By Dr. Angus Munro with the assistance of Sam Sophorn and Travis Mitchell
Introduction Cambodia would seem to be relatively unusual in that many undergraduate students do parallel or alternative degree programmes at other universities. Also, many seek to hold down jobs as a means to support themselves in the absence of access to student loans or other sources of funding to cover living expenses (scholarships typically only cover course fees).
Whilst these outside activities are generally recognised, there are no data as to their extent. Such information is clearly necessary in order to help get a broader insight into the problems facing our students and how widespread they are. Thus:
The following is an interim report of a survey of undergraduate students at the University of Cambodia, conducted in August-September 2012. It gives essential insights into the situation regarding the competing (and potentially conflicting) demands on their time in pursuit of a Bachelor’s degree at UC. A more detailed statistical analysis of the whole data-set will be published elsewhere (Munro et al., in preparation).
Methods A survey form was prepared in consultation with full-time faculty at UC. Undergraduate students at all levels (Foundation Year and other Bachelor’s students) who were signing up for classes in Term I of Academic Year 2012-13 during the scheduled registration period were invited to complete the form anonymously. Thereafter, the resulting data were collated in Excel spreadsheets and analysed using SPSS 15.
Results Background studies indicated that about three-quarters of both Foundation Year and other Bachelor’s students responded. A χ crosstabs analysis of the raw data indicated that the profile of Foundation Year respondents was not significantly different from that for overall enrolment between Colleges. On the other hand, there was a significant difference for the raw data on other Bachelor’s students: the residuals indicate that this reflected, in particular, a much higher proportion of respondents in the College of Management together with a much lower proportion in Science & Technology. Other analyses found that, overall, there was no significant difference in the proportion of respondents between sessions (morning, afternoon, evening or weekend) for Foundation Year or other students; other issues related to the sampling returns (for example, transfer students: a murky grey area where more in-depth study needs to be done) will be considered elsewhere (Munro et al., in preparation).
Table 1 summarised the key information. About half of both Foundation Year and other Bachelor’s students were studying at another university. Whilst a minority of Foundation Year students had jobs, about half of other Bachelor’s students did so. This means that almost one in five other students was holding down both studying at another university and held a job. χ comparisons indicated that there were significant differences between Colleges in the proportion of students also studying at another university and, for Foundation Year, those who were also working (Table 1). The end result was that 60% of Foundation Year students and more than 80% of other Bachelor’s students had an outside commitment in terms of studying for another degree and/or having a job.
Regarding the respondents who were also doing an undergraduate degree elsewhere (about half of all undergraduate students: Table 1), the majority were doing so at a public university (Munro et al., in preparation). Moreover (Table 2), most were doing so in a distinctly different discipline; the ‘lure’ of scholarships accounted for almost half of those involved. Amongst those who indicated their scholarship status at both UC and the other HEI, the majority were recipients of Scholarships from UC (Munro et al., in preparation).
Table 2 Overview of responses from students who also study at another Higher Education Institution (HEI).
Table 1 indicates that about 13% of Foundation Year students and half of other undergraduate respondents had a job. For those who had jobs, work was most frequently in the private sector and there was a trend for higher level students to hold proportionately more full-time jobs (Table 3). Being a recipient of a scholarship from UC had little clear effect on whether a respondent had a full or part-time job (if any), especially for higher-level respondents (Munro et al., in preparation).
The data in Table 4 indicate that respondents were about evenly split between whether their job was related to what they were studying at UC; and that there was a skewing towards their jobs being related to their proposed future careers. A more detailed analysis will be reported elsewhere (Munro et al., in preparation).
Discussion and Conclusions Table 1 shows an astonishing result: 7% of Foundation Year respondents and almost a fifth of higher-level undergraduates are not only studying at another university but holding down a job. These and the other data in that and subsequent tables provide an essential insight into the dilemma facing higher education in Cambodia, which will be explored in more detail elsewhere (Munro et al., in preparation). The following will focus on a few essential points.
