Aklan Polytechnic College
Kalibo, Aklan
Bachelor of Science in Customs Administration
FACTORS INFLUENCING STUDENT CHOOSING BSCA DEGREE IN ONE OF THE
HIGHER EDUCATION INSTITUTION IN AKLAN
In Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements in Research
By:
Bautista, Peter T.
Bermudo, Jade F.
Bulanag, April Joy M.
Domingo, Franz Owen B.
Factor, Jezreel Y.
Gelito, Ma. Elena Fe P.
Mrs. Lufelle A. Carel
Instructor
CHAPTER I. INTRODUCTION
Many students find it difficult in choosing what course to
take in college. For seniors or graduating high school students,
the pressure goes higher as the end of their term is coming
because the time is running and decreasing for deciding what
course they will take. Choosing a course is really a hard
decision to make. Your future depends on it and the decision you
will make would determine what life you will have in the future.
This is the first step in your life as an independent person and
this is the first step for your success.
Background and Rationale of the Study
Career selection is one of most important and difficult task
as today’s world is more advanced and globalized one. A wrong
career decision would drain all the efforts and resources in to
incorrect way and would lead students as well as parents in to
deep well of depression (Kazi et al., 2017). The process of
making a choice is complex and unique for each individual
depending on cognitive factors and social structures of the
individual’s milieu (Braza and Guillo, 2015).
Choosing a career is an important stage in a student’s life.
It influences a number of decisions that he/she takes based on
their career choices. Choice of a subject, a university, an
institution, a company, a job profile depends on the career one
chooses to pursue. Nowadays, it is quite certain to find
students confused or unaware of their career path, even after
having completed their graduation. They seem unsure of the
degrees they hold as it doesn’t give them a clear vision of what
they want to do.
Some students may not have sufficient knowledge and
understanding about the right career to pursue (Aguado, Laguador,
and Deligero, 2015). In some ways, the process of career
planning allows you to identify your strengths and interests so
you can discover professional opportunities you’re likely to
enjoy and excel in, based from the article issued by Indeed
Career Guide (December 1, 2020). According to the written work
of Malonda (August 13, 2017) entitled “How You Should Choose A
College Course”, there are a lot of ways for you to pick the
best course to take in college. He also added that the world is
a vast market place and you have many careers to choose from.
You have to be wary though because choosing the right college
degree is a lifetime decision. Having the wrong one might not
bring you to the job that you want, set the wrong course of
education, or get stuck working in the wrong industry. But you
don’t have to be overwhelmed with the decision though.
The article of Kamate (September 8, 2020) entitled “Follow
Your Heart In Choosing A Course”, stated that every course has a
good scope provided you enjoy studying it and perform well.
Hence, choose your profession by passion, aptitude and interest,
not by convention. He also added that most of the times,
students choose a particular course or college influenced by
friends or parents’ advice irrespective of one’s own interest.
Based from one of the articles of Career Research (2021),
most individuals have an interest in or affinity toward certain
career fields or occupations. Such aspirations and preferences
are formed early in life and are a product of genetics,
socioeconomic status, gender, personality, and learning history.
These early hopes and dreams are modified (positively and/or
negatively) by forces in society that act upon individuals and
groups of individuals as they make career-related decisions (e.g.
labor market constraints, competitive admission to schools and
programs, opportunities provided by special programs, etc.).
Career choices result when individual aspirations and
preferences are reexamined in light of the constraining forces
imposed by the social environment in which that individual lives.
Objectives of the Study
This study will be conducted to know what are the factors
that may affect the student’s decision in choosing the program
that they will take up in college. Furthermore, this research is
intended to assist students on how to deal with these factors
through some helpful recommendations.
Specifically, this aims to:
1. Determine the personal characteristics of respondents in
terms of age, sex, and year level.
2. Determine the factors that has influenced the students to
take Bachelor of Science in Customs Administration as their
college program.
3. Determine the effects of these factors to the students’
decision.
Hypothesis of the Study
1. There is a significant relationship between the factors and
the decision of the students in the career choices.
Theoretical Framework
The Risk Theory of Dennis Zocco (2009) studied the impact of
possible outcomes on the process and consequences of decisions.
