

challenging environment has a positive significant effect on student’s choice of

accounting. But the finding of Wells and Frieger, (2005) contradict to Tan and Laswad

finding who found that need for dynamic and challenging environment has an excellent

career for honours students who needs challenging work environment.

The study conducted by Jones and Wright, (2011) shows on their study that those

students taken accounting in high school had a significant positive effect on the initial

decision to major in accounting. Byrne, Willis, and Burke, (2012) also shows that the

students begin to make their career choices during their secondary education and for

many their educational and occupational aspirations are quite fixed by the time they

enter their final school year.

According to the finding of Azevedo, & Sugahara (2012) creativity has a significant

negative effect on student’s choice of accounting. It shows that students who have

strong creativity are not willing to join the accounting profession because they are

looking that accounting profession because they are looking that accounting is less

creative than other professions, however, the finding of Britt, (2012) shows that creativity

has a significant positive effect on student’s choice of accounting as a career.

The finding of Ahinful, Paintsil, & Danquah, (2012) Uyar, & Kuzey, (2012), U.S

Bureau of Labor Statistics (2012), and Gabriel, et.al, (2012) shoe that job opportunity has

a significant positive effect on choosing accounting as a career. Students are choosing

accounting as a profession due to its high job opportunity. In addition to these according
to the U.S Bureau of Labor Statistics, accountants are expected to experience much

faster than average employment growth through 2018.

According to Byrne et.al, (2012), and Wells and Fieger, (2005) social status has a

significant negative effect on choosing accounting as a career. The society viewed that

an accounting is not an excellent career for honor students because they believed that it

has a lower social status, having relatively easy interesting work. They suggest that the

most able students with better communication skills are likely to be guided to professions

other than accounting.

(Wally-dima, 2013), this study examined the factors that have influenced students at

the University of Botswana to select accounting as a major. The population was the final

year accounting students at University of Botswana who were all majoring in accounting.

Total population of the target group was 133 and was made up of two main group of

students who were coming from Bachelor of Accountancy (BACC) and from Bachelor of

Arts (BA) double major in accounting and economic degree program offered by the

Faculty of Social Sciences. The finding suggested that the major factors influencing

students to take accounting include availability of advancement opportunities, personal

interest in the subject, and availability of employment after graduation, passion for the

profession and high earnings compared with other professions. The finding also revealed

that majority of the students made the choice to major in accounting after high school but

before entering the university and about a third of the respondents made the decision at

high school.

(Porter and Woolley, 2014), a survey sample population of 311 accounting and non-

accounting students conducted an examination of the factors affecting student’s decision

to major in accounting. Findings found out that accounting place more emphasis on

career objectives and less emphasis on the intrinsic characteristics of their major than

non-accounting students. Difference in opinion on intrinsic characteristics-accounting

students think that accounting is intrinsically better than non-accounting students, and

non-accounting major thinking their own major much more intrinsically rewarding than
accounting – was a more powerful predictor than differences in opinion on career

outcomes. The study was based on Theory of Reasoned Action model to construct

behavioural measures (TRA).

The previous study examined whether there is any significant difference in the

students’ perception of accounting career. The study has been conducted with 90

students pursuing post-graduation in Panjab University in 2014. The result do not show

any significant difference between male and female students perception in accounting

career choice. This study also examined student’s perception on important criteria in

salary, determination and factors which they perceived to be important in the chosen

career. Results provides useful insights to relevant institutions in formulating plans to

overcome gender differences in perception in accounting career.

After the examination of some research papers, articles and documents this

study has not been discuss, studied at Institute of Business Science and Medical Arts

(IBSMA). Hence, this study is new and significant.

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