Page 20 - UWI QUALITY CIRCLE Vol.19 May 2017

Cross Campus Student Vibes: Student Success, from Recruitment to Graduation
Context
The UWI Quality Circle Team took to the Campuses in an informal but we hope informative way to hear further from our students about their perceptions on our current theme, “Student Success, from Recruitment to Graduation”. Responses were provided by eight students from the Mona, St. Augustine and Cave Hill Campuses. Submissions from the Open Campus appear in the respective articles. We extend sincere thanks to all participants, named and unnamed.
What is “Student Success”?
Factors most conducive to student success
Such factors are varied, but there are common threads. Students see interpersonal relationships within and outside of the University as quite important aids to success. For example, friendships developed, as well as levels of constructive engagement with lecturers are success-promoting factors. Kadeem Campbell, a Mona Faculty of Science and Technology student, lists, “new found friendships which act as a symbiotic relationship. One must understand that no man can be an island in university”. The British exchange student places value on, “mixing with people from different backgrounds and cultures”.
BY DR KAY THOMPSON
Students typically linked “Success” to achieving goals related to their studies, but some viewed success holistically, encompassing achieving study goals, life goals, being better prepared for constructive citizenship, and developing coping skills linked to transferable knowledge. One British exchange student at the Mona campus opined, “Managing University studies, personal and spiritual development as well as fun; exploring Jamaica as an international student, and spending time with family”.
Though the “GPA” did not gure prominently in most students’ de nitions of success, nor its pursuit among the major things that helped them to achieve success, the GPA as an indicator of success was not discounted. Jason Hay, a second year Food and Agriculture undergraduate student of the St. Augustine Campus, underscored the importance of the GPA in practical terms to explain an aspect of success: “having a GPA that would get me a scholarship in a graduate programme somewhere in the world.” Jamar Skeete, a nal year Faculty of Science and Technology student expressed similar views, and added that “success also means learning enough and doing enough in the UWI programme to be able to function well in a job and work with people”.
In addition, personal factors and personal development are contributing to students’ success. For example, personal interest in, and motivation towards their eld of study were highlighted. With speci c reference to their programmes, some students cited programme rigour/assignments/scope as an aid to their studies; for example, “Rigorous testing and papers that have to be written”. The lone PhD student respondent, from the Faculty of Social Sciences, St. Augustine Campus referred speci cally to the “On-line library repository and supervisor support” as the two factors contributing most to his or her success.
Factors least conducive to student success, or even harmful
A mixture of personal and programme factors were noted. One student actually referred to “my energy level” as problematic in this regard; students cited their/students’ “time management”, or rather the lack thereof as a major factor potentially reducing levels of student success. There were also very practical concerns such as the stress associated with trying to secure tuition or pay back tuition related loans.
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