There is a considerable body of work that seeks to explain why and at what type of
institution students pursue tertiary studies. The bulk of this work however, focuses
on participation among mature aged students. This paper reports on an investigation
into the reasons why students chose to enrol in a hospitality degree course at Victoria
University in Melbourne, Australia. The results of this study suggest that students
see the university as a cluster of attributes that includes teaching staff, facilities and
services. In addition, it was found that the choice of university was based on the
reputation and availability of a specialist course rather than the overall reputation of
the university.