Vol. 01 No.4
June 2009
THE WORKING SCHOLARSHIP PROGRAM OF THE UNIVERSITY
OF THE CORDILLERAS: STUDENT ASSISTANTS’
PERCEPTION AND PROBLEMS
1
Nelly B. Agpawa
Janice L. Aglasi
3
Lani B. Amoso
4
Rosemary A. Bersola
5
Irene A. Brillo
2
6
Noel W. Cabfilan
Marilyn C. Guiang
8
Michael J. Kalngan
9
Ruben I. Rubia
7
Abstract
The purpose of the study was to determine the perception and problems of
the student assistants on the working scholarship program of the university.
Using descriptive-survey with 429 student assistants as respondents, the
study revealed that there is a very favorable perception on the working
scholarship program of UC by the student assistants (SAs). Moreover, it
was revealed that gender and age significantly influence the perception of
the SAs. Limited number of units to enroll and prolonged college years are
the most prevalent problems of the students. Based on the findings, it was
recommended that the incentive package of the SAs be reviewed and that
they be allowed to enroll more units. Also, studies on work motivation and
academic performance of the working students must be conducted.
Key Words: Student Assistant, Perception, Working Scholarship Program
I. INTRODUCTION
Filipinos hold close several values. One of them is education.
We have complete faith in formal schooling as we have the notion
that to be educated is to have a better life. Education is regarded as
a gateway to improving our social and economic status. Hence,
sending their children to college is one of the priorities of the Filipino
family. However, with the economic difficulties and relatively high
cost of college education in the country, many families find it difficult
to send their children to college. The average yearly cost of
education continues to increase. As anxiety rises concerning the
escalating costs of schooling, students are left with the decision of
how to fund their education. Some take out loans, or apply for grants
1,2,3,4,5,6,7,8,9
Library Staff
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or scholarships. Others, however, are left to pay their own way by
means of full-time or part-time employment. Riggert (2006) stated
that approximately 80% of all college students are employed while
completing their undergraduate education. In fact, Astin (2005)
claimed that having a part-time, in-campus job strongly increases the
students’ chances of finishing college.
Tuttle (2005) stated that “today’s
college students face a
complex set of dilemmas about whether to attend college, where to
attend, how to pay, how much to work, how many jobs to take, how
to pay credit card bills and car payments, how to juggle family and
children, and how to balance these competing priorities while in
school.”
Despite financial constraints, there are students who are
committed to finish a college degree. To finance their college
education, they apply for part time jobs or offer their services to
higher education institutions (HEIs) granting working scholarships or
with student assistantship program. The University of the Cordilleras
(UC), in an effort to provide equal educational opportunities for all,
has devised a program to assist the less-financially capable students
to purse their college education called the Working Scholarship or
Student Assistantship Program. The program aims to broaden the
educational opportunities for all sectors of society with emphasis to
those who are financially incapable to pursue a college degree by
employing them as student assistants (SAs). The SAs support the
department heads and their staff members for the effective and
efficient operations of their respective offices. They are deployed in
the
different
colleges,
offices,
library,
cafeteria,
and
other
departments that need student assistance (Abuda, et al, 2008).
Moreover, according to Winkler (2005), student assistants are of
great help in the operations of educational institutions.
The University of the Cordilleras pays for the tuition and
miscellaneous fees of the student assistants in exchange of their
services. They are also given a monthly honorarium, the amount of
which is dependent on the classification of the student assistant.
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Furthermore, all student assistants are annually entitled to five (5)
days vacation leave. The scholarship is renewable every term
depending on academic and performance requirements, and the
recommendation of the scholar’s immediate supervisor.
One of the possible drawbacks of being a working student is
its negative impact on academic achievement. Orszag (2001) said
that negative effects typically arise because hours spent at work take
time away from studying – which may lead to lower grades and less
attractive post-college opportunities. Working may contribute to
students dropping out of college, or taking a longer time to graduate.
In his study titled “Learning and Earning: Working in College”,
students were asked what types of academic limitations are workimposed. The working students reported the following liabilities: forty
percent (40%) said that work limits their class schedule; thirty six
percent (36%) reported that it reduces their class choices; thirty
percent (30%) reported that it limits the number of classes they take;
and twenty six percent (26 %) said their work
limits their access to
the library.
