The American college student has been gradually changing along with our society. This issue of The Real Student Affairs is intended to highlight these changes for the ETSU community. Understanding today's students will help all of us who are involved with students better address their needs and concerns.
 

The Generation Gap

        The average age of the full- time faculty at ETSU excluding the College of Medicine is 48.52 years with higher-ranking professors being slightly older and instructors being slightly younger.
 

        The following report will highlight the changing college student when compared to the typical faculty member's collegiate experience during the late 60s and early 70s. During this period, the stereotypical student was male, white, and 18 years old, living in a residence hall, and working very little, if at all. Today's student profile is heterogeneous, with only 20 percent fitting the 1970's norm (Byrd, 1995).

        Some striking differences between the experiences of most faculty members and today's entering 18-year-old students are exemplified by these statements:

        - they do not remember the cold war and the Vietnam War is as ancient history to them as is WWI and WWII
        - their lifetime has always included AIDS
        - they were too young to remember the space shuttle blowing up, and Tiananmen Square means nothing to them
        - the compact disc was introduced when they were toddlers
        - the Tonight Show has always been hosted by Jay Leno
        - popcorn has always been cooked in a microwave
        - they have no idea that Americans were ever held hostage in Iran
        - "you sound like a broken record" means nothing to students.
 

Student Body More Diverse

        Increased access to college has become a major trend in American higher education. Federal aid programs have accomplished their goal of providing higher education for those who desire it. As a result, the student body has experienced a gender shift. Nationally, the majority of college students today are women. This is true at ETSU with 59.5% of undergraduates and 62.4% of graduates being female. In 1978, ETSU's student body excluding the College of Medicine was only 52.8 percent women.

        Along with this shifting in gender we have experienced a shift in age. The average age of students at ETSU today is 26.05 years. In 1998, 39.5 percent of the student body was 25 and older as compared to 1978 with only 31.1 percent were 25 and older.

        In addition, the racial diversity of the student body has expanded over time. Twenty-two percent of students enrolled in Tennessee Board of Regents institutions are other than white. ETSU enrolls 8.06 percent of its student body in non-white categories. This is up from1978 when ETSU enrolled 5 percent in non-white categories.

        The preparation of students prior to enrollment has changed as well. About one out of every seven persons who receives a high school diploma earns that diploma by passing the GED test. Sixty-eight percent of GED test-takers plan to enter a college, university, trade, technical, or business school during the next year. This figure is nearly double the 35.6 percent of GED test-takers 20 years ago.

        In summary, the student body has been aging, becoming more racially diverse, more female, and arriving with different kinds of educational preparation. This change has been gradual at ETSU but still consistent with the greater changes in society with regard to access to higher education. Higher education is no longer a privilege for the few but an expectation of many.
 

Multiple Priorities

        Levine and Cureton (1998), found "higher education is not as central to the lives of today's undergraduates as it was to previous generations. Increasingly, college is just one of a multiplicity of activities in which they are engaged every day. For many, it is not even the most important of these activities; work and family often overshadow it." This results in a focus on convenience, quality, service and cost. With these changes come different needs, different experiences and different expectations. All of these changes have implications for educators. Students have other demands on their lives and their time. These demands include but are not limited to family responsibilities, jobs, car payments and debt. Thirty years ago most students were of traditional age without family responsibilities, with fewer cars and less debt.
 

FamilyResponsibilities

        Many ETSU students report having children, families, parents and even grandparents for whom they are responsible. As the average age of the student body increases so does the number of children students are responsible for. Even more traditional-aged students are beginning school at the age of 18 with children dependent upon them. A recent ETSU Childcare survey revealed students having been prevented from attending class due to lack of child care.
 

Cars! Cars! Cars!

        It is significant that ETSU used to charge a parking fee only to students with cars. Now it is so common to own a car that all students pay the fee as part of their general access fee. Many of these cars represent a significant financial burden on the student (car payments, insurance, maintenance, etc.). Sometimes cars become a high priority in the lives of students. A wreck or a major mechanical failure can literally pose a significant obstacle to academic success.
 

