PART: A

Many external factors influence one’s decision on which post secondary institution to

attend. This report recognizes the competitive, economic, and socio-cultural factors to be the

most relevant to the University of Calgary’s Haskayne School of Business. Potential students

will may consider alternative post-secondary institutions before making their decisions and;

therefore, the competitive external environment must be analyzed. The high cost of post-

secondary education requires an evaluation of current economic conditions. Additionally, socio-

cultural changes in the environment have a large effect on the number and type of students that

choose to attend any university.

Competitive Environment:

An additional external area that the Haskayne School of Business must consider when

undertaking any marketing activity is the competitive environment.

It is important to keep up with the competition because a loss of market share and profit can

occur from a customer’s potential substitution of similar services (Lamb, Hair, McDaniel 2010).

Other pPost- secondary institutions in Alberta offering undergraduate business programs include

the University of Alberta, Mount Royal University and the University of Lethbridge. The

following institutions are in direct competition with the Haskayne School of Business based on

their services, size and degree of interdependency (Lamb, Hair, McDaniel, 2010).

Rivaling tThe Haskayne School of Business (University of Calgary), the Alberta School of

Business (University of Alberta), Bissett School of Business (Mount Royal University) and the

University of Lethbridge all offer educational services in the form of undergraduate programs to

perspective prospective students. The following institutions are in direct competition with the

Haskayne School of Business based on their services, size and degree of interdependency (Lamb,

Hair, McDaniel, 2010). The benefits of formal business education to potential students include

practical skills and high job placement rates (Belford, 2010). Top business schools are invited to

part takepartake in the prestigious John Molson International MBA Case Competition where

students are given practical business cases to strategically solve and present (“U of C Students

Win Competition”, 2010). This event provides an opportunity to test each school’s curriculum,

bridge the gap between students and executives and for each school to keep an eye out for strong

competition.

The current number of business students pursuing undergraduate studies at the Haskayne

School of Business is around 2,000 (“About Haskayne”, 2010);, Comparably, which this is

lower than the figures for the Alberta School of Business, yet and higher than the enrolment

levels of the Bissett School of Business (“About David Bissett”, 2010) and the University of

Lethbridge enrollment. The limited number of spaces in smaller education institutions causes

problems when competing, as larger facilities are able to accommodate more students and

consequently gain more market share. The interdependent environment of the business schools

creates competition because high grades and satisfactory job placements linked to a particular

school are factors that would increase the demand for new students to enroll.

Economic Environment:

According to an article in the Calgary Herald, 38% of youths stated that finances are the

main reason they don’t attend university. In 2004, the average annual tuition in Alberta was

$4804, which had increased by 273.4% since 1991. (Tuition and debt final edition) Because of

the high costs and their constant inflation, economic factors greatly impact post-secondary

institutions.

As eEducation has fairly inflexible demand, and many people will spend their money on

tuition regardless of the cost , as an investment in their future. However in the current recession,

some may choose an alternative school or program that is less expensive, or some will be unable

to attend any school at all, due to the high costs. In Alberta in the academic year of 2009-2010,

the University of Lethbridge business program charged $4770 in tuition, the Alberta School of

Business charged $5101, and the Haskayne school of Business charged $5161, the highest of the

three. (CAUC 2009) The recession could lead potential students to choose cheaper alternatives to

the Haskayne School of business, or choose no further education at all.

The current position of the Haskayne School of Business on the business cycle is likely in

expansion, due to the recovering economy and the increasing number of people seeking post-

secondary education. As Due to the fact that 70% of today’s jobs require post –secondary

education, (CAUC 2009) more and morean increasing number of Canadians are choosing to

obtain further education after high school. This is potentially beneficial to the Haskayne School

of Business, as well as all post-secondary institutions.

Along with the costs of tuition, the cost of living at post- secondary institutions is high,

and alwaysconsistently increasing. AFor the year 2010 at the University of Calgary, the average

cost of living for students living at home (with their parent(s) or guardian) is approximately

$3000, and $7000 for students living in shared accommodation. (Uuniversity of Calgary website)

This may cause students to choose their post-secondary institution based solely on geographic

proximity and affordability. aspects, and what will be the most affordable.

Cultural and Social Environment

The social and cultural environment holds an important role in the success of a marketing

venture by reveling valuable information about social change that can be analyzed and used to

advantage. Demographic shifts, cultural diversity and consumerism are among the factors to be

considered.

Demographically, the majority of students currently out of high school and heading into

post-secondary are members of Generation Y, born in between from 1979 to 1994. Generation Y

is much smaller in population than the Baby Boomers, and a large number of them are the

children of the Baby Boomers. They are inquisitive and opinionated, which may contribute to a

larger desire to attain post-secondary education. They are technologically savvy and good

managers of time, which is well suited to the new, business-focused work environment of today.

This could lead to an increase in students taking business programs in school. (I definitely want

to change this paragraph and cite it more – will do tomorrow)

With the Canadian population growing, and more people moving towards urban centers

and large cities such as Calgary, this makes the University of Calgary, and therefore the

Haskayne School of Business, a more likely choice. To decrease their cost of living, many

students already living in Calgary will choose to stay close to home, rather than move to another

city for post-secondary education. With more people moving to Calgary, this will increase the

school’s market share. (Still need to find sources for this)

Might talk about adult students and how more adults are attending post-secondary…. I

dunno. Will do tomorrow.

Increasing cCultural diversity is a prominent trend in Canada and the ethnic market

continues to grow as recent statistics indicate that Canada received 80,700 immigrants over the

second quarter of 2010. This was the highest level of immigrants observed for a quarter since

1971 and Alberta was among top three provincial leaders in population growth (“Quarterly

Demographic Estimates”, 2010). The growth of multiculturalism signifies future market

potential for post- secondary institutions such as the Haskayne School of Business so long as

they adapt to the increased number of students entering university who speak multiple languages

and possess a variety of cultural influences. Legislation such as the Competition Act, Consumer

packaging and Labeling Act, Personal Information Protection and Electronic Documents Act as

well as the Privacy Act have been implemented to protect student’s rights under the

consumerism category (Lamb, Hair, McDaniel 2010).

Works Cited

http://www.globecampus.ca/in-the-news/globecampusreport/why-students-choose-to-study-business-at-college/http://proquest.umi.com.ezproxy.lib.ucalgary.ca/pqdweb?did=1939705571&sid=2&Fmt=3&clientId=12303&RQT=309&VName=PQD#indexinghttp://haskayne.ucalgary.ca/abouthttp://www.mtroyal.ca/ProgramsCourses/FacultiesSchoolsCentres/Business/AboutDavidBissett/index.htmhttp://www.statcan.gc.ca/pub/91-002-x/91-002-x2010002-eng.pdf

Tuition and debt :[Final Edition]. (2004, December 12). Calgary Herald,p. B2.  Retrieved October 9, 2010, from Canadian Newsstand Core. (Document ID: 768277991).

http://www.ucalgary.ca/awards/costswww. caus .net/docs/09-12_ Tuition .pdf