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Being the first in family to go to university affects a student’s perception of value for money in higher education (HE) and impacts their experience and graduate outcomes. The current cost-of-living crisis may further compound inequalities already prevalent in the system.

New approaches to the regulation of HE providers mean it is vital that the sector recognises the challenges for disadvantaged students in completing their degree and securing a graduate job. The cost-of-living crisis not only impacts the day-to-day student experience but could jeopardise the onward value of their time at university, and therefore how the regulator views institutions. Many students will choose to socialise less, be more selective about the academic work they do and therefore develop less social and cultural capital which will have a negative impact on their ability to secure graduate jobs. Universities should be mindful that many first-in-family students are not aware of the importance of making social connections at university or how to best utilise the academic resources available.

Student support practices need to be adapted to both help students through the current financial challenges and ensure that they still have access to the “full” student experience. Government should reflect on the financial support available to students and offer more help to our poorest students who do not have savings and families to support them.

Providing student housing designed to support students living with a disability is a global challenge. This study assesses buildings' physical health condition systems and drivers of physical health condition effects on students living with disability (SWD) in purpose-built university housing in Ghana.

The study used quantitative design and methods based on the theory of supportive design premises. Using the partial least square structural equation model, a survey of 301 students living with a physical disability, mild visual disability and mild hearing disability was collected in 225 student housings.

The study found that insect control and cleaning services are a priority in off-campus building design and management and directly positively affected the sense of control and physical health of SWD. The nature of lightning systems, noise and thermal comfort directly negatively affected SWD disability learning and discomfort.

Reviewing and enforcing student housing design drawings at the preliminary development stage by university management is critical. More broadly, physical health systems that control cleaning, noise and thermal comfort are essential for SWD health in student housing.

Studies on all-inclusive building designs have consistently focused on lecture theaters and libraries with limited attention on the physical health condition systems in student housing that support the quality healthcare of university campuses. Research on physical health condition systems in student housing is significant for all-inclusiveness and student housing management.

This study aims to examine the relationship between sustainability initiatives and student satisfaction in accommodation services at the University of Northampton.

Four main sustainability factors, including energy consumption, waste management, environmental responsibility and green infrastructure, are explored in relation to their impact on student satisfaction. A quantitative research approach was used, using a structured questionnaire distributed to 224 students. Correlation and regression analyses were conducted to assess the associations and predictive power of the sustainability factors on student satisfaction.

The findings underscore the pivotal role of sustainable initiatives in shaping student satisfaction with accommodation services. Particularly, energy consumption, environmental responsibility and green infrastructure emerged as significant factors influencing higher levels of student satisfaction. These outcomes align with the core principles of sustainability and emphasize the importance of implementing effective strategies in these domains to enhance student experiences. Existing literature supports these findings, indicating that sustainable practices significantly contribute to enhanced satisfaction levels. It is crucial to acknowledge that this study focused on a specific context, namely, the University of Northampton, and caution should be exercised when generalizing these findings to other settings.

This study contributes to the existing literature by providing empirical evidence of the specific sustainability factors that influence student satisfaction in university accommodation. Findings offer valuable guidance for universities and accommodation providers in developing and implementing sustainable practices to create a conducive living environment for students.

In recent decades, the student population in dormitories has increased notably, primarily attributed to the growing number of international students. Dormitories serve as pivotal environments for student development. The coordination and compatibility among students can significantly influence their overall success. This study aims to introduce an innovative method for roommate selection and room allocation within dormitory settings.

In this study, initially, using multi-attribute decision-making methods including the Bayesian best-worst method and weighted aggregated sum product assessment, the incompatibility rate among pairs of students is calculated. Subsequently, using a linear mathematical model, roommates are selected and allocated to dormitory rooms pursuing the twin objectives of minimizing the total incompatibility rate and costs. Finally, the grasshopper optimization algorithm is applied to solve large-sized instances.

