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The effect of paid employment on university students' lives

Robert J. Manthei (School of Education, University of Canterbury, Christchurch, New Zealand)
Alison Gilmore (School of Education, University of Canterbury, Christchurch, New Zealand)

Education + Training

ISSN: 0040-0912

Article publication date: 1 April 2005

12138

Abstract

Purpose

Owing to the increasing debt students are accumulating to finance their tertiary study, many are having to work during term time. The aim of this study is to explore the impact of this paid employment on their study time and other aspects of their lives.

Design/methodology approach

Eighty three undergraduates completed a questionnaire about their academic workload, their paid employment commitments during term time, their earnings and expenditure, and their recreational and cultural activities.

Findings

Results indicated that 81 per cent of the students held at least one job during term time for an average of 14 hours per week. The money earned was typically spent on essential living expenses. Working left less time than desired for social activities, study and recreation.

Research limitations/implications

The findings are limited by the relatively small sample size of self‐selected students: mainly young, female and enrolled in Arts courses.

Practical implications

The results suggest that working is not always detrimental to students' academic efforts, particularly if the hours worked are manageable given their course load. Lecturers should be more aware of the busy lives students lead and try to structure assignments and course requirements to recognise this, including the scheduling of class times and the offering of study support services.

Originality/value

The study adds to the growing body of international data that reports on the effects of a user‐pays approach in tertiary education. There is no similar data in New Zealand.

Keywords

Citation

Manthei, R.J. and Gilmore, A. (2005), "The effect of paid employment on university students' lives", Education + Training, Vol. 47 No. 3, pp. 202-215. https://doi.org/10.1108/00400910510592248

Publisher

:

Emerald Group Publishing Limited

Copyright © 2005, Emerald Group Publishing Limited

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