Changes in applicants’ preferences when choosing universities: a comparative analysis from 2018 to 2024

About the author:

Igor V. Dinner,

Cand. Sci. (Econ.), Associate Professor, Associate Professor of the Department of Regional Economics and Human Resources Management, Dostoevsky Omsk State University, Omsk, Russia

igor-dinner@yandex.ru, https://orcid.org/0000-0002-0269-4443, WoS Researcher ID: AAE-3247-2022

Abstract:

This article investigates changes in high school students’ decision-making regarding their choice of university between 2018 and 2024. The study examines the central research hypothesis, which is that there has been a moderate shift in students’ preferences toward natural science and technical fields. This hypothesis is based on the analysis of labor market trends and statistics on admission to universities in Russia. The research employs survey data collected from 9th-11th grade students in the city of Omsk and the Omsk Oblast. The sample comprised 11,691 respondents in 2018 and 14,353 respondents in 2024, which ensures strong representativeness of the results. The main attention is paid to the socio-economic factors, information accessibility and psychological aspects, along with evolving preferences across academic disciplines. The main empirical findings of the study include: enhanced university awareness among students, driven by improved access to online resources and career guidance initiatives; increased preference for STEM disciplines, corresponding with growing labor market demand; declining interest in social sciences and humanities, reflecting changing perceptions of their economic value; growing importance of institutional factors: university prestige, availability of government-funded placements, employment prospects, and alumni career success. The results hold practical significance for educational institutions seeking to adapt to the changing demands of applicants and enhance their competitiveness in the higher education sector.

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