A study conducted by Mullane, et al (2009) on how working
students balance the competitive demands of work, school, and
family revealed that negotiating the complexities of the multiple
simultaneous roles is very difficult and stressful. The respondents
also claimed that their physical and emotional health, social and
family life, school work and grades suffered from trying to juggle
these roles.
Some studies however showed that the negative effect of
working while studying is also dependent on the number of hours
spent in working and that there are also positive consequences of
being a working student. Barke (2000) maintained that the negative
effect of working and studying at the same time on academic
performance is particularly true when the student’s number of hours
worked per week exceeds 20 hours. He further claimed that students
who work fewer than 15-20 hours often report higher GPAs than
those who do not work at all. Moreover, a study conducted by the
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June 2009
National Center for education Statistics (NCES) in the United States
revealed that students working 1-15 hours weekly have a
significantly higher GPA than both students working 16 more hours
and students who don’t work at all. The study of Dundes and Marx
(2007) also reported that 74 percent of student-workers believed that
employment forced them to become more efficient.
The seeming inconsistency in the findings of researches on
the influence of working and studying on academic performance has
prompted the researchers to conduct the study. Although, the
research is focused on the problems and perception of students on
the working scholarship program of UC, findings may provide valuable
insights on how to improve the implementation of the program in the
university. The study is then focused on three (3) specific research
questions:
1. What is the general perception of the student assistants on
the working scholarship program of UC?
2.
What are the problems encountered by the student
assistants?
3.
How do the perceptions and problems of the student
assistants differ when grouped according to gender and age?
It is hypothesized that the perceptions and problems of the
student assistants vary when they are compared according to
gender and age.
II. METHODOLOGY
The researchers made use of the descriptive-survey to
determine the perception of student assistants on the Working
Scholarship Program as well as the problems they encountered as
working students. Comparative analysis was also conducted to
determine if a significant difference exists in the perception of the
students’ assistants when they are grouped according to gender and
age.
The survey was conducted at the University of the Cordilleras
during the Second Trimester of the Academic Year 2008-2009. The
sample is composed of 429 or 79% of the entire population (544) of
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June 2009
working students in the university. The sample respondents were
chosen through incidental sampling, that is, they were selected
based on their availability. Of the 429 respondents, 223 or 52% of
them are males while 206 or 48% are females. Further, 226 or 53%
are belong to the 15-18 age bracket; 178 or 41% belong to the 19–
21; 20 or 5% belong to the 22-25 bracket; and 5 or 1% are aged 26
and above.
To obtain the data, the researchers administered a
questionnaire to the students assistants assigned to the different
offices and departments. The questionnaire is divided into two parts.
The first part contains the personal information of the respondents
and the second part determines the different perceptions on the
working scholarship program and problems. The questionnaire was
submitted to the Vice President for Academic Affairs (VPAA) and the
Research and Development Center for comments and suggestions.
After incorporating the suggestions and upon approval, the
questionnaire was administered to the concerned respondents. To
determine the perceptions, the respondents were asked as to
whether they strongly agree, agree, disagree, or strongly disagree to
the statements. To determine the problems, the respondents were
asked to rank the items indicating the difficulties. The questionnaires
were administered on December 8 and 9, 2008. Retrieval and followups were conducted from December 10 - 20, 2008.
The gathered data were statistically processed using SPSS
v.16. The processing was done by the Research & Development
Center of the university.
Statistical tools used are the weighted
mean, t-test, Analysis of Variance (ANOVA), Spearman Rank-order
correlation, and the Kendall Tau’s Coefficient of Concordance. The
perceptions were interpreted as very favorable (3.25-4.00), favorable
(2.50-3.24), unfavorable (1.75-2.49), and very unfavorable (1.001.74).
III. RESULTS AND DISCUSSION
The general perception of the student assistants on the
working scholarship program of the university is revealed in table 1.
