Thesis (MBA)--Stellenbosch University, 2014. / ENGLISH ABSTRACT: Scientific research that focuses on South African females’ success in engineering is limited. The South African engineering workforce and universities have been encountering challenges in attracting and retaining as many females as possible in these fields. This research assignment seeks to advance the understanding of challenges and reasons that contribute to most female learners shying away from engineering studies at tertiary level. To achieve this, Grade 11 and Grade 12 Mathematics and Physical Science female learners from six different schools, which are in a single educational circuit, were observed and interviewed. Mathematics and Physical Science are the two subjects which are prerequisites for engineering studies at any South African higher education institution. For this reason the research focused on female learners who were studying both these subjects. This study also includes a literature review of factors affecting South African women engineers in the labour market. This includes the factors that females around the world consider before choosing a career and the reasons why females stay in their chosen careers. The findings highlight a number of variables that contribute to females’ underrepresentation in engineering. These variables include societal expectations, perceptions of females in careers that are historically male dominated, the quality of education that female learners receive at school, female learners’ performance in Mathematics and Physical Science, guardians’ support of careers chosen by female learners, learners’ knowledge of the various career streams, the use of home language in teaching subjects assessed in English, family responsibilities, and university admission requirements for engineering. Suggestions on how some of these challenges can be mitigated have been highlighted in this research assignment. The main points are:  The need for career guidance workshops and companies’ exhibitions to be taken to the students’ schools where attention can be given to the students of one school at a time and companies can facilitate discussions with learners about the types of work that their companies offer.  Encouraging and advocating for greater parental involvement in the students’ studies as this can reduce the number of students who do not study on a regular basis.  Offering of teaching employment to candidates who fully meet the requirements for the positions they are applying for especially for core subjects like English, Maths, and Science.  Adding engineering faculties to the two universities in the Limpopo Province and giving bursaries or financial aid to help school girls who want to study engineering at university  Teaching school girls time management skills from an early age so as to help them know how to balance the time they spend on each subject. Further details on how some of these suggestions can be achieved are discussed in the last chapter of this research report.

published_or_final_version / Politics and Public Administration / Master / Master of Public Administration

<p></p><p>A reform of higher education in Sweden in 1993 led to stiffer competitive climate among educational institutions. The reform meant that educational institutions now had the opportunity to plan their curriculum autonomously. Prior to the reform educational planning was restricted to the Swedish government. The new rules spelled a greater opportunity for educational institutions to profile themselves based on their educational offerings. The higher degree of competition means that marketing becomes increasingly important when recruiting new students. This thesis focuses on the marketing activities done by educational institutions to recruit new students. This study will specifically investigate the activities regarding marketing of business education in Luleå University of Technology and the officer education The Military School of higher education in Karlberg. Both schools are chosen because they have among other things, experienced a shortage of applicants. This study will also show student opinions of marketing activities from both institutions. Our results points out that both schools are firmly aware of the benefits of marketing when recruiting new students. However, the students experience a certain disharmony between the marketing and reality. Our conclusions are that this disharmony might partly explain the shortage of applicants to these specific educations.</p><p> </p>

A number of issues related to graduate education in pharmacy have become apparent in the last several years. Recruitment of pharmacy students into graduate programs is one of the concerns. Currently, little information exists regarding this topic other than annual enrollment data. A certain number of pharmacy undergraduates must pursue graduate education to allow for the continued growth of the profession. A study was conducted to determine if a newly created videotape intervention would change participants attitudes and awareness levels concerning graduate educational pursuits in pharmacy. First and third professional year students at four Colleges of Pharmacy were randomly assigned to the treatment or control groups. Members of the control group were asked to complete the survey instrument only. The instrument consisted of three measures of intention to pursue graduate education, personal attitudes toward this pursuit, and perceptions of how significant others (the subjective norm) felt about these endeavors. The Theory of Reasoned Action (Ajzen and Fishbein) provided the theoretical framework for the research. Results of the study indicated that the intervention was able to change intentions, attitudes, and awareness levels regarding graduate education and research activities. Intentions of enrolling in graduate school did not differ between two entry level degree programs or in males versus females. First year students had higher intentions of obtaining graduate education than third year students. The subjective norm was more important than attitudes in predicting the intentions concerning graduate school attendance. These results demonstrate that positive changes in intentions, attitudes, and awareness levels can be obtained from such videotape interventions.

