Online admission systems in the educational sector: A scoping review

Abstract

Background: Online Admission Systems (OAS) are Internet-based platforms that are intended to improve efficiency, fairness and transparency of admissions processes and enable easy access to educational institutions. Nonetheless, several challenges, such as technical errors and user perceptions, remain issues in the education sector.
Objectives: This scoping review explored the broad existing literature on OAS in the education sector and identified factors influencing their successes.
Method: The scoping review was guided by the Joanna Briggs Institute methodology and the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses Extension of Scoping Review for reporting. Records were sourced from Google Scholar, ERIC, EBSCOhost, Science Direct, JSTOR, Elicit and Perplexity AI. A total of 18 records were analysed.
Results: This scoping review explored the existing literature on OAS in the education sector, identified the investigated factors influencing them and determined the Information Systems theories that have been applied in this domain.
Conclusion: There is a need for comprehensive evaluation approaches that account for identified factors influencing OAS in the Information Systems discipline in basic education. Future research should examine system stability, sustainability and social justice, while exploring the application of user-centred design principles to improve usability, accessibility and overall user experience.
Contribution: A theoretical contribution to the need for OAS theories and models in the field of Information Systems, and a practical contribution that will assist decision makers in the education sector in assessing whether OAS achieved their goals.