University applicants do pay attention to university guides, preliminary findings of a pilot study on the career paths of students have found.
Kate Purcell of Warwick University's Institute for Employment Research carried out the survey of students who enrolled on degree courses in 2005.
She said: "As an old cynic, the most unexpected finding was that applicants do take account of league tables and good university guides. They're relatively sophisticated consumers of higher education in a way that acade-mics don't often think is the case."
Applicants also feel that doing a degree is worthwhile, despite recent debate, she said.
The main reason for applying to university given by more than a third of students was that it was part of their long-term career plans, the survey for the Higher Education Careers Service Unit found.
Some 22 per cent said that studying a particular subject was their main reason for applying, while 16 per cent said it was to enable them to get a better job.
"There's an amazing diversity of motivations and that's what we need a great deal more robust information about," said Professor Purcell. "The idea that they are going into higher education to maximise their income is not correct. Students do it to increase their options."
Most students choose their course because they enjoy their subject, are interested in the content, need it to pursue a particular profession or think it will lead to good employment opportunities. The first two reasons are more highly cited by men than women: 38 per cent versus 36 per cent and 32 per cent versus per cent.
The biggest influences on course choice are: visiting an institution (54 per cent); a particular course on offer (49 per cent); an institution's reputation (47 per cent); a university or department's teaching reputation (45 per cent) and location (38 per cent). Just 7 per cent cited finances.
The Futuretrack 2005 study is the precursor to the Futuretrack 2006 study, which will aim to track 500,000 applicants for full-time degrees in 2006, from pre-entry to university to two years after graduation. It is hoped the studies will illuminate how people make decisions about the career options available to them.
More information can be found at www.hecsu.ac.uk