Balancing Passion and Prospects: How Personal Aspirations and Job Market Trends Influence the Academic Programme Selection Among Students
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.14738/assrj.1208.19333Keywords:
Academic programme, Personal aspiration, Job market, trends, higher educationAbstract
Selecting academic programmes at the undergraduate level is a critical decision that defines students’ future careers and general well-being. This study aims to explore the influence of personal aspirations and labour market trends on the choice of academic programmes at the undergraduate. The study was rooted in the Situated Expectancy-Value Theory and Human Capital theory to understand how personal and labour market trends influence academic programme decision-making. The study employed a case study design and used a convergent-parallel mixed-methods approach to collect data from 379 students through structured questionnaires and 20 qualitative data through semi-structured interviews. The findings of the study revealed that passion for a course, personal fulfilment, and peer influence are the most dominant personal factors, while future employment opportunities, job security, expected income as well and opportunities for international mobility are the labour market-related factors that strongly shape programme choice among undergraduate students. The results show that programme selection among undergraduate students is not purely driven by passion or market-labour market trends, but a balance between intrinsic motivations and external market realities. The study highlights the need to strengthen career guidance systems, curriculum design that combines passion with employability, and higher education policy that takes into consideration the labour market demands and the personal aspirations of students.
References
Adebassah, D. (2025). Influence of Parents’ Socio-Economic Status on Pupils’ Education in Nsuaem Community, Ghana (Doctoral dissertation, University of Cape Coast).
Adjei, P., & Baah-Boateng, W. (2023). Determinants of education-job vertical mismatch in urban Ghana. International Journal of Education Economics and Development, 14(1), 56-69.
Adzovie, R. H., Dabone, K. T., Adebassah, D., & Adzovie, D. E. (2025). Influence of parents’ socio-economic challenges on the education of pupils in Nsuaem community, Ghana. African Quarterly Social Science Review, 2(2), 308-318.
Ampomah, R. (2018). Socio-Economic Status of Parents and its effects on the academic performance of students of Yamfo Anglican Senior High School in the Brong Ahafo Region of Ghana. Advances in social sciences Research Journal.
Becker, G. S. (1993). Human capital: A theoretical and empirical analysis, with speci reference to education (3rd ed.). Chicago: University.
Boateng, C. (2025). Bridging the Gender Gap: Strategies for Enhancing Girls' Participation in STEM-Related TVET Programmes in Cape Coast Metropolis in Ghana. African Quarterly Social Science Review, 2(1), 202-216.
Boateng, I. A. (2021). Influence of Household Structure on Academic Achievement of Senior High School Students in the Bosome-Freho District, Ghana (Doctoral dissertation, University of Cape Coast).
Cech, E. (2021). The trouble with passion: How searching for fulfillment at work fosters inequality. Univ of California Press.
Creswell, J. W., & Plano Clark, V. L. (2023). Revisiting mixed methods research designs twenty years later. Handbook of mixed methods research designs, 1(1), 21-36.
Dawson-Ahmoah, J. (2022). Factors Influencing Career and Programme Choices Among Senior High School Students in Ashanti Mampong Municipality, Ghana (Doctoral dissertation, University of Cape Coast).
Eccles, J. S., & Wigfield, A. (2024). The development, testing, and refinement of Eccles, Wigfield, and colleagues’ situated expectancy-value model of achievement performance and choice. Educational Psychology Review, 36(2), 51.
Hallmark, T., & Ardoin, S. (2021). Public narratives and postsecondary pursuits: An examination of gender, rurality, and college choice. Journal of Women and Gender in Higher Education, 14(2), 121-142.
Hinduja, P., Fakir Mohammad, R., & Siddiqui, S. (2024). Factors influencing students’ academic self-efficacy in related domains. SAGE Open, 14(4), 21582440241289738.
