May 15, 2005

National On-Campus Report May 15, 2005 Full Issue PDF
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Most Students Naive About Post-Graduation Finances
Students graduating this year have a couple of reasons to be optimistic: First, they can expect to earn nearly $1 million more over their lifetimes than people without degrees. Second, they’re entering a job market that’s friendlier to entry-level applicants now than it has been in the past few years. However, according to recent studies, many college students are too confident about their financial futures and are, as a result, making mistakes that could haunt them for many years.

Idiot Box vs. Books? Not Really
First came two national studies finding that most students study 10 or fewer hours a week. Then came a Nielsen study finding that college students spend more than 26 hours a week watching television. Now a study from Arkansas State University-Jonesboro finds that students spend 13 hours a week studying, but nearly that much—12 hours a week—watching TV. It’s tempting to assume from this data that television is taking up what should be study time, but the situation is more complex than that.

Suspension and Due Process: Two Recent Cases
Two April court decisions affirm that in order to be “fair,” a campus disciplinary procedure does not necessarily need to provide a full-dress, adversarial judicial hearing.

Good Idea: Wartburg Seniors Can Graduate Twice
This year’s graduating seniors at Wartburg College in Iowa decided that they would like to graduate twice this year—once in a traditional ceremony, and once in a “fake” ceremony with no restrictions on who may attend. Even “pets and in-laws” are welcome, the school says.

Reports
Lonely Freshmen More Likely to Get Sick?; Ed. Dept. Imposes First 6-Figure Clery Fine; Science Lab Building Boom; HBCUs Fight HIV; Urban Campus Is New 'Dream School'; Doctored Photo Doesn't Change Graduation Lineup

Resources
Best Practices for First-Year Students; Educating the Net Generation; Conference: Multiculturalism and Change