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As shown, majority (52.45%) of the SAs perceive the program as
very favorable. Moreover, the computed mean value (3.26) also
reflects a very favorable perception. This is attributed to the fact that
the respondents “strongly agree” to the statements indicating that the
program is a big help to their parents financially (3.84), the program
is generally helpful (3.77), they are proud to be student assistants
(3.76), they appreciate their being a working student (3.75), the
program builds their confidence (3.60), being a working student is
enjoyable (3.56), being a working student is challenging (3.54), and
they are enthusiastic in reporting for work (3.26). On the other hand,
they “agreed” to the statements indicating that they get along well
with the regular employees (3.17), they will not be able to finish their
college education if they will not work as a student assistant (3.08),
the benefits that they get commensurate to the effort they put forth in
their work (2.99), and there is a favorable interpersonal relationships
among the student assistants (2.93). These findings imply that the
student assistants are satisfied with the aforementioned aspects of
their job. They acknowledge the positive values generated by
working and studying at the same time. In a study conducted by
Dundes and Marx (2007), it was revealed that student- workers
believed that employment forced them to become more efficient.
On the other hand, the respondents “agreed” that the work of
a student assistant is stressful (2.71), there is too much pressure in
being a working student (2.55), and being a student assistant
hinders them to study effectively (2.55). Stress and pressure are
experienced by the SAs because they are dealing with students of
diverse culture, personality, upbringing, and status. Moreover, their
work is a hindrance to their studying effectively because their time is
divided into studying and working. Concentration in studying is hard
to attain under a stressful situation. Dundes and Marx (2007) also
said that student who are working have increased level of stress.
Table 1. General Perception Level of the Student Assistants on the
Working Scholarship Program
Level of Perception
f
%
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Very Favorable(3.25-4.00)
225
Favorable (2.50-3.24)
203
Unfavorable (1.75-2.49)
1
Very Unfavorable (1.00-1.74)
Total
429
Overall Mean = 3.26 – Very Favorable
Std. Deviation = .29
June 2009
52.45
47.32
0.23
100.0
Table 2 shows a comparison on the perception of the
respondents when they are grouped according to gender. As shown,
the overall mean (3.26) of the females is higher than that of the
males (3.19). To determine if there is a significant difference
between the over-all means, the t-test was used. The compute tvalue is 2.46 which is significant at the .05 level. This means that the
null hypothesis which states that there is no significant difference
between the overall means is rejected. This implies that the
perception of the respondents significantly vary in terms of gender, in
favor of the females for having obtained the higher mean. Generally,
the females have a significantly more favorable perception on the
university’s
working
scholarship
program
than
the
males.
Specifically, two items yielded significant differences also in favor of
the females. These findings indicate that the females consider the
working scholarship program as a big help to their parents more than
the males (p < .05). Also, the females believe that they will not be
able to finish their college education without the aid of the program
(p < .01) more than the males. The findings affirm the age old notion
of gender differences in terms of behavioral dispositions. Santrock
(2005) claims that males and females vary on how they think and
perceive things and that females are more flexible than the males.
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Table 2. Perceptions of Student Assistants on the Working Scholarship
Program when Grouped according to Gender
Item
M
F
tcv
Remark
1.I appreciate my being a student assistant.
3.71
3.79
1.79
NS
2. I enjoy my work as a student assistant.
3. There is a favorable interpersonal
relationship among student assistants in
the office where I work.
4. I find the work of a student assistant as
challenging.
5. I get along well with the regular
staff/employees in the office where I work.
6. The work of a student assistant is
stressful.
7. I am always enthusiastic in reporting for
duty/work.
8. My being a working student is a big help to
my parents financially.
9. My being a student assistant is generally
helpful to me.
10. I am proud to be a student assistant.
11. Being a student assistant helps build my
self-confidence.
12. Being a student assistant hinders me to
study effectively
13. There is too much pressure in being a
student assistant.
14. The benefits provided for being a student
assistant commensurate to the efforts I
put forth in my work.
15. I believe I will not be able to finish my
college education if I will not work as a
student assistant.
Overall
3.52
3.60
1.49
NS
2.87
3.00
1.67
NS
3.54
3.55
.20
NS
3.14
3.19
.73
NS
2.70
2.72
.35
NS
3.26
3.25
.06
NS
3.80
3.88
2.12
P< .05
3.74
3.80
1.27
NS
3.72
3.80
1.75
.NS
3.54
3.67
.93
NS
2.59
2.50
.70
NS
2.57
2.52
.70
NS
2.99
2.98
.09
NS
2.96
3.21
3.08
P< .01
3.26
2.46
P< .05
Note: M- Male
F - Female
3.19
NS- Not Significant
Table 3 shows a comparison on the perception of the
respondents when grouped according to age. As revealed, the 26 &
above age group obtained the highest mean (3.31), followed by the
19-21 group (3.24), the 15-18 group (3.22), and the 22-25 age group
(3.18).
