Analysis of Financial Stress and University Student Outcomes

This essay provides an overview of the financial challenges faced by university students in the Western world. It highlights the rising cost of higher education and the financial burdens placed on students, including the need for loans and part-time jobs. The essay explores the negative impacts of these financial pressures, such as reduced study time, lower academic performance, and increased mental stress. It examines the role of government funding, university expenses, and the difficulties faced by international students in contributing to the financial strain. The conclusion emphasizes the need for governments and universities to address this issue to ensure that students have better career prospects. The essay uses several sources to support the arguments. Overall, the essay argues that financial stress significantly impacts university students, potentially undermining their educational goals and future opportunities.

Integrated Business Perspectives
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Contents
Introduction......................................................................................................................................3
University Students and Finance.....................................................................................................3
Conclusion.......................................................................................................................................4
References........................................................................................................................................5
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Introduction
Over the past few decades, University education in the western world has become extremely
expensive (Samuels, 2013). There are many students who do not get Government grant for
higher education leading to an increased financial burden on them.
University Students and Finance
Many students take loans or part-time jobs to help pay for their University education (Goldrick-
Rab, 2013). However, these part-time jobs are mostly unskilled and low paid. Consequently, they
do not contribute to enhancement of mental abilities and skills of the students (Rokicka, 2014).
Additionally, these jobs come with responsibilities and also eat up the student’s time and energy.
These jobs also cause reduction in time and effort spent on studying; leading to reduction in
quality of educational outcomes (Carney, et al., 2005). Therefore, financial burden gives rise to a
complex situation which affects the student’s long term educational goals and career prospects.
The situation is serious and its scale is big as many students do not hail from rich families
(Darolia, 2014). Also, there are students who come for studies in the western universities from
less developed countries. These students find it difficult to pay for University expenses (Rokicka,
2014). A survey conducted by Universities Australia showed that two third of University
students in Australia suffer from financial stress (ABC News, 2013). In order to overcome this
financial burden, students take up part time job. However, this reduces time spent on studying.
As these students are untrained, they get low paid unskilled jobs which do not contribute to their
skills (Darolia, 2014). However, job workload can have a detrimental effect on academic process
as well as health of the student. Combining studies and work can also lead to mental stress and
fatigue (Darolia, 2014). Additionally, part-time work reduces the time which can be given to
studying. All these factors can adversely affect students grades (Darolia, 2014). Low grades can
cause an adverse impact on long term career opportunity of students. Therefore, financial
problem is a very big problem of the students which can defeat the very purpose of studying.
The problem of financial stress for the students arises from the fact that higher education is
expensive (Samuels, 2013). University education is expensive because the Universities have to
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pay large amount of funds to manage various resources like faculty, other staff, researchers and
maintenance. The problem also exists because most Governments spend very small amount of
money on grants and scholarships as their priority is primary education (Samuels, 2013). Most
students are expected to fund their higher education themselves.
Another reason for financial stress for the students is that to study in Universities, students have
to travel away from home and pay for lodging and food as well as the University fees (Goldrick-
Rab, 2013). This has an incremental effect on the financial stress of the University education.
Therefore, financial stress is a grave and a serious matter which needs to be addressed by
Governments and the Universities.
Conclusion
University students and their financial stress is a big problem for the society at large. Financial
constraint can cause a brilliant student to loose future career opportunities. Therefore,
Governments should take serious interest in this issue and try to resolve it for better prospects for
the University students.
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References
ABC News, (2013) Two-thirds of university students living below the poverty line: report.
[Online]
Available at: http://www.abc.net.au/news/2013-07-15/majority-of-students-in-poverty2c-
research-shows/4821230
[Accessed 21 March 2015].
Carney, C., McNeish, S. & McColl, J., (2005) Carney, C., McNeish, S. and McColl, J., 2005.
The impact of part time employment on students' health and academic performance: a Scottish
perspective. Journal of further and higher education, 29(4), pp. 307-319.
Darolia, R., (2014) Working (and studying) day and night: Heterogeneous effects of working on
the academic performance of full-time and part-time students. conomics of Education Review,
Volume 38, pp. 38-50.
Goldrick-Rab, S., (2013) Paying the Price: College Costs, Financial Aid, and the Betrayal of the
American Dream. Chicago: University of Chicago Press.
Rokicka, M., (2014) The impact of students' part-time work on educational outcomes. ISER
Working Paper Series., 2014(42).
Samuels, R., (2013) Why Public Higher Education Should Be Free: How to Decrease Cost and
Increase Quality at American Universities. New Brunswick : Rutgers University Press.
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