The results demonstrate the effectiveness of the proposed method in comparison to two common alternatives, i.e. random allocation and preference-based allocation. Moreover, the proposed method’s applicability extends beyond its current context, making it suitable for addressing various matching problems, including crew pairing and classmate pairing.

This novel method for roommate selection and room allocation enhances decision-making for optimal dormitory arrangements. Inspired by a real-world problem faced by the authors, this study strives to offer a robust solution to this problem.

This paper examines the impact of extreme rainfall shocks on the performance in test scores of students living near at-risk urban areas in Brazil.

To identify the causal effect, we consider the exogenous variation of rainfall at the municipal level conditioned on the distance from the school to risk areas and the rainfall intensity in the school months.

The results suggest that extreme precipitation shocks, defined as a shock of at least three months of high-intensity rainfall, have an adverse impact on both math and language performance. Through a heterogeneous effects analysis, we find that the impact varies by student gender, with girls being more affected. In addition, among students who study near at-risk areas, those with better previous school performance and higher socioeconomic status are more negatively affected.

Our results suggest that extreme weather events can increase the differences in human capital accumulation between the population living near risk areas and those living more distant from these areas.

University students are a unique population with great potential to adopt eating habits that promote positive human and planetary health outcomes. The purpose of this study is to illustrate the current perceptions of sustainable eating behaviours among the students and to examine the determinants of sustainable eating behaviours.

Data were collected from December 2020 to May 2021 through focus group discussions among university students in Ontario, facilitated through synchronous online sessions. There were 21 student participants during the course of five focus group sessions (4–5 participants per session) from various departments within the university. The discussions were transcribed and analyzed for main themes and concepts using open coding; deductive coding based on the framework by Deliens et al. as well as the literature; and inductive coding for emerging themes.

The students had different perceptions about what constituted sustainable eating behaviours, some of which were not based on fact. A variety of individual, environmental (macro, micro and social) and university characteristics were mentioned as factors influencing sustainable food choices, with “food literacy” and “campus food” being the top two factors.

This study presents a novel and holistic overview of how sustainable eating behaviours and sustainable foods are perceived among university students and identifies the perceived determinants of adopting sustainable eating behaviours. This study helps with identifying opportunities to promote sustainable eating behaviours among university students and the design/implementation of informed interventions and policies aimed at improving eating behaviours.

The purpose of this chapter is to highlight how universities got into the predicament in which they currently find themselves in, or somewhat planned to be in, in the 2020s. The historical account outlines the purpose of higher education and who it was for throughout the last few centuries, before a more in-depth analysis of the last few decades will highlight how, and why, neoliberal and subsequently managerial aspects of leadership and performance metrics crept into universities before an analysis of the last 5–10 years, including the onset and consequences of COVID, will demonstrate that many ‘COVID recovery plans’ around staff cuts and course reforms were already in place before COVID, but it was COVID that allowed these plans in most cases to be escalated.

This study aims to examine the learning experiences of indigenous West Papuan students studying accounting in Indonesia during the COVID-19 pandemic.

A qualitative approach was taken with 25 indigenous accounting students at five universities in the region who shared testimonies of their online learning experiences. The interview data collected were analysed using initial and selective coding and then interpreted under several themes.

The paper shows the personal, faculty and external challenges in indigenous students’ learning activities during university closures because of COVID-19. The interrelated challenges included students’ struggles to adapt their learning habits when using various online applications, difficulties in understanding how the faculty managed lectures, tutorials and evaluations without adequate access to learning materials, the lack of a learning infrastructure, issues with equipment, and obtaining internet data credits. Students’ economic struggles and health issues exacerbated these challenges. While enduring various struggles and being frustrated about their future, all students expected a change in offline learning policies by the government to lessen their strict physical distancing.

The findings can inform the importance of integrating accounting students’ learning challenges and needs into curriculum development.

This study highlights the learning challenges of indigenous accounting students during the COVID-19 pandemic and how approaches to online learning need to consider the experience of these students.