This study aimed at identifying the motivating and context variable in university students at the first year. 655 students took part at the study, being them both male and female, with age average ranging from 20,1 to 28,3, all of them enrolled in such courses as Business Administration, Business Management, Hospital Management, International Trade, Biology, Accounting, Physical Education, History, Journalism, Letters, Mathematics, Pedagogy, Advertising, Superior Teaching Formation, Information Technology and Tourism. A questionnaire presenting 14 closed questions and one open question was applied as an instrument. The questions focused on course prices, familiar income, expectancies and motivation to the course and it was delivered to the students at class time. The results showed that from the 655 students evaluated, 501 are very satisfied in regarding to their courses and, among the variables investigated, the financial aspect was the great obstacle for many of them to go on with their university study.