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Pan-Canadian Study of First Year College Students - Report 1 Student Characteristics and the College Experience - August 2007

13. Time use and Extracurricular Involvement during the First Term

The results on students' time use and involvement in extracurricular activities provide a clearer picture of students' experience at their colleges and institutes.

Table 13 shows the results for students reported use of time both on and off campus. On-campus activities that occupied substantial amounts of time included attending classes, with almost 43 percent reporting more than 20 hours engaged in this activity. Some students are also spending significant amounts of time commuting to their college/institute campus. For example, although almost one half of respondents reported spending between one and five hours per week commuting, one quarter reported spending between six and ten hours commuting and 18 percent of respondents were spending 11 to more than 20 hours getting to and from campus. On-campus activities other than classes occupied time for less than one-half of respondents.

Off-campus activities included recreation and leisure activities that occupied between one and five hours per week for approximately one-third of respondents and six to ten hours for an additional one-third. Family responsibilities also consumed a considerable amount of time for a significant percentage of respondents, more than 20 hours per week for one-fifth of the sample. On the other hand, few respondents spent time engaged in volunteer activities.

The end of term survey results also provides some understanding of college/institute students' degree of participation in formal and informal activities on campus during the first term. The highest frequency of activity occurred in informal events and situations such as congregating in the cafeteria, frequenting the student pub or games room or engaged in informal athletic activities. This pattern suggests that first year students are either unwilling or unable to engage in formal activities on campus. An analysis of participation frequency by age showed that older students participate less frequently than younger students, which would support a lack of time hypothesis.

The use of time results indicated students were occupied for the greatest number of hours in a week with classes and labs, leisure activities, commuting to campus and dealing with family responsibilities. Few students reported they spent much time on campus engaged in activities other than classes. This is not atypical of colleges generally, and commuter colleges in particular. These institutions provide educational opportunities for those who cannot afford to attend a residential institution, need to work part time, have family responsibilities and may spend considerable time commuting. These students are often described as 'PCPers', those who drive to the campus parking lot, attend classes, return to their car and leave campus. One implication is that the classroom experience becomes paramount. The college experience for many students is the classroom.

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Date Modified:

2007-08-29