Open AccessWhat Factors Influence the Career Choice of Hotel Management Major Students in Guangzhou?
Author(s) -
Shaoping Qiu,
Larry M. Dooley,
Trupti Palkar
Publication year - 2017
Publication title -
independent journal of management and production
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
ISSN - 2236-269X
DOI - 10.14807/ijmp.v8i3.618
Subject(s) - psychology , hospitality , descriptive statistics , tourism , exploratory factor analysis , significant difference , medical education , test (biology) , china , hotel management , medicine , geography , clinical psychology , paleontology , statistics , mathematics , archaeology , biology , psychometrics
This exploratory study examined students’ perceptions of importance with reference to contributory factors of their career choice in hospitality and tourism department of a polytechnic college in Guangzhou City, China. The study result was derived from a survey of 372 freshmen and sophomore students. The questionnaire comprised items relating to factors influencing students when they made their career decision. Descriptive statistics, T-test, and factor analysis were conducted using SPSS 17.0. It is found that more students made their own career choice with little influence exerted by their family members. It was also indicated that generally there was no statistically significant difference between male and female students; however, a difference between freshmen and sophomore respondents was found for a few items. Additionally, this study identified five underlying contributory factors. “Students self-efficacy and occupational aspiration” was the most important factor to influence the students’ career decision, followed by “tradition and cultural value”, “career guidance”, “support from parents”, and “external consultation”. Finally, discussion of the findings was presented and possible suggestions were given for both hospitality educators and practitioners.