Credit Card Debt

        We are a society in debt to our credit cards. In 1997, U.S. credit card debt was in excess of $422 billion. Students are not immune to this reality and often live beyond their means via the plastic in their pockets. When the bills come due students find themselves stopping their education to pay down the debt or working more hours while attending class. Either of these approaches has a detrimental effect on the likelihood the student will persist to graduation.

        Credit card debt is something relatively new to college students. Credit cards were not readily available to students until the late 1980s. A 1998 Public Interest Research Group survey found:

- Students responsible for their own cards had average unpaid balances of $968 and students who reported carrying over a balance had unpaid balances of $1,366.

- More than one quarter of all students (28%) reported paying late at least once in the last two years. This finding is especially troubling since many banks now extract "penalty" interest rates of 22-28% for late payments.

- the same number (28%) reported paying with cash advances late at least once in the last two years. One quarter of these reported using a cash advance to pay another unpaid debt.

- the survey asked students how long it would take to pay off a $1,000 credit card debt at an 18% Annual Percentage Rate (APR), if you only paid the minimum balance due. Using a generous 3% minimum payment (most credit cards require less) only 20% of all students guessed the correct answer, six years. In addition to the $1,000 paid off, the student would also pay $559 in interest.

Employment

        Part-time jobs have been positively correlated with student success when he/she does not exceed 15-20 hours a week. When the part-time job is on campus, it further helps the student to keep the central focus of his/her life on getting an education. The trap with part-time work is getting called into work extra hours on a "part-time" job. Gradually students find themselves working full time to the detriment of their academic success. ETSU students report increasing the number of hours they work as they progress through the university.
 

Student Loans

        An additional debt that students are incurring is the debt for attending school. The average student loan debt for ETSU graduates for spring 1999 is $16,892. This is a $900 increase over previous graduates. This figure only includes student loans and not the additional credit card or personal loan debt they may have incurred. Typically this means a student will be paying back between $175 and $200 per month for 120 months or 10 years. The loan portion of student aid packages has increased dramatically since the Higher Education Re-authorization Act of 1992. This act made it possible for the first time in history, for ANY student to be eligible for a Stafford Loan. Prior to this act, only students who had financial need, as defined by the U.S. Department of Education, could qualify. This act also created the Unsubsidized Stafford Loan. The government does not subsidize this loan but does allow students to have their interest accrue during their college attendance. Students can borrow and not pay anything back until after graduation or until they drop below half-time attendance.

        The 1992 act also increased the maximum loan amounts for both yearly and total cumulative loan amounts. This resulted in students borrowing more money each year and over a longer period of time. These two factors, along with the large number of students now eligible for Unsubsidized Stafford loans, has resulted in a large increase in student borrowing.
 

Personal Problems

        With increased access to education students other than the well-adjusted 18-22-year-olds are in the University Counseling Center and in the classroom. As more persons of all ages come to college they bring their life problems with them. College Counseling Centers are seeing increased pathology (Stone & Archer, 1990). The reasons for this are complex. The Americans with Disabilities Act is assisting students with disabilities to attend college and requiring that colleges not discriminate based on the presence of a mental disability. Simultaneously, colleges are providing more services for students with such disabilities, leading to more of them matriculating. It is hard to say if sociological factors also play a part in why more students "act out" (disruptive behavior in class); however, increased violence and disciplinary problems in schools are present throughout the various levels of education.
 

Longer period of time to graduate

        The length of time students are taking to graduate is now extended beyond the traditional four years. The Chairman of the National Center for Public Policy and Higher Education, James B. Hunt, Jr., cited in the July 16, 1999, issue of The Chronicle of Higher Education that fewer than half of the students who enrolled in U.S. colleges and universities in 1989 earned a bachelor's degree within five years. About 20 percent of the others were still enrolled after five years, but almost a third of the total had dropped out.