Approved for public release, distribution is unlimited / This study examines fleet retention rates of USNA graduates who participated in varsity athlete programs from 1988 to 1990 and retained beyond their initial service obligation (N = 2,735). It is based on a theoretical model which investigates two forces of influence on retention: varsity athlete status as a positive influence and recruit status as a negative influence. Results of the hierarchical logistic regression analyses validate the theoretical model and suggest that varsity athletic participation and recruit status do have an impact on fleet retention rates. The negative retention influence of recruit status and the positive retention influence of varsity athletic participation are observed through the interaction of these two forces. Results indicate that recruit status is significantly related to lower retention rates, however, this negative force is counterbalanced by the positive influence of sustained varsity athletic participation, should the athlete have the perseverance to letter in his or her sport. This study also identifies the walk-on varsity athlete as the true beneficiary of the human capital benefits associated with varsity athletic participation. The walk-on varsity athlete acquires leadership and teamwork skills attributed to participation in varsity athletics without the negative recruit influence. / Lieutenant, United States Naval Reserve

Approved for public release, distribution is unlimited / Recruiting is the most challenging peacetime assignment for any United States Marine. It involves many internal and external factors that are generally beyond the control of recruiting personnel. In particular, Recruiting Station (RS) Commanding Officers are subject to intense pressure to make their assigned recruiting goals or be relieved from duty. It is thus critical for the Marine Corps Recruiting Command (MCRC) to select only the best-qualified officers to serve as recruiting commanders. This thesis has three main objectives: (1) analyze the current screening and selection process used by MCRC since fiscal 1996; (2) evaluate whether this process is more effective than the previous method; and (3) determine if the process can be improved. To accomplish these goals, the study reviews MCRC's responsibilities, policies, procedures, and rationale in determining the required characteristics of a successful RS Commanding Officer. The methodology relies on a literature review, personal interviews with individuals from all recruiting command levels, and descriptive data on RS Commanding Officers from fiscal 1990 through fiscal 2003. The results suggest that the current screening and selection process is effective and an improvement over the previous system. Recruiting commanders are more experienced, more diverse, and more suited to the task, based on several indicators. Recommendations are offered to change common perceptions of the current process as a "selection board." / Captain, United States Marine Corps

Det råder olika villkor i den privata och offentliga sektorn gällande geografisk bundenhet, konkurrans och förutsättningar för att styra verksamheterna. Det som däremot är gemensamt för de båda sektorerna är konkurrensen om medarbetare. Vännäs kommun befinner sig i en inledande fas i arbetet med begreppet attraktiv arbetsgivare, även kallat Employer Branding. Uppdraget har varit att undersöka vilka positiva aspekter som upplevs med att arbeta för Vännäs kommun, som medarbetare med varierande anställningstid och ålder upplever samt hur kommunen kan stärka sitt arbetsgivarvarumärke genom att betona dessa aspekter. I resultatet framkom att positiva aspekter med Vännäs kommun som arbetsgivare är närhet, framåtanda, utveckling och ansvar, gemenskap och välmående samt organisationen i sin helhet. Från dessa kategorier har följande tema utarbetats; I Vännäs kommun råder en kontinuerlig strävan efter utveckling både för organisationen och medarbetarna. Organisationskulturen är välkomnande där gemenskap och välmående står i fokus. Den lilla kommunens fördel är det övergripande koncerntänket med närhet till beslut och möjlighet till påverkan. Detta illustrerar vad som kännetecknar Vännäs kommun som arbetsgivare. För att specifikt attrahera yngre arbetskraft visar resultatet att följande faktorer är viktiga för yngre medarbetare i organisationen; innovation, känna sig behövd och värdefull, en bra arbetsmiljö och arbetskultur, gemenskap på arbetsplatsen och att bli betrodd med ansvar. Det som mest frekvent uttrycktes från den yngre informantgruppen var vikten av utveckling genom arbetet. Denna fallstudie kan vara användbar för organisationer med liknande förutsättningar som Vännäs kommun i arbetet med employer branding. Fallstudien bidrar även med en ökad förståelse för vad som attrahetar medarbetare till en offentlig organisation.

