University, nothing more than an excuse to get drunk?
A MORI poll recently revealed that the student stereotype of sleeping in all day and getting drunk every night is a thing of the past. The Unite commissioned poll revealed that students were now working harder and drinking 20% less than five years ago.
According to this year's Student Experience Report, more students than ever feel that acquiring higher level education will eventually lead to better job prospects; not only finding it easier to get a job but also entering at a higher position. It seems that obtaining a reputable degree is a necessity at all costs and is seen by many as a valuable future investment. The survey revealed that students are basing their choice of university on league tables and don't appear to be paying much attention to the institutes facilities or social aspects.
As we all know, student life can be very expensive with more than just academic textbooks stretching our wallets. This has led to more and more of us, 41%, finding paid employment. For a large proportion, having a job is essential to avoid falling into serious levels of debt; the survey revealed that three-quarters of students are in debt. Students also said that working part-time enables them to gain extra skills to enhance their CV.
So, what does the future hold? Higher attendance to those guest seminars and optional tutorials? Hours of extra reading? Ultimately, us Imperial students do work hard but we also play hard, a couple of students commented that "although we have a heavy timetable, we still have the energy to party until the early hours." We feel that the complete abolishment of partying is still many years away. After a hard day's study, going out and having fun is still what student life is all about.
Imperial has no plans to introduce contracts to study
Last week Felix revealed that Oxford University is to introduce legally binding contracts to ensure students attend lectures. We asked College if they had plans to introduce a similar scheme here. We were told, "We have high quality, motivated students at Imperial and while the College is always interested in any scheme aimed at enhancing the quality of education offered to students, we have not at this point further considered such a move.
"We will keep an eye on the situation at Oxford. At Imperial, attendance records are kept in some departments so that students who may be having difficulties can be identified and help can then be made available to those who need it."
One student told Felix, "Imperial really suffers from quite the opposite, they should introduce a contract forcing students to have fun".