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Table 3. Perceptions of Student Assistants on the Working Scholarship
Program when Grouped according to Age
Age Group
Item
I appreciate my being a student
assistant.
I enjoy my work as a student
assistant.
There is a favorable
interpersonal relationship among
student assistants in the office
where I work.
I find the work of a student
assistant as challenging.
I get along well with the regular
staff/employees in the office
where I work.
The work of a student assistant
is stressful.
I am always enthusiastic in
reporting for duty/work.
My being a working student is a
big help to my parents financially.
My being a student assistant is
generally helpful to me.
I am proud to be a student
assistant.
Being a student assistant helps
build my self-confidence.
Being a student assistant
hinders me to study effectively
There is too much pressure in
being a student assistant.
The benefits provided for being a
student assistant commensurate
to the efforts I put forth in my
work.
I believe I will not be able to
finish my college education if I
will not work as a student
assistant.
Overall Mean
15-18
19- 21
22-25
26 &
above
3.74
3.75
3.75
3.60
3.54
3.58
3.65
3.60
2.92
2.96
2.70
3.40
3.55
3.54
3.45
3.60
3.13
3.21
3.10
3.60
2.73
2.70
2.70
2.40
3.25
3.26
3.35
3.00
3.85
3.83
3.85
3.60
3.75
3.81
3.65
3.60
3.76
3.75
3.90
3.60
3.62
3.61
3.40
3.60
2.58
2.50
2.65
2.40
2.55
2.54
2.60
2.20
3.03
2.93
3.10
3.00
3.09
3.08
2.80
3.40
3.22
3.24
3.18
3.31
F= .342 – Not Significant ; p>.05
To test if there is a significant difference among the means,
the F-test was used.
The computed value (.342) is not significant
(p>.05) which means that the null hypothesis which states that there
is no significant difference among the means is accepted. The
observed differences are only due to chance. This finding implies
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that age has not influenced the perception of the respondents on the
working scholarship program of the university. The perceived degree
of favorableness across age group is the same.
Problems Encountered by the Student Assistants
Table 4 presents how the respondents ranked the problems
encountered by student assistants. The ranks of the respondents to
the problems were added to come up with a sum of ranks. The
overall rank is then based on the sum of ranks. The lower the sum of
ranks, the higher the overall rank. Based on the ranks, it is seen that
their foremost problems are fewer units enrolled, prolonged college
years, and no time for studying and doing academic requirements.
The problems are understandable because a student assistant is
allowed to enroll 18 units maximum. This limitation enables them to
render the required six (6) service hours a day. Besides the reduced
number of units paves way for the SAs to rest and relaxed after their
duty hours which would help them manage their stress and lessen
pressure. This will also give them enough time to attend to their
social life and health concerns. Reducing their units into 18 would
mean allowing them to enroll manageable number of subjects with
manageable academic requirements, especially that their third (3rd)
top problem is “no time for studying and doing academic
requirements”.
Since the full load for regular students in a trimester ranges
from 21 to 24 units, the SAs are delayed from graduating on time. In
some cases, the subjects that they were not able to enroll in the
current trimester may no longer be offered the following trimester
hence they have to wait for these subjects to be offered at a later
term. Fewer units enrolled will eventually lead to prolonged college
years. This relates to the opinion of Ehrenberg and Sherman (1987)
that students would need to reduce the number of credit hours they
carry each term in order to make time for employment. This way,
they would have a lesser time to attend classes and do some of their
academic requirements. Fjortoft (1995) as cited by Tuttle (2005) also
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claimed that the more time a student devotes to employment, the
less he or she has for either academic or social activities.
