Profile: Students with family responsibilities
Jutta Rump; Imke Buß; Janina Kaiser; Melanie Schiedhelm; Petra Schorat-Waly
Definition and initial situation
Students live in different situations and are integrated into family structures in different ways. This can be due to the need for help in the Financial Department, the care of younger siblings or involvement in the care of relatives, but can also relate to starting a family and childcare. The life situation of students with family responsibilities has a direct impact on their studies, be it through time restrictions or limited mobility/flexibility in terms of place of study, internships, stays abroad, etc. (Berthold and Leichsenring 2012).
In the literature, the topic of studying with family responsibilities is often limited to two areas: Studying with child(ren) and studying with caring responsibilities (ibid.). The 20th Social Survey of the Deutsches Studentenwerk (Middendorff et al. 2013) states that 5% of students in Germany have one or more children. Of these, 50% are married, 32% live in a steady partnership and 18% live without a steady partner. Students with child(ren) in their first degree are on average 31 years old and therefore 7.6 years older than their childless fellow students. In addition to marital status and parenthood, the social survey does not collect any separate data on students who care for relatives.
The CHE Diversity Report (Berthold and Leichsenring 2012) assumes that the number of students providing care is still greatly underestimated. On average, caregiving students are 25.8 years older than their non-caring fellow students (23.6 years) and study in higher semesters. They are also significantly more likely to come from non-academic families and have a migration background more often than non-caring students. On average, more students with caring responsibilities or commitments have completed previous vocational training or a degree. Furthermore, students in this group are significantly more likely to have additional responsibility for a child (9.0% compared to 4.9%) and are therefore doubly involved in family obligations.
In the study barometer of the Ludwigshafen University of Business and Society (Ludwigshafen University of Business and Society 2015b), 5.3% of the students surveyed stated that they had children of an age requiring care, almost all of whom lived with their child/children in the same household. 60% of students with children are female and 40% male. Just over half of the respondents with child(ren) come from the Department of Social and Health Care and a quarter from the Department of Marketing and Human Resource Management, while 12% each come from the Department of Management, Controlling and Health Care or the Department of Services and Consulting.
Effects on the study situation and academic success
Academic success and dropping out
The data situation with regard to parenthood shows that Due to time constraints, parents study in official full-time degree programs, but can de facto only do so part-time. In addition, degree programs that can formally be studied part-time or part-time are of particular interest to this group of students (Middendorff et al. 2013). Around a third of students with child(ren) interrupt their studies. The most common reasons for this are pregnancy or raising children. Financial problems and employment also play a greater role for fathers (ibid.). Other reasons for interrupting studies are lack of time, difficulties in organizing studies and childcare, lack of understanding for the situation of fellow students and lecturers, coping with study requirements and raising children (Schrull 2005).
Compatibility of family and studies
The greatest challenge for students with child(ren) and/or care responsibilities is the compatibility of family and studies (ibid.). In summary, this includes the management of scarce time resources and a heavy time, physical and psychological burden due to the multiple responsibilities. There are also problems creating a place to work or space to write at home (Müller et al. 2015).
Mental and physical restrictions
The CHE Diversity Report shows that students with children are slightly less certain that they will be able to successfully complete their studies. They are also more likely than average to suffer from mental or physical limitations during their studies (Berthold and Leichsenring 2012). The burden on single parents in particular is obviously greater than that of students with a partner, which is reflected in their physical and mental constitution.
Social integration
Family obligations have an impact on students' social integration. Compared to other students, student parents state that they have significantly fewer social contacts at the university. The time aspect and the extraordinary life situation in which students with care responsibilities also find themselves inhibit social integration in and identification with the university (ibid.).
Financing
The survey of new students at the Ludwigshafen University of Business and Society shows that students with family responsibilities are generally more concerned about their financial situation than other students. 33% of students also state that they are worried about childcare and need a childcare place (Ludwigshafen University of Business and Society 2015a). Furthermore, in the student barometer (Ludwigshafen University of Business and Society 2015b), 2.1% of respondents, or 10 people in terms of numbers, stated that they were caring for relatives in need of care. Due to the small number of cases, no further analyses could be carried out, e.g. with regard to the special needs or potential of this group of students.
Potential of students with family responsibilities
In addition to the challenges in terms of time management and multiple responsibilities, students with family responsibilities also bring some potential to their studies. Students with child(ren) and/or care responsibilities are generally older and already have more life experience. For the most part, they no longer live with their parents, are financially independent and want to finish their studies faster than students without children. They often have good family and professional structures that are used for their studies and on the basis of which studies, parenthood and a job can be reconciled. They have an environment into which their studies fit. The rather conscious decision-making process for (further) studies is also reflected in very conscientious and careful work and determination (Berthold and Leichsenring 2012). Nevertheless, it is obviously difficult to reconcile studies, employment and family, and certain regulations in the study program can make it easier for this group to decide to study or to improve the adjustment situation during their studies. The Ludwigshafen University of Business and Society plays its part in making it easier to combine family responsibilities with studying. It was the first university in Germany to be audited as a family-friendly university in 2002 and sees a family-conscious approach to employees and students as an integral part of its organization.
Literature
Berthold, C.; Leichsenring, H. (ed.) (2012): CHE: Diversity Report: The overall report. Available online at www.che-consult.de/fileadmin/pdf/publikationen/CHE_Diversity_Report_Gesamtbericht_komprimiert.pdf, last checked on 25.04.2016.
Ludwigshafen University of Business and Society (2015a): Study program survey. Internal documents. Ludwigshafen on the Rhine.
Ludwigshafen University of Business and Society (2015b): Student barometer. University-wide student survey. Winter semester 2014/2015. Unpublished documents. In collaboration with Keller, A. Evaluation officer of the university. Ludwigshafen on the Rhine.
Middendorff, E.; Apolinarski, B.; Poskowsky, J.; Kandulla, M.; Netz, N. (2013): The economic and social situation of students in Germany 2012: 20th Social Survey of the Deutsches Studentenwerk conducted by the HIS Institute for Higher Education Research. Available online at www.sozialerhebung.de/download/20/soz20_hauptbericht_gesamt.pdf, last checked on 25.04.2016.
Müller, M.; Husemann, B.; Buß, I. (2015): Study-related characteristics and needs of students with children and working students. Initial results from the research and development project "Studium? Diverse! Open study model Ludwigshafen".
Schrull, B. (2005): Work-Life-Balance at the University of Potsdam: Compatibility of studies - profession - academic career and family.
Citation
Rump, Jutta; Buß, Imke; Kaiser, Janina; Schiedhelm, Melanie; Schorat-Waly, Petra (2017): Profile: Students with family responsibilities. In: Rump, Jutta; Buß, Imke; Kaiser, Janina; Schiedhelm, Melanie; Schorat-Waly, Petra: Toolbox for good education in a diverse student body. Working Papers of the Ludwigshafen University of Business and Society, No. 6. www. hwg-lu.de/arbeitspapiere
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