ILO (2023) World Employment and Social Outlook: Trends 2023, International Labour Organization, 16 January. Retrieved from https://www.ilo.org/sites/default/files/wcmsp5/groups/public/@dgreports/@inst/documents/publication/w
Kwarteng, P., Asiamah, F., Twumasi, A. O., Nkansah, J. O., Issaka, J., & Afetorgbor, S. K. (2022). Parental involvement in the academic performance of students in Ghana: socio-economic status. Open Journal of Educational Research, 2(3), 114-125.
Lent, R. W. (2020). Career development and counseling: A social cognitive framework. Career development and counseling: Putting theory and research to work, 129.
Leonelli, A. D. L. (2023). What’s the# Vibe: Exploring the Impact of Peer Influence Through Social Media on College-Going Decisions (Doctoral dissertation, Northeastern University).
Mawutor, D. P. W. (2024). The Role of Government in Reducing Graduate Unemployment in Ghana: Assessing NABCO and NEIP (Doctoral dissertation, Masarykova Univerzita).
Menon, M. E., Markadjis, E., Theodoropoulos, N., & Socratous, M. (2017). Influences on the intention to enter higher education: the importance of expected returns. Journal of Further and Higher Education, 41(6), 831-843.
Missaghian, R. (2021). Social capital and post-secondary decision-making alignment for low-income students. Social Sciences, 10(3), 83.
Morgan, K. (1970). Sample size determination using Krejcie and Morgan table. Kenya Projects Organization (KENPRO), 38(1970), 607-610.
Ocampo, J. A. (2003). Structural dynamics and economic growth in developing countries. United Nations Economic Commission for Latin America and the Caribbean (ECLAC), Santiago, Chile.
O'Shea, S., May, J., Stone, C., & Delahunty, J. (2024). First-in-family students, university experience and family life: Motivations, transitions and participation (p. 294). Springer Nature.
Owusu, G. M., Essel-Anderson, A., Ossei Kwakye, T., Bekoe, R. A., & Ofori, C. G. (2018). Factors influencing career choice of tertiary students in Ghana: A comparison of science and business majors. Education+ Training, 60(9), 992-1008.
Quansah, F., Ankoma-Sey, V. R., & Dankyi, L. A. (2020). Determinants of female students’ choice of STEM programmes in tertiary education: Evidence from senior high schools in Ghana.
Sarkodie, N. A., Asare, A., & Asare, D. (2020). Factors influencing students’ choice of tertiary education. ADRRI Journal (Multidisciplinary), 28(11 (5)), 58-92.
Schunk, D., Berger, E. M., Hermes, H., Winkel, K., & Fehr, E. (2022). Teaching self-regulation. Nature human behaviour, 6(12), 1680-1690.
Senyametor, F., Abagbana, V. N., Nugba, R. M., Adu, A., & Asabere, M. A. (2023). The Role of Academic Performance and Peer Influence in Senior High School Students' Programme Choice in Ghana. British Journal of Multidisciplinary and Advanced Studies, 4(2), 66-83.
Srivastava, K., & Dhamija, S. (2022). Social factors impacting student’s choice of institution for higher studies in India. International Journal of Educational Management, 36(7), 1221-1237.
Steele, K. J., VanRyn, V. S., Stanescu, C. I., Rogers, J., & Wehrwein, E. A. (2020). Start with the end in mind: using student career aspirations and employment data to inform curriculum design for physiology undergraduate degree programs. Advances in physiology education, 44(4), 697-701.
Tabolova, E., Taranov, V., Perepelkina, N., & Lantsova, T. (2021). Career guidance as a form of self-determination and life self-realization of the youth.
Times Higher Education. (2025). University for Development Studies. In World University Rankings 2025. Retrieved August 15, 2025, from https://www.timeshighereducation.com/world-universityrankings/university-development-studies.
Wiswall, M., & Zafar, B. (2021). Human capital investments and expectations about career and family. Journal of Political Economy, 129(5), 1361-1424.
Yin, R. K. (2018). Case study research and applications (Vol. 6). Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage.
Downloads
Published
How to Cite
Issue
Section
License
Copyright (c) 2025 Ibrahim, Mohammed Gunu, Siibaway Mohammed, Clementina Okyere Boapeah
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License.