Table 4. Problems of the Student Assistants
Problems
Fewer Units Enrolled
Prolonged College Years
No Time for Studying and doing Academic
Requirements
Pressure in Work
No Term Vacation
Cause of Fatigue
Tardiness in Class Because of Duty Hours
Late Duty Hours
Sum of
Ranks
1166
1323
Overall Rank
1758
3
1981
2014
2162
2419
2636
4
5
6
7
8
1
2
On the other hand, “late duty hours”, “tardiness in class” and
‘cause of fatigue” are the least concerns of the SAs. The official duty
hour’s of SAs ends at 7:00 in the evening wherein transportation is
still available. Besides regular classes are dismissed at 7:30 pm
which is later than the SAs dismissal. Furthermore, in cases where
student’s assistants are requested to extend their duty hours until
10:00 pm due to some urgent or pressing work, they are given taxi
fares. Tardiness in class because of duty hours is also perceived as
one of the least concerns of the SAs. This is attributed to the fact
that SAs are already within the vicinity of the University. Moreover,
SAs schedules are reconciled with their work schedule so as to
avoid conflict before starting their official duty. Fatigue is their third
least concern because generally they work in shift in their assigned
areas of work and they are given 15-30 minutes break. These
findings imply that apparently they are enjoying their work because
they are strongly motivated in their desire to finish their studies
despite their financial incapacity.
Problems of SAs according to Gender and Age
Table 9 indicates problems encountered by the respondents
according to gender. The computed correlation coefficient is .91
which indicates that the problems of the male and female
respondents are highly related. The computed correlated coefficient
is significant at the .05 level. The high relationship is attributed to the
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fact that the top three (3) problems of the respondents from both
sexes are the same. It is in the lowest three (3) problems that they
differed. For the males, tardiness is considered the least problem
while for the females it is “late duty hours”. Tardiness is the least
problem for the males because they can easily catch up with their
classes given the fact that they are faster and more agile than the
females. Also, the males may consider being tardy as not problem at
all. For the females having late duties is the last problem to them
because apparently they are not bothered about their duty hours
scheduled late afternoon or early evening.
Table 9. Problems Encountered by Student Assistants according to Gender
Concerns
Male
Sum of
Overall
Ranks
Rank
629
1
710
2
Fewer units enrolled
Prolonged college years
No time for studying and
936
academic requirements
No Term Vacation
1053
Tardiness in class because of
1217
duty hours
Pressure in work
1033
Cause of fatigue
1097
Late duty hours
1355
rs = .91 – Significant
Female
Sum of Overall
Ranks
Rank
537
1
613
2
3
822
3
5
961
4
8
1202
7
4
948
6
1065
7
1281
; r.05 = .643
6
5
8
Table 10 presents the concerns/problems encountered by the
SAs of the University of the Cordilleras when age was used to
classify them. Kendall’s coefficient of Concordance was used to
ascertain significance of agreement in the perception of problems
met by working scholars along the four age groups (15-18, 19-21,
22-25, 26 and above). Results revealed that there is a very high
degree of agreement (W= .98) among the problems of the student
assistants across age groups. The top 2 problems are the same
across age groups. The same is true with the last problem. Having
late duty hours is their least concern.
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Table10. Problems encountered by Student Assistants according to
Age
15-18
Concerns
Fewer units
enrolled
Prolonged
college years
No time for
studying and
academic
requirements
Pressure in
work
No Term
Vacation
Cause of
fatigue
Tardiness in
class because
of duty hours
Late duty
hours
19-21
22-25
26 & above
Sum
of
Ranks
Overal
l
Rank
Sum of
Ranks
Overall
Rank
Sum of
Ranks
Overall
Rank
Sum of
Ranks
Overall
Rank
638
1
461
1
52
1.5
15
1
664
2
588
2
52
1.5
19
2
898
3
764
3
74
3
22
4
1047
4
815
4
96
5
23
5
1070
5
829
5
94
4
21
3
1136
6
891
6
110
6
25
7
1294
7
990
7
111
7
24
6
1395
8
1079
8
131
8
31
8
Wcv =.98 – Significant
; W.05 = .46
IV. CONCLUSIONS AND RECOMMENDATIONS
The working scholarship program of the university is
favorable to the student assistants. The program is considered as a
big help to the parents of the student assistants financially. Gender
and age significantly influence the perception of the student
assistants on the program. Limited number of units to enroll is the
most prevalent problem of the assistants while having late duty
hours is the least of their concern. As recommendations, the
university must continue to offer the working scholarship program to
poor but deserving students. Also, the administration must look into
the benefits of the student assistants and make favorable
adjustments so that they would be more motivated to work efficiently
and effectively. Continuous training must be
provided to develop
their skills and enhance their work values.
A tracer study on
graduates who availed of the working scholarship of the university
may be conducted.
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