The Motivation of Students to Pursue Business Education: Case of Kazakhstan

With the rise of interest in specific business education, such as an MBA, there is a need to study students’ motivation to pursue such educational directions. The study aims to research the motivation of students to pursue business education in Kazakhstan.

The study applies qualitative research design with a phenomenological approach to learn more from the experiences of participants. The main instrument is semi-structured interviews. Research participants are MBA graduates, MBA program administrators and employers.

The significance of the study is based on the research of motives of Kazakhstani students to pursue MBA education. For the first time, it was studied why students in Kazakhstan choose MBA programs. The study has two major findings: First, one of the motives of students to pursue business education in Kazakhstan are career development, career advancement, quality networking and career change. The second important motive is personal growth which includes increased social status and self-esteem. It is evident that the study corresponds with previous research on the topic and proves that business education positively impacts career development. However, self-esteem and social status are relatively rare themes in broader research but are evident in the current study.

The study adds value to the exploration of the sphere of business education and the motivation of students to pursue such education in the context of Kazakhstan and provides more opportunities for further research