Students make course selection (CS) decisions with varied return
expectations, but also with a perception of the risk that those
expectations will not be realized.
The Theoretical Models of Career Decision Making of Jonathan
Goodall (2017) shows the different factors that can influence
one’s decision of choosing a career.
The Structural Theories included in his paper, attempt to
explain careers and career choices in sociological terms: the
social position of an individual and his family background will
influence opportunities that are open to him (Bowles and Gintis,
1976). Roberts (1968) states that social stratification is an
important determinant of career and argues that career guidance
is of limited value when social and structural forces play such
an important role.
Community Interaction Theories describe the influence of
both psychological and sociological factors on career decision-
making. In this theory, Law (1981), describes how the community
in which an individual lives and works can motivate him to a
particular career goal, or indeed how it can fail to do so. The
community in this context includes all the people that a person
interacts with: partners, family, friends, colleagues and others.
He also added that, trying to make important career decisions
without the input of such important influences can be difficult
and make any career decisions more difficult too.
Another included theory is the Developmental Career Theories
which recognized that choosing and adjusting to work is a
continuous process, and use psychological concepts to explain
processes of career development. Donald Super (1957) is widely
associated with the developmental approach to career guidance.
He describes an individual passing through five “life-stages”
(growth, exploration, establishment, maintenance and decline) as
his career progresses. Super states that as a person grows, he
develops an idea of himself, his “self-concept”, which can be
used by the individual to match the picture he has developed of
himself against the picture he holds of a person in an
occupation.
Conceptual Framework/Paradigm
This study will be based on the concept of how factors such
as parental influence, peer influence, personal interest, future
job opportunities, and financial status has affected the
students’ decision of choosing the program that they will take
up in college. The researchers assumed that that these factors
have great impact to the academic performances of students, as
well as to their future career. In this study, it is assumed to
be associated with or affected by the age, sex, and year level
of the respondents which are the students enrolled under the
Bachelor of Science in Customs Administration program.
The assumed flow of the major variables of our study is
shown in the diagram below:
Independent Variables Dependent Variable
A.) Parental Influence
B.) Peer Influence Decision of choosing a
C.) Personal Interest program to take in
D.) Job Opportunities college.
E.) Financial Status
Figure 1. Presentation of Independent and Dependent Variables
Definition of Terms
1. Factor – is a circumstance, fact or influence that
contributes to a result or outcome.
2. Parental Influence – is any opinion, attitude, or action
(other than tutoring) that somehow shapes or molds the child’s
reading attitudes.
3. Peer Influence – is conceptualized as acting on multiple
level – from implicit ‘priming’ effects on bodily gestures and
mood, to broader influences on an individual’s social attitudes
and activities.
4. Personal Interest – interests that can bring, or that may be
perceived to bring, directly or indirectly, benefits or
disadvantages to the member as an individual, or to others whom
the member may want to benefit or disadvantage.
5. Job Opportunities – an opportunity of unemployment.
6. Financial Status – is the level of income into which
applicants are categorized for purposes of determining the
extent of their eligibility to receive financial assistance.
7. College Program – the degree and the discipline or field of
study.
8. Career – is an occupation undertaken for a significant period
of a person’s life and with opportunities for progress.
9. Career Planning – is the process of discovering educational,
training and professional opportunities that suit someone
interests, passion and goals.
10. Career Choice – is the selection of a vocation, usually on
the basis of such factors as parental guidance, vocational
guidance, identification with admired figures, trial or part-
time jobs, training opportunities, personal interests and
ability tests.
Significance of the Study
To the Students, this study will help them in choosing the
right career they would pursue and they will be aware of the
factors to consider in choosing a college program.
To the Parents, this study will help them in guiding their
children of what college program will they choose and fits to
the interest and talent of their children.
To the Teachers, this study will help them to evaluate the
student and ask if he/she is very much sure of the college
program he/she enrolled.
To the Future Researchers, this study will give them ideas
about the factors influencing the students in choosing a college
program and serve this as a reference for future researches.
