Revisit the Impact of the Single European Market Programme on the Reorganization of Japanese Subsidiaries in the Region: Case Studies of Canon, YKK and Mitsui OSK Lines

The issue of tertiary institution choice criteria has without doubt been widely researched. This is due to intense competition for full fee-paying foreign students in tertiary education. The identification of the criteria considered important to future customers is a prerequisite for the development of strategies, especially at a time when Malaysia has projected the image of being a centre of excellence in education. This chapter examines regional differences in current customer choice criteria. A questionnaire containing four factors with 19 variables was used in a sample of 721 foreign students to gain insight into Malaysian tertiary education and develop relevant strategies. Over the years, tertiary education reforms have taken place in several countries around the globe. As a result of the Asian financial crisis in 1997, Asian students in particular have become more selective in their choice of tertiary institutions. The fact that traditional tertiary education destinations such as Australia reported a 45 per cent decrease in student visas issued to some Asian countries (Maslen 1998), and an 80 per cent decrease in visas issued to Malaysian students (Illing 1998) confirms this view. However, foreign student enrolments in Malaysia, amounting to a mere 2.0 per cent but climbing annually, seem not to be affected by the crisis (Mohamad, Zahiruddin and Kassim 2001). As a result of these environmental factors, tertiary institutions need to develop strategic options that work with the changes facing this sector. In line with Vision 2020, the Malaysian government liberalized its higher education policy as part of the plan to make Malaysia ‘a centre of academic excellence’. Local education administrators such as Kamarudin (1997), Sulaiman (1997) and Ramaiah (1996) believe that characteristics related to choice of courses and selection of the institution are key factors in determining the choice of location.