        Only 12.4 percent of the Baccalaureate Degree-Seeking First-Time Freshmen who entered in fall semester of 1994 graduated in four years. Of a similar cohort that entered in 1990, only 35.5 percent graduated within six years and only 8.3 percent were continuing beyond six years (43.8 percent together).
 

Generation Xers versus Millennials

        The national media has characterized the generations around certain themes that define the group as a whole. Following the Yuppies came the Generation Xers. They are characterized as being the MTV generation and being distrustful of authority. This distrust is supposedly rooted in their parents' divorces. Faculty and student affairs professionals find this generation less receptive to our suggestions. Students will listen but then do exactly what they feel like doing.

        Willimon and Naylor (1995) define this generation as being devoid of significant relationships with adults prior to matriculation. This increases the need for adult mentoring relationships once they became our students. Without this kind of structured guidance coming from a friend, these students experience less success both in their academic life and in their personal life.

        The Generation Xers are fading out at this point in time and the Millennials are beginning to arrive on college campuses. Students with both characteristics are currently present in the college population.

        The Millennials are characterized as being more group-oriented and more receptive to suggestions from authority figures. This generation experienced parents who waited to have children until their careers were established and then focused a lot of attention on their children. One author sums up the parent-child relationship of this generation by saying the children were programmed on and for success. This generation has had a coach or teacher for everything in their life and so will look at faculty and student affairs professionals as just one more "coach." This is the soccer generation. It is the sport of choice because everyone can be successful; errors are less obvious than in other sports.

        Regardless of whether you believe in the generalizations about generations certain aspects of the Xers and the Millennials are noteworthy. It is a fact that parents are spending less time with their children. A May 1999 report by the Council of Economic Advisers, Families and the Labor Market, 1969-1999: Analyzing the "Time Crunch," reports the increase in hours mothers spend in paid work, combined with the shift toward single-parent families. Families on average are experiencing a decrease of 22 hours a week (14 percent) in parental time available outside of paid work that can be spent with children.
 

Students learn differently

        This generation of students learns more from images than earlier generations. The rapid and continuous increase in technology, along with the culture of MTV and fast- moving video games, has resulted in a generation that processes information differently than previous generations. During their lifetime the commercial has gone from being 30 seconds to being 10 seconds. Because they are able to process images very rapidly, they actually see things in videos that those of us who are older miss because we do not process images as rapidly. This aspect of learning is a possible explanation for the student tension in the classroom. They have an image-based orientation and they are trying to negotiate a print-based environment. Higher education is utilizing image presentations more than in the past; however, the primary focus is still the printed word.

        Astin's studies chronicle the shift from reading to television. Students are now spending more time viewing television and less time reading. This change is counterproductive because success in college still correlates with the amount of reading one does.

        Another change in learning is noted in Schroeder's article, "New Students-New Learning Styles." College work and the preferred learning style of most faculty is theoretical and intuitive; the preferred learning style of the majority of students is concrete and active.
 

Astin's Study of College Freshmen

        Astin has been studying college freshmen for 30 years. His report, The American Freshman: Thirty Year Trends, highlights several important issues. ETSU participated in the 1997 survey.

        High school grades reported by entering freshmen have been going up gradually for the last 30 years with A's being more common and C's being less common. In 1966, 31% of high school grades were C+ or below and 15% were A+, A, A-. Nationally they have switched places and ETSU's entering freshmen in 1997 reported consistently with the nation. 30.6% of reported grades were A+, A, A- and 17.8% were C+ or below.
        Nationally there has been a slight increase in graduate degree aspirations. 1997 ETSU freshmen report 38.8% aspiring to a master's degree and 9.3% aspiring to the Ph.D. or Ed.D.

