Why Do Asian Students Go to Swiss Hotel Schools? Their Motivations, Perceptions of Service Quality, and Preferences

Abstract

Hotel schools in Switzerland are very successful; there are 17 hotel schools throughout Switzerland, with approximately 9,900 students in all parts of the country. A main goal of this study was to investigate Asian students’ motivations to go to Swiss hotel schools, their perceptions of service quality that the hotel schools provide, and their preferences. More specifically, it tried to compare differences in study motivations, perceptions of service quality, and preferences among main Asian regional groups from mainland China, Taiwan, Hong Kong, and Korea. Among many research findings, Asian students study motivations are not very different between the four Asian groups. Mainland Chinese students most favorably evaluated Swiss hotel service quality of hotel schools, whereas Hong Kong students assessed the service quality the least. Asian students’ most preferred countries to study abroad were the U.K., the U.S., and Switzerland.

KEYWORDS:

• Swiss hotel schools
• study motivation
• service quality
• study abroad