Abstract
This study examines the trend in student enrolment in the Commerce discipline at colleges in Samoa for the 13-year period from 2006 to 2019. Anecdotal evidence shows a decline in the number of students studying commerce at the high school level but this has not been empirically investigated. Using archival data of the Pacific Secondary School Certificate Examination results and the Samoa Secondary School Leaving Certificate Examination results for the analysis, the study finds that for the period from 2006 to 2019 and especially from 2009 the student enrolment in the Commerce discipline at colleges in Samoa has been on a downward trend. The decline in the number of students taking commerce subjects could have implications on the workforce in that there could be a shortage in the number of qualified personnel in commerce related areas in the future, a problem experienced by some of the developed countries around the world. This is a two-part study and in this Part One of the study we examine the trend in student enrolment in commerce subjects with Part Two examining the reasons for the downward trend to be published next year.
Keywords: student, discipline, trend
