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Online Marketing Tools and Students’ Career Decision Processes: Managerial Insights from Iraqi Higher Education

Mehmet Karakus et al.

Administrative Sciences2026https://doi.org/10.3390/admsci16010025article
ABDC C
Weight
0.50

What the paper says

This study explores how digital and traditional marketing tools influence higher education students’ career decision-making, satisfaction, and career commitment during students’ educational trajectories in Iraq’s rapidly expanding university sector. Using an explanatory sequential mixed-methods design, a survey of 622 students was analysed with partial least squares structural equation modelling (PLS-SEM), followed by 24 semi-structured interviews with marketing and recruitment professionals. The quantitative findings show that students’ first-choice preferences, demographic factors, and engagement with LinkedIn, WeChat, blogs, and university webpages significantly shaped their career choices and satisfaction levels. Qualitative insights reveal that authenticity, transparent communication, and alignment between institutional messaging and lived experiences were key to sustaining trust. Traditional channels such as brochures and fairs remained important for credibility, supporting a hybrid marketing approach. The study contributes to management theory and practice in universities by linking digital communication strategies to student engagement and institutional performance. It also highlights the need for inclusive, transparent, and culturally adaptive marketing that reflects local and global contexts. These findings provide actionable guidance for higher education administrators seeking to build sustainable student trust, enhance recruitment effectiveness, and strengthen institutional reputation in competitive and resource-constrained systems.

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https://doi.org/https://doi.org/10.3390/admsci16010025

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@article{mehmet2026,
  title        = {{Online Marketing Tools and Students’ Career Decision Processes: Managerial Insights from Iraqi Higher Education}},
  author       = {Mehmet Karakus et al.},
  journal      = {Administrative Sciences},
  year         = {2026},
  doi          = {https://doi.org/https://doi.org/10.3390/admsci16010025},
}

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Online Marketing Tools and Students’ Career Decision Processes: Managerial Insights from Iraqi Higher Education

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Evidence weight

0.50

Balanced mode · F 0.40 / M 0.15 / V 0.05 / R 0.40

F · citation impact0.50 × 0.4 = 0.20
M · momentum0.50 × 0.15 = 0.07
V · venue signal0.50 × 0.05 = 0.03
R · text relevance †0.50 × 0.4 = 0.20

† Text relevance is estimated at 0.50 on the detail page — for your query’s actual relevance score, open this paper from a search result.