Date of Award

1995

Document Type

Dissertation

Degree Name

Doctor of Philosophy (PhD)

Department

Human Resource Education and Workforce Development

First Advisor

James W. Trott, Jr

Abstract

The objectives of this study were to: (1) describe the students enrolled in the two-year business programs offered by state colleges and universities in Louisiana on selected demographic characteristics, (2) compare the students declaring transfer and non transfer majors in two-year business programs on selected demographic characteristics, (3) determine the influence of selected factors on the selection of a two-year business major, (4) determine the desirability of two-year business majors as perceived by students enrolled in Louisiana colleges and universities, which offer two-year business programs, and (5) determine the perceptions of students enrolled in Louisiana colleges and universities on selected aspects of two-year business majors. A researcher designed questionnaire was administered to a modified cluster sample of 258 business students in all twelve of the state colleges and universities in Louisiana which offer two-year business programs of study. One sophomore level Accounting class at each of the twelve universities participated in the study. Findings indicated that the respondents enrolled in transfer and non transfer programs were similar when compared on selected demographic characteristics, but the respondents differed on high school preparation. More than one-third (38.5%) of the transfer students completed a general program in high school, while only about one-fourth (24.3%) of the non transfer students completed a general program. Additional differences were observed where less than two percent (1.9%) of the transfer students and over 16 percent (16.2%) of the non transfer students completed vocational programs in high school. Further research should be conducted to determine if there are specific differences between high school general education and high school vocational education programs. Three recommendations for practice are: (1) high school transcripts of general education graduates and vocational education graduates should be compared to determine if there are similarities and differences, (2) colleges and universities that offer two-year business programs should concentrate recruitment efforts in high school vocational education programs, and (3) factors used by respondents when selecting a major should be emphasized as colleges and universities prepare recruitment materials. After the materials are used in the recruitment process, additional research should be conducted to determine their effectiveness.

Pages

150

DOI

10.31390/gradschool_disstheses.5983

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