The Present of Wellness

Richardson and Furbeck

Rationale/Anticipated Findings and Uses

In the past few years, student attendance at traditional programs sponsored by residence hall personnel and campus activities has dropped despite the efforts of these groups to provide students with programs on topics of interest to them.  While students say that they are interested in the subject matter of the programs provided, they are reluctant to commit the time – either in advance or on the spot – to attending programs.  When asked why they do not attend when the subject matter is of interest to them, most students state that they do not have the time. 

On the University of Wisconsin – Stevens Point campus, Residential Living and other Student Affairs personnel have speculated that students today are working more hours in addition to being full time students. As a result, competition for the limited amount of free time that students do have has heightened.  With the addition of increased use of computer time as a leisure-time option and a source of information readily available to most students at their convenience, the incentive for students to attend traditional programming has decreased as well.

As a first step toward better understanding and thus better serving the student population, Richardson and Furbeck obtained an UMR-ACUHO Research and Information Grant to undertake a research project designed to give housing administrators knowledge about how students at the University of Wisconsin – Stevens Point spend their time. Issues addressed by the survey instrument include time spent on leisure activities with friends and alone, time spent with friends, privacy issues, computer use, and time spent in class as well as studying and in organizations related to academics. The survey also asked students how much time they spend eating, sleeping, and engaging in other basic activities.  In addition, the survey allowed us to examine current perceptions regarding the amount of time students actually spend on the job as well as their reasons for working the amount of hours that they do (i.e. paying for school as opposed to working for additional disposable income).  Finally, the survey asked students how often they leave campus to go “home” and why they are leaving.

With an understanding of how much free time students actually have and how they make decisions about allotting that time, we believe that housing officials ultimately should be able to:

·         Discover most appropriate ways of educating students about healthy vs. unhealthy behaviors

·         Learn what is important to the students of today in order to meet their needs by encouraging them to devote a portion of their free time to activities enhancing the development of the whole student

·         Re-channel efforts and funds into areas where student interest exists and into formats more accessible / convenient to students

·         Determine whether or not student needs are being met and find ways to meet these needs more efficiently

·         Gain a better understanding of the lives of today’s students in general

Summary of Results: Student Use of Time Survey

   Spring 1999, UWSP

Logistics

·        Gender: 64.3% Females; 35.7% Males

·        Class: 44.9% Freshmen; 38.8 % Sophomores; 9.3% Juniors; 7% Seniors

·        College: 31.9% L&S; 24.8% CPS; 19% Natural Resources; 16.8% Undeclared; 7.5% Fine Arts

·        Miles from Home: 35.2% 60-120; 22.9% 121-180; 22% <60; 10.1% 181-240; 9.7% >240

·        Roommate: 70.9% Yes; 27.3% No

·        College Expenses Being Paid By:

Observations:

a    Fairly even mixture of males and females completed the survey.

a    Mostly freshmen and sophomores.

a    Fairly evenly spread among colleges and undeclared.

a    Most live between 1 and 3 hours from campus (about 80%).

a    About half have a computer in their room.

a    Almost all have a roommate.

Work-Related Questions

·        Number of Paid Jobs: 45.8% 1 job; 38.3% 0 jobs; 14.5% 2 jobs; 1.3% 3 jobs

·        Hours per Week Worked Off Campus/In Town: 79.2% 0; 6.2% 12+; 5.3% 1-4; 5.3% 9-12; 4% 5-8

·        Hours per Week Worked Off Campus/Out of Town: 78.8% 0; 7.5% 1-4; 6.6% 5-8; 5.3% 12+; 4% 5-8

·        Hours per Week Worked On Campus: 68.7% 0; 10.6% 5-8; 9.3% 9-12; 6.6% 12+; 4.8% 1-4

·        Reason for Working: 

Observations:

a    Only about 61% work.

a    15.9% know they are eligible for work study; 8.8% use their allotted amount.

a    About 53.3  work so they will have money for educational expenses.

a    44.5% work so they’ll have extra spending money.

a    Fairly even split as to how students are financing their education.

Academic-Related Questions

·        Cumulative GPA: 32.9% 3.0-3.49; 31.6% 2.5-2.99; 18.7% 3.5-4.0; 12% 2.0-2.49; 4.9% <1.99

·        Hours per Week Spent:

Observations:

a    Some students do not attend class regularly, but the majority do.

a    Most students who completed the survey have between a 2.5 and a 3.5 GPA (64%).

a    Adage “3 hours out of class for every 1 hour in class” no longer true.

a    Most students study 8 hours or less per week and study alone.

a    Most don’t utilize groups to study.

a    Relatively few students seem to be using the library and hall study lounges.

 NOTES/COMMENTS:

Social/Free Time-Related Questions

·        Hours per Week Spent:

Observations:

a    About half do not spend time “partying”.

a    Students are on the computer for class and other reasons, but only 1-4 hours per week in most cases.

a    Working out is important to this group.

a    Students spend the majority of their time with friends.

a    Students spend time playing sports, but not organized sports.

a    About 65% spend no time involved with campus organizations.

a    About half never attend campus events (non-athletic).

a    About 70% do no community service.

a    These students watch a lot of videos but don’t go to the movies very often.

a    Most students go “home” one weekend per month: they leave Friday afternoon and return Sunday afternoon/evening.

a    Most students spend 5-8 waking in the halls each day.

a    66.5% get 5-8 hours of sleep on school nights, but 41% also nap on weekdays.