Scope and Limitation of the Study
This study focuses on the factors that has influenced the
decision of the students to choose Bachelor of Science in
Customs Administration as their program in college. The data
collection will be conducted to 50 randomly selected students
enrolled under the said program to represent the population.
The results are scoped out from the gathered information only
from the respondents in this study. Study is conducted in one of
the HEI’s in the province of Aklan offering BSCA course.
CHAPTER II. REVIEW OF RELATED LITERATURE
The choice of career is a delicate issue for students which
requires caution and serious considerations – factors affecting
their choices. The kind of career the youths pursue can affect
their lives in many ways. Hence, this chapter discusses the
analysis of a man’s written and spoken knowledge about the world
which was gathered from books, related studies from other
publish articles and internet used in the conduct of the study.
A. Foreign Studies
Parental Influence
According to the study of Khoo, Ban, Neng, Hooi, and Joan
(2015) entitled “Student Choices of Choosing Colleges and Course
of Study in Penang”, the college students and non-college
students agreed that parents are the most influential or
important person when choosing their choice of college or
university and course of study because parents perceive as their
main source of finance and normally seek advice from them due to
the perception that parents have the relevant information or
experience with regards to higher education, and hence, parents
are viewed as a credible source of advice.
In a related development, Mohd and Abdul (2015) carried out
a study titled “Parental and Peer Influences upon Accounting as
a Subject and Accountancy as a Career”. The study investigated
the level of influence between parents and peers of Malaysian
school students in selecting their career choice as accountants.
The findings revealed that parents, and mothers, in particular,
were more influential in the career choice of secondary school
students compared to their peers. The study found that parents’
education did not influence their children’s choice of career.
Kaneez and Medha (2018) supported that parental influence
have significant effect on the career choice of their children.
Workman (2015) also confirms that parental influence was
dominant among the themes in learner decision-making processes.
This claim is confirmed by several other scholars (Nugent et al.,
2015).
Students who are influenced by interpersonal factors highly
value the opinions of family members and significant others;
they therefore consult with and depend on these people and are
willing to compromise their personal interest (Guan et al.,
2015).
Peer Influence
The prevalence of choosing the wrong career among
undergraduate students cannot be overemphasized. This is because
there are lots of factors that tend to influence greatly on the
career choice of undergraduates. Most of them when it comes to
choice of career can get extremely confused as regards the
choice of career. The confusion sometimes stems from the career
choices of others or the influence of parents, guardians,
spiritual directors and even peer groups. The success and
failures of others in that career field is also a great
influencer to the career choice of undergraduates. Peer pressure
can influence the career choice of undergraduates in the sense
that they have a way of making a particular career look more
attractive and a ladder to the top while looking down on other
careers as unattractive. It is very important to go through some
undergraduate project topics that are based on career choice;
reading up articles about career choice will not only influence
their career choice but also give them insight on a good career
path to follow (Lukman, 2020).
Studies show that the influence of peer groups among student
can boost their anxiety especially pertaining to their education
(Kadir, Atmowasdoyo, and Salija, 2018).
Hoai, Thi, and Thanh (2016) in their study “Factors
Influencing Students’ Choice of Accounting as a Major” shows
that social norm has a great influence on students choice of
major including advice and orientation of acquaintances, friends,
teachers, parents which had a significant influence on their
decisions in the selection of specific discipline.
Peer pressure is often seen during the adolescence stage of
a teenagers because they often seek comfort among their peers
and intend to do what their peers does without knowing if it is
good or bad for them (Adeniyi and Kolawole, 2015).
Personal Interest
It's no coincidence that your personal interests often top
the list of factors to consider when choosing a new career. If
you are able to put your passions and skills into a career, you
are more likely to enjoy your work and succeed in your position
(Melone, 2017).
Tailoring your career to your personal interests is
important if you want to work at something that is fulfilling
and inspiring. You may not always be able to support yourself
with your true passion, it’s important to find a career that
will suit your natural tendencies and interests (Hamlin, 2017).
