Exploratory Factor Analysis of Measuring Factors to Specific Brand Value of University Brand: A Case Study of Kurdistan University

Objective: The main purpose of this study is exploratory factor analysis of factors measuring the brand equity of Kurdistan University. The research was conducted in two stages: designing a brand equity questionnaire and factor analysis with maximum likelihood. In this way, the equity assessment questionnaire for the university brand was first designed by higher education experts of Kurdistan University. In the next stage, using the perspective of Kurdistan University students, its exploratory factor analysis was prepared. Materials and Methods: In terms of purpose, the present study is applied and in terms of method, it is a mixed research of successive exploratory type, first qualitative and then quantitative. The research community in the qualitative department was experts in the field of higher education at Kurdistan University. The number of samples: Five experts were determined by the purposive sampling method. Data collection tools include questionnaires and semi-structured interviews. To determine the reliability of the interviews, two methods of member check and peer review were used. Open coding method was used to analyze the texts and interviews. The community of the quantitative section included students of Kurdistan University; The number of samples is 400 students by relative sampling method. The collection tools of this step include a researcher-made questionnaire. To evaluate the validity of the questionnaire, face and content validity and reliability of the questionnaire were used by Cronbach's alpha method. For statistical analysis of data, exploratory factor analysis using the maximum likelihood method has been used. Discussion & Conclusion: The results of the first phase of the study were 87 items to measure the brand equity of the university. Also, in the second stage, the items measuring the university brand equity were classified into two external and internal underlying factors. Four factors; Students' academic credibility, reputation, feeling and emotion as external underlying factors and five factors; Empowerment and efficiency, alumni affairs, student services, infrastructure and financial dimension are categorized as the underlying factors of measuring the intrinsic brand equity of the university. In the next step, the items of each factor are extracted. In general, the results show that these factors are suitable for measuring the brand equity of the university. Accordingly, it is necessary for the university in the first stage to have a proper evaluation of its brand according to the proposed factors, and in the next stage to plan, implement and follow the special value strategy of its university brand.