Research Proposal: Financial Stress and Academic Performance Analysis

This research proposal investigates the impact of financial stress on the academic performance of university students. It begins with a literature review discussing the increasing costs of higher education, the financial burdens on students, and the potential effects of stress on cognitive abilities. The review cites several studies that explore the relationship between financial hardship, part-time employment, and academic outcomes. The proposal then poses several research questions, including the impact of financial stress, the reasons behind rising tuition costs, the factors causing financial strain, the role of universities, and ways to mitigate these challenges. The proposal provides a comprehensive overview of the issue, highlighting the complex interplay between financial pressures and academic success. Finally, the proposal includes a list of cited references to support the research. The research aims to provide insights into how financial stress affects students and how universities can support their students.

Running head: RESEARCH PROPOSAL
Research Proposal
Name of the Student
Name of the University
Author Note

1RESEARCH PROPOSAL
Proposal Title - Does financial stress have impact on academic performance?
Literature Review
According to Archuleta, Dale and Spann (2013), there have been several dynamics in
academic courses in the recent past and due to such dynamics, college and tuition fees have
increased at a faster rate than it was decades ago compared to inflation and median family
earning. College students have to segregate significant portion of their overall cost of
education because of the increasing tuition rate and lower level of financial back up.
According to the findings of a new study performed by Harvard financial hardship is most
likely to create impact on individual’s cognitive ability. In this context, Lim et al., (2014)
arguably stated that governments’ additional spending on Medical resulted in lower education
appropriations and as the result, the expense of college education has particularly
outperformed the rate of inflation. The above study has particularly evaluated the factors
behind the increasing financial stress on college and university students and it was found that
there is a significant gap between the overall costs of college education and expected family
contribution. When it comes to factors, Bennett, McCarty and Carter (2015) insisted on the
unforeseen expenses just as the hospital bills, medical expense, financial instability of
families, etc. On the contrary, Mushtaq, and Khan (2012) performed a study on the impact of
stress on academic performance of college students and stated the fact and revealed the
results that level of stress of senior college students is due to constant recession, limited
employment opportunities and growing financial burden during the academic career.
Treating the available financial advantage in a negative way Beiter et al., (2015)
stated that when students are involved in a part-time job during their academic career invest
plenty of time in work which should rather be spent on study and this practice cause the stress
on students. So, in one hand students are seeking to deal with issue of personal life, in other

2RESEARCH PROPOSAL
students are pre-occupied with the need to have good markets at the same time. According to
Archuleta, Dale and Spann (2013) almost 94% of the college and university students are in
the need of external funding including students’ loan, scholarship and bursaries to fund the
university and college.
Some students are often deprived from the degrees without having a confirmed source
of funding and consequently, they remain stressed. Bennett, McCarty and Carter (2015)
performed an experimental study and the results indicate that almost 41% of the respondents
say they received financial support from the parents, while almost 53% depended upon
external sources of money received, another 10% received students loan. So, it can be stated
that students’ major priority was to particularly secure the financial aid before paying
attention to academic activities. Mushtaq and Khan (2012) mentioned the fact that
universities certainly have the obligation to make sure that students get the most of the degree
experience and this is treated as the most significant opportunity to increase the number of
graduate students. However, it is dicey to answer the fact whether universities should stand
against the challenge of financially funding students who are compelled to be employed as
the fundamental priority ahead of the academic studies.
Research Questions
 What is the impact of financial stress on students’ academic performance?
 What are the reasons behind the increasing expense of college education?
 What are the factors that cause financial stress in students of college and university?
 What role the university should play to financially backup the academic career of
students?
 How can the impact of financial challenges on students be mitigated?

3RESEARCH PROPOSAL
References
Archuleta, K. L., Dale, A., & Spann, S. M. (2013). College Students and Financial Distress:
Exploring Debt, Financial Satisfaction, and Financial Anxiety. Journal of Financial
Counseling and Planning, 24(2), 50-62.
Beiter, R., Nash, R., McCrady, M., Rhoades, D., Linscomb, M., Clarahan, M., & Sammut, S.
(2015). The prevalence and correlates of depression, anxiety, and stress in a sample of
college students. Journal of affective disorders, 173, 90-96.
Bennett, D., McCarty, C., & Carter, S. (2015). The impact of financial stress on academic
performance in college economics courses. Academy of Educational Leadership
Journal, 19(3), 25.
Lim, H., Heckman, S., Montalto, C. P., & Letkiewicz, J. (2014). Financial stress, self-
efficacy, and financial help-seeking behavior of college students. Journal of
Financial Counseling and Planning, 25(2), 148-160.
Mushtaq, I., & Khan, S. N. (2012). Factors Affecting Students’ Academic
Performance. Global journal of management and business research, 12(9).