Survey shows first-year students apathetic

Academe, May/Jun 1998

THE NATION'S FIRST-YEAR COLlege students are less interested in school, politics, and social issues and are far more indolent than any other class in a generation, according to a survey released by researchers at the University of California, Los Angeles. A record number of first-year students said they had missed classes or appointments because they had overslept.

The time they spend on homework is declining, and many reported being frequently bored in class. Keeping up with political affairs and engaging in social activism are not priorities, while professional success, even if it requires further education (which they said does not excite them), is a priority. "Academic credentials rather than a love of learning seem to be their motivation," says Linda Sax, the UCLA professor who directed the survey. Over 250,000 first-year students from 464 colleges took part in the survey. The researchers point out, however, that while the number of first-year students reporting laziness or boredom has risen, those students still constitute a small proportion of all first-year students.