| Summary: | One major decision many high school students are about to make is which university they are going to study at after their graduation. To some of them, the decision is simple; to others the choice is slightly trickier. However, during the decision-making process high school students are going through, in connection with their college application, there are a lot of factors to consider and that may have an impact on the direction of the decision. In order to make a good decision, a prerequisite is to have adequate information about the possible options. When it comes to university studies, there is a lot of information available. One kind of information sources regarding Universities is rankings. Their aim is to help the prospective students by simplify the wide range of programs and universities, by comparing them based on various criteria. Today, there is an ongoing debate about the rankings and their growing publicity. However, there is an uncertainty regarding how high school students are affected by rankings in their choice of institution and their approach to universities and colleges as brands. It is of great importance for the universities to have an understanding for what the prospective students are affected by. This study aims to explore the relationship between rankings and high school students, which was conducted in form of a case study consisting of questionnaires, where high school students from Luleå, Mellerud and Stockholm participated. The conclusions of the study have resulted in the fact that rankings impact on high school student’s choice of Universities is quite limited. In cases where rankings are of importance, is when the searched University is placed among the bottom ranked on a ranking list. The outcome proposes that the students´ perception of the status and reputation associated with the University is decisive in the choice of the most attractive institution. Thus, the University brand is more important than a place on a ranking. Validerat; 20110613 (anonymous)
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