This study investigated how employees perceived corporate fitness programs as benefits, how fitness programs were ranked with other selected employee benefits and if they would be considered in future career opportunities. A questionnaire was given to employees from five companies with and five companies without fitness programs. The 452 Ss were subdivided into the two sub-groups of employees with and without company fitness programs, and high and low adherers to physical activity. Data were analyzed by Chi- Square and proportional differences. Fitness programs were considered to be significantly important benefits; high/low adherers responses were significant. In N rank ordering of eight selected benefits, fitness programs ranked seventh; high/low adherers had significant rankings of fitness programs; employees with and without fitness programs had significant rankings of sick leave time/pay. The N did not consider fitness programs as significant future recruitment tools; there were significant differences from responses of high/low adherers. Some companies did not emphasize fitness programs as important benefits to employees.

The purpose of the study was to investigate if there was a difference in the experience of employer attractiveness and experience of recruitment process, based on whether the respondent had received employment or not at the selected organization. The purpose was also to investigate whether there was a correlation between experience of employer attractiveness and experience of recruitment process. The questionnaire used contained questions about the experience of the recruitment process and employer attractiveness, the latter was measured using the Employer Attractiveness scale. The study showed that those who became employed rated all dimensions of employer attractiveness higher. Furthermore, the study showed that those who became employed rated the dimensions fairness and treatment higher. As for the experience of the usability of the recruiting tool there were no differences between the groups. The results also showed a positive correlation between experience of the recruitment process and experience of employer attractiveness. / Syftet med föreliggande studie var att undersöka om det fanns någon skillnad vad gäller upplevelsen av arbetsgivarattraktionen samt upplevelsen av rekryteringsprocessen utifrån om arbetssökande, till en kommun i Mellansverige, fått en anställning eller inte fått anställning. Syftet var även att undersöka om de fanns ett samband mellan upplevelsen av arbetsgivarattraktionen och upplevelsen av rekryteringsprocessen. Enkäten innehöll frågor som behandlade upplevelsen av rekryteringsprocessen samt frågor hämtade från Employer Attractiveness Scale, vilket mätte arbetsgivarattraktionen. Resultatet påvisade att de som blivit anställda skattade samtliga dimensioner i arbetsgivarattraktionen högre än de som inte blivit anställda. Studien visade även att de som blivit anställda skattade dimensionerna gällande den upplevda rekryteringsprocessens dimensioner rättvisa och bemötande högre än de som inte blivit anställda. Vad gäller upplevelsen av användarvänligheten påvisades ingen skillnad mellan grupperna. Resultatet visade ett positivt samband mellan upplevelsen av rekryteringsprocessen och upplevelsen av arbetsgivarattraktionen.

A research dissertation submitted to the Faculty of Commerce, Law and Management, University of the Witwatersrand, Johannesburg, in fulfilment of the requirements of the degree of Master of Commerce (Business Sciences/ Management). Johannesburg South Africa March 2016 / Corporate Social Performance is both a prominent notion that the business world views as strategic and a well-known concept in academia that has been assessed in relation to different constructs. Several scholars have suggested the relationship between corporate social performance and its capability to attract numerous superior job applicants at the organisational level, yet, there is no corresponding evidence at the individual level of analysis. Thus, based on suggestions from the social identity theory and the signaling theory, this study hypothesized that job seekers’ perception of Carroll’s (1979) four dimensions of corporate social performance of an organisation are positively related to the organisation’s attractiveness as an employer and aimed to assess these relationships. Carroll’s (1979) four dimensions of corporate social performance consist of an organisation’s economic, legal, ethical and philanthropic responsibility. This study was quantitative in nature; therefore, the data for this study was collected through the use of previously developed questionnaires that had obtained high Cronbach’s alpha values thus confirming their reliability. Survey results were collected from a sample of 216 final year undergraduate and honours students who were selected via probability sampling technique. These results indicated that job seekers are more likely to pursue jobs from socially responsible organisations; with economic responsibility having the greatest impact on organisational attractiveness. Two Statistical packages, namely, the statistical package of the social sciences and Amos were used to test the conceptual model and to arrive at these findings. The implications of the empirical findings for researchers and South African organisations as well as the study’s contributions to practice and theory are discussed. Just like most studies, this study had several limitations such as the size of the sample and time, just to mention a few, which led to recommendations that future research could take into consideration. / MT2017