7 The impact of term-time work on academic studies
7.4 The impact of term-time work on students’ use of their time
paid work, sometimes at the expense of their academic work. Often this required making decisions over their priorities and fine judgements about how they should best use their time.
Students were asked in more depth about the extent to which their term-time jobs affected the amount of time they devoted to a range of academic and social activities. The findings, shown in Table 7.4, clearly illustrate the significant pressure on students’ time. The findings highlight how these pressures permeated all aspects of students’ lives, not just their academic studies. In all the activities listed, except one, at least half of all students with term-time jobs reported that their jobs meant that they spent less time on these activities than they would have done otherwise.
The activities most frequently squeezed by students’ limited time, mentioned by at least three-quarters of them, were:
• studying independently; • reading; and
• socialising and relaxing.
Table 7.4: Extent to which term-time work affects the time students spend elsewhere Activity Extent to which term-time work affected
time spent on activity A lot % A little % Not at all % Don’t Know % Studying independently 35 48 12 4 Reading 37 45 14 4
Socialising and relaxing 39 42 15 4
Preparing and writing assignments and coursework
25 47 23 5
Sleeping 32 37 27 4
Leisure and sports 32 36 28 5
Seeing my family 31 34 31 4
Revising for my exams 17 45 33 5
Using my university’s library and learning resources
17 37 42 4
Using my university’s computer facilities 15 30 51 5 Base: All respondents that worked during term-time N = 806
7.4.1 The impact of term-time work on the time students devoted to independent study and reading
Table 7.4 shows that 83 per cent of students spent less time studying independently and 82 per cent spent less time reading because of their term-time work. More than a third indicated that they spent a lot less time on independent study and reading. Clearly, term-time work intruded on students’ private
study. In turn, this may have had repercussions for their acquisition and consolidation of discipline- based knowledge and the development of academic skills.
7.4.2 The impact of term-time work on the time students devoted to preparing and writing assignments and coursework
Term-time work also reduced the amount of time students reported that they had had to prepare and write their assignments and coursework (Table 7.4). Nearly three-quarters of students considered that they spent less time on these activities, and a quarter of them considered that they spent a lot less time on this preparation work. In turn, this may have had consequences for the marks students received for their assignments and thus their academic performance.
7.4.3 The impact of term-time work on the time students devoted to revising for their examinations
Term-time work encroached on other aspects of students’ learning and studying. For instance, 62 per cent of working students considered that they spent less time on revising for their examinations but only 17 per cent of them spent a lot less time revising (Table 7.4). This finding supports the earlier observation that students prioritised their time and tried to minimise the more obvious detrimental effects of their term-time jobs on their academic attainment. Indeed, as we saw in chapter 5 (section 5.5.5), examinations were one of the most significant factors determining the hours they worked each week. In addition, a sizeable proportion of students reduced their working hours around exam time and over half negotiated time off work to revise for exams (chapter 5, section 5.5.6).
7.4.4 The impact of term-time work on the time students devoted to their social life and other activities
Term-time work not only affected students’ academic studies. Students in term-time work also considered that they had had less time to spend socialising and relaxing, and sleeping. Four in five students spent less time socialising and relaxing, and just under seven out of 10 lost time sleeping because of their term-time work. Students also had less time for leisure activities and seeing their families (Table 7.4).
Students in the focus group discussions talked about how they were always rushing to do things, and never had time to relax. It meant they felt stressed frequently, and some thought that this adversely affected their concentration and the quality of their coursework. Perhaps it is not surprising that 62 per cent of the students surveyed constantly felt overloaded because of their job and the demands of their academic work. These constant pressures were well summed up by one student in the focus groups.
‘I don’t know for other people, but I found I‘m never relaxed. You are always stressed and I think that affects your work. Sometimes you do your work, and you think like ”if I had the time”, I haven’t done this to the best of my ability but anyway it is due in, it has just got to go in….and I think it will affect my overall grade and that kind of thing, rather than if I didn’t have those sorts of pressures…there is so much stress you think about work, you think about bills…’ (Student at University F)
7.4.5 The multiple impact of term-time work on the time students devoted to their academic studies
There was evidence that a majority of students in the sample spent less time on numerous elements of their academic studies because of their term-time work. Only 7 per cent of students reported that term- time work had had no impact on the time they spent on independent study, reading, preparing and writing assignments and coursework, revising for examinations, and using the library and computer facilities. However, half of all students indicated that they spent less time on three or more of these academic activities.
It is evident from these findings that term-time work has multiple affects on students’ academic studies. Term-time work reduced the amount of time allocated to a number of different activities that all
students are expected to engage in as part of their studies.