Pengaruh Citra Sekolah dan Kualitas Pelayanan Terhadap Keputusan Memilih Sekolah dengan Word of Mouth (WOM) Sebagai Variabel Intervening pada SMK Telkom Malang

Abstract

Competition among schools—particularly private ones—increasingly drives educational institutions to build a positive image and enhance service quality to gain public trust and influence prospective students' enrollment decisions. In this context, word-of-mouth serves as a crucial mechanism, as experiences and recommendations from current students and social circles shape prospective students' perceptions of the school. This study aims to examine a model regarding the influence of school image and service quality on the decision to choose a school, with word-of-mouth acting as an intervening variable. The study employs explanatory research with a quantitative approach, focusing on 10th-grade students at SMK Telkom Malang during the 2025/2026 academic year. A sample of 222 students was selected using purposive sampling. Data were collected via Google Forms in April 2026 and analyzed using Partial Least Squares (PLS) with SmartPLS software. The results indicate that school image and service quality have a positive and significant impact on word-of-mouth. School image has a positive and significant effect on the enrollment decision, whereas service quality has a positive but non-significant effect. Word-of-mouth was found to function as an intervening variable within the research model.