Factors influencing teaching as a career choice in both public and private universities in Ghana

Purpose: The purpose of this paper is to explore how lecturers in both public and private universities in Ghana are motivated to take up teaching as a career using Herzberg’s two-factor theory. Design/methodology/approach: In this paper, qualitative research design was adopted. Data were collected from 24 lecturers from both public and private universities in Ghana and analysed with NVivo. Findings: Results from the analysis indicate that public sector university lecturers are generally better motivated than their counterparts at the private sector. Workload is higher at private universities, affecting research and publications negatively. The study also revealed that there are differences in motivation in relation to the hygiene factors between the public and private university teachers. Research limitations/implications: This study has a few limitations that must be considered and could provide guidance for future study; as this study addressed faculty point of view, future study could investigate from manager’s and other stakeholders’ point of view in order to get a holistic view of the issues under investigation. The sample size could be improved and the study could be conducted in other African countries for the purposes of comparison. Practical implications: The study shows that many lecturers are not happy in the job for both public and private universities. The findings of the study provide managers in the higher education industry with practical guidelines for strategies to motivate lecturers. Originality/value: Despite the rapid growth in the educational industry in Ghana, limited studies have been conducted into how lecturers are motivated to stay in teaching. This makes this research unique in Ghana. This study makes an original contribution by comparing how public sector and private sector university lecturers differ in their motivation to teach at the university using Herzberg’s two-factor theory. © 2019, Emerald Publishing Limited.