Kahu and Nelson’s (2017) framework of student engagement
proposes that the student experience occurs in an educational
interface— a dynamic place where students live and learn—formed
by the interplay between student characteristics and university
practices. At the heart of the interface is the student’s
engagement— their emotional, cognitive, and behavioral
connection to their study. It is also said that individual
interest is therefore one of the student’s psychosocial
influences that acts as a motivation. Second, situational
interest is an emotion. In the framework, situational interest
is the emotional dimension of the student’s engagement and
triggered in the educational interface as a result of the
interplay between the situation and the student.
According to Kahu, Nelson, and Picton (2016), a previous
paper focusing on the students’ expectations prior to starting
university found that the students believed university would be
better than school because their courses were aligned with their
interests and they would therefore be happier and more motivated.
Job Opportunities
It's always a wise idea to consider the abundance of
relevant career opportunities available in your chosen field.
Highly competitive career fields or restrictive positions could
leave you searching for an opening and unemployed for long
periods of time. Consider whether there are career openings
available to you in the area where you live, or if you may need
to relocate to find the position you desire. Determine if
relocating is an option for you and your family, and if you have
the resources to move to another city or even another state or
country (Melone, 2017).
It’s a fact of modern life that adults need to earn money in
order to eat, keep a roof over their heads and pay bills. While
passion and interests are important for choosing a career, so is
the ability to earn a living. When you choose a career path,
it’s important to take an honest look at your earning potential,
not just at entry level, but over the long term. In some careers,
earning potential is unlimited, while in others, even after many
years of experience and accomplishment, there is a ceiling on
earning potential. Only you can decide what your priorities are,
and how much you are want to earn over the course of your career
(Hamlin, 2017). Outcome expectancy is one of the major
constructs that inform career decision-making. It involves the
perceived outcomes of performing specific actions (i.e., “If I
do this, what will happen?”). The construct assesses young
people’s perceptions of several professions based on their
apparent economic, shared, and self-satisfaction outcomes. In
established frameworks such as the Social Cognitive Career
Theory (SCCT), career outcome expectancy is positioned as a key
mediator of profession and scholarly interest and skill
development (Nugent et al., 2015).
Financial Status
A detailed career plan should be concrete, having a
structure similar to a business plan that an entrepreneur would
make. This should include basic financials: how much everything
will cost and how you will pay for it. Calculate how you will
fund your education — whether through personal earnings, grants
or loans — and factor in loan payments when you look at your
expected earnings and expenses after graduation (Kimmons, 2017).
Financial capability is a critical component of readiness.
It is crucial that financial capability is a part of every
student’s education, whether they are about to enter the
workforce or make the decision about where to go to college and
how to pay for it (Soo, 2015).
Okiror and Otabong (2015) revealed that students’ choices
were based on their perceived availability of career and
scholarship opportunities in a given department and the grade
point averages marks earned by the student at the time selecting
the options.
B. Local Studies
Parental Influence
Dagang and de Mesa (2017) identified the strong influence of
parents on their children choice of tertiary school. It is
deeply rooted in the consciousness of the Filipino people the
respect for elders, hence the strong influence of parents on
children decision. In a Filipino family children are financially
dependent on their parents, hence their submission to their
parents decision, thus explaining the moderate influence of
others such as the peers, friends and relatives.
Peer Influence
According to a research study conducted by Ouano et al.
(January 2019) about “Factors Influencing on Grade 12 Students’
Chosen Courses in Jagobiao National High School” in Mandaue City,
Cebu, the graduating learners perceived and agreed that they are
accompanied by their peers in making a decision of choosing a
course because they help, give an advice, or encourage them to
achieve their goals. Overall, the graduating learners agreed
that they need their peers because they can help them enhance
their capability as a person in order to have wider thoughts and
decide easily.
Personal Interest
According to the news article by Ian Jefrey Addatu of
SunStar Philippines (April 11, 2017), a study conducted by the
University of the Cordillerras (UC) about “Factors Affecting
High School Graduating Students in Choosing Course in College”
shows personal interests as the major factor students choose
courses in college. The study showed that more than 75 percent
of the total number of students surveyed said they chose their
course due to personal interest.
Job Opportunities
Malubay, Mercado, and Macasaet (2015) noticed the primary
factor affecting the decision of freshmen students in taking up
specified courses or programs is the economic factors that
include economic stable wages and in-demand jobs.