        Over the last 30 years students have been citing low tuition and financial assistance as important reasons for choosing their college. ETSU freshmen indicated low tuition (31%) was a very important reason for their college selection. More ETSU students (38%) placed importance on being offered financial assistance than the national norm (34%).

        An increasing number of entering students reported higher levels of academic disengagement in high school. Students are reporting being frequently "bored in class," "having overslept and missed class or appointments" and "spending less time" than ever "studying or doing homework." ETSU students report very similar responses to the national norm.

        Nationally, life goals have also switched over the 30 years, with "being very well off financially" becoming more prevalent (73% ETSU) and developing a meaningful philosophy of life becoming less important (40% ETSU). In the 1960s more than 80% of students reported developing a meaningful philosophy of life as being important and only 42% indicated being very well off financially as being important.

        A decreasing number of students think it is "essential/very important" to "influence the political structure" or "become involved in programs to clean up the environment." Fewer are "committed to helping to promote racial understanding," to "participating in a community action program" or to "influencing social values."

        ETSU's student body can safely be characterized as conservative. Comparisons to national norms support this. Nationally, over the past 30 years entering students have identified themselves as being "middle of the road" politically.

        Students spend less time keeping up-to-date with politics. Only 25% of entering ETSU students indicate they do so. The national norm in 1966 was almost 60%. Likewise students discuss politics less than 30 years ago. Only 17% of entering ETSU students in 1997 indicated they discuss politics.

        Concurrent with political disengagement is a rise in volunteering. Since 1988, there has been a steady increase in volunteering. Our students report a similar level to the national norm.

        A decreasing number of students report relying on governmental action. Fewer believe that the federal government should "raise taxes to reduce the deficit," that "wealthy people should pay a larger share of taxes," and that the "federal government is not doing enough to control environmental pollution." A decreasing number of students support keeping abortion legal and an increasing number believe that it is important to have laws prohibiting homosexual relations.

        Nationally there is a decline in reported drinking and smoking. ETSU students consistently report less of both than the national norm.
 

Summary

        The student of 1999 - 2000 is very different than the student 30 years ago. The difference is a result of the experiences they have had and the environment they live in. As educators we need to be aware of these changes. Our student body is more diverse in age, gender, race, and educational preparation. Higher education is competing with many other demands for the student's attention including family responsibilities, jobs, and debt. In light of these competing demands students are taking longer to graduate. Awareness of the many changes in the lives of our students can help us to educate them more effectively.
 

Recommendations

 - Be aware of the changes in the student body over the last three decades. Stay current in your understanding of who it is you're teaching.

- Tailor your teaching to reflect the real-world experience of your students e.g. keep examples up-to-date, use technology, and be concrete.

- Help students keep focused on their education. When appropriate discuss distractions such as: work, cars, debt, and relationships and how they impact on academic success.

- Design learning opportunities that will appeal to the different learning styles present in your classroom. One learning style should not be favored to the detriment of others.

- Take time to interact one-on-one with students outside the classroom.

References

Astin, A. W., Parrott, S.A., Korn, W.S., & Sax, L.J. ( 1997). The American Freshman: Thirty Year Trends. Los Angeles:
        Higher Education Research Institute, UCLA.

Byrd, M. L. (1995). Academic advising ain't what it used to be: Strangers in the university. NACADA Journal, 15, (1),
           44-47.

Levine & Cureton (1998, May/June) Collegiate life - An obituary. Change, 30, 12-17 & 51.

Schroeder, C. C. (1993, July/August) New students - New learning styles. Change, 25, 21-26.

Stone, G. L., & Archer, J., Jr. (1990).College and University counseling centers in the 1990s: Challenges and limits.
       Counseling Psychologist, 18, (4), 539-607.

Willimon, W. H., & Naylor, T. H. (1995) The Abandoned Generation. Grand Rapids, Michigan: William. B. Eerdmans
        Publishing Company.
 

If you have any comments or suggestions, please email me.

 Email Sally Lee