Financial Status
Most graduating students from highschool may not have solid
career decisions that they are often influenced by different
factors (Aguado, Laguador, and Deligero, 2015). One of the
factors that could influence a student's career choice is
financial problem knowing that the Philippines is considered as
a third-world country (Malubay, Mercado, and Macasaet, 2015).
CHAPTER III. RESEARCH METHODOLOGY
In this chapter, the procedures used in conducting the
research will be presented. This chapter includes the Research
Design, Respondents of the Study, Data Gathering Instrument, and
Data Processing and Analysis. Through this, you will be able to
discover and evaluate the relationship of the variables
mentioned above.
Research Design
This study utilized descriptive research method which aimed
to determine the influence of the independent variables to the
dependent variable. The variables are parental influence, peer
influence, personal interest, job opportunities, financial
status, and the decision of choosing a program to take in
college.
Respondents of the Study
The respondents of this study will be students enrolled
under the Bachelor of Science in Customs Administration program.
There will be 50 respondents in this study. In order to get
sample population, convenience sampling will be employed since
mass gathering and face-to-face interactions are restricted.
Convenience sampling uses the most readily available who can
access online questionnaire via google form or most convenient
group of people as study respondents.
Data Gathering Instrument
The instrument that will be used in this study is in the
form of online questionnaire that was prepared by the
researchers. The questions are stated and prepared in English
form. This questionnaire is divided into three (3) parts. The
first part is composed of the personal information of the
respondents (Name [optional], Age, Sex, and Year Level).
Socio-Demographic Characteristics Frequency (f) Percentage (%)
Age:
Total
Figure 2a. Distribution of Participants According to Age
Socio-Demographic Characteristics Frequency (f) Percentage (%)
Sex:
Total
Figure 2b. Distribution of Participants According to Sex
Socio-Demographic Characteristics Frequency (f) Percentage (%)
Year Level:
Total
Figure 2c. Distribution of Participants According to Year Level
The second part is composed of five (5) item statements for
each factor. These statements determine the degree of influence
of the five factors to the decision of the students in choosing
BSCA as a program to take in college. The last part is a two (2)
item question in which the respondents will be asked to choose
one among the five factors that had influenced them the most and
state their reason of how that particular factor has affected
their decision.
Data Processing and Analysis
To determine the influence of the five factors (parental
influence, peer influence, personal interest, job opportunities,
and financial status) to the decision of the respondents, there
will be twenty-five (25) statements answerable by strongly agree,
agree, undecided, disagree, and strongly disagree. If the
respondent answered strongly agree, it would be scored five (5)
points. If the respondent answered agree, it would be scored
four (4) points. If the respondent answered undecided, it would
be scored three (3) points. If the respondent answered disagree,
it would be scored two (2) points. If the respondent answered
strongly disagree, it would be scored one (1) point. In this
part, the researchers will base on the interpretation of the
results from Malik et al. (2020) where strongly
disagree/disagree/undecided will be scored zero (0) point and
agree/strongly agree will be scored one (1) point. The
researchers will then calculate the score by summing the
participant’s responses of “Agree” and “Strongly Agree” to 25
survey-items with zero to seven point ninety-nine as low
influence (M=0.00-7.99), eight to sixteen point ninety-nine as
medium influence (M=8.00-16.99), and seventeen to twenty-five as
high influence (M=17.00-25.00). The scale of means is determined
below:
Scale Interpretation Description
17.00-25.00 High Influence The factors have
severe influence
to the decision of
students.
8.00-16.99 Medium Influence The factors have
moderate influence
to the decision of
students.
0.00-7.99 Low Influence The factors have
mild influence to
the decision of
students.
Figure 3. Scale of Means
There will also be two (2) questions in which the
respondents will be asked to choose one among the five factors
that has the most influence in their decision to choose BSCA as
a college program and state how that factor has influenced them.
The researchers will get the percentage of every factor from the
answers given by the respondents to know which among these
factors has influenced them the most.
The processed and evaluated data gathered from the
respondents will then be used by the researchers to develop
conclusions about the study. The conclusions made by the
researchers will only be based on the collected information and
data from the answers of the respondents to the survey
questionnaire.
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