The need to develop the higher education sector is essential for Cambodia to be able to compete in the modern world, especially with the looming formation of the ASEAN Economic Community. However, a recent report by the ILO (2013: 55) claimed that the highest rate of unemployment amongst youth (aged 15–24) was amongst those with a university degree, at 21.1%, being higher amongst males (24.8%) than females (17.3%). Assuming these data are meaningful, the ILO attributed the result to “difficulties transitioning from university to jobs due to lacking the skills needed by the labour market, or most likely to skills inadequacies.” Certainly employers in Cambodia, as elsewhere, complain about the quality of graduate output (see Munro, 2013), but the ILO’s conclusion would seem to be a generalisation based on little hard evidence from their study. What is needed are data on how many graduates enter jobs directly related to their major (or evenrequiring a degree in the first place). Given the fact that there are now over 100 universities in Cambodia, there is clearly the need for rationalisation and quality control, to ensure that the output converges with the
expectations of employers and other stake-holders (Munro, 2011, 2013).
Looking to the future and given the competition for limited numbers of potentially lucrative jobs, many students at UC would seem to be maximising their options by studying a different degree elsewhere, typically at a public university. The fact that it is in a different discipline implies that they are aiming for diversification, and have confidence that what they are studying at UC is bona fide.
Confronted with fi nancial problems in the present, many students have to seek some sort of employment –including those on scholarships, which only cover tuition fees and thus exclude essential items such as textbooks, never mind basic living expenses.
As reviewed by Munro (2013), where earning a degree is otherwise considered to be worthwhile in terms of earning power, financial support to pursue academic studies is subject to not only cash- onstraints but also debt-aversion. Student loans have become well-established in the US and, with the transition from government- funded grants (to cover not only tuition fees but also basic living expenses), the UK. However, there have been problems in their realisation as a means of providing a sustainable way to promote an individual’s efforts at self-advancement. The large volume of debt in the form of student loans has long-term effects on the individual and on the economy, especially in times of high unemployment with the problem of default.
In Cambodia, whilst some universities have provided student loans to cover fees, this creates extra paperwork and potential problems down the line, where previously agreed contracts have to be re-negotiated:4 thus the favoured approach is through the offering of scholarships. Similarly, there is the reported reluctance on the part of banks to enter into the student loans market because of the problem of potential defaults, where loanees cannot repay their debts; and also reluctance of students’ families, give that default would mean that they would lose property as collateral. Recently, Acleda Bank has designed student loan packages of up to $30,000 to be repaid within one year after the completion of the loan-payment. However (unlike in the US and the UK), the loan cannot exceed the requisite tuition fees of the institution to be attended; and there obviously needs to be evidence of “proper work, salary, or sufficient income (students’ parents or guardians),” as well as collateral.
In conclusion, how does the foregoing relate to the perennial problem of students dropping out from their degree programmes at universities in Cambodia, as elsewhere?
References:
ILO (2013) Cambodia Labour Force and Child Labour Survey 2012: Labour Force Report Phnom Penh:
ILO.
1 //www.cambodiadaily.com/news/new-loans-bring-risks-rewards-for-aspiring-students-54736/, citing ILO data.
2 //en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Double_degree; //en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Double_majors_in_the_United_States
3 http://www.bizjournals.com/stlouis/blog/2013/04/fed-student-loan-debt-surpasses-auto.html
4 http://business.time.com/2013/10/18/student-loan-are-becoming-a-drag-on-the-us-economy/
5 www.phnompenhpost.com/lift/where-are-student-loans;
6 www.phnompenhpost.com/lift/where-are-student-loans; //www.cambodiadaily.com/news/new-loans-bring-risks-rewards-for-aspiring-students-54736/,
Munro, A. D. (2009) The Examination System and Quality Assurance at the University of Cambodia. UC Bulletin 3(3), 6-7.
Munro, A. D. (2011) The need for professional benchmarking of standards in Cambodian Universities, in light of UC’s Australian Experience. UC Bulletin 13, 13-15.
Munro, A. D. (2013) The University of Cambodia and Human Capital Development. UC Bulletin 14, 11 and 28-32.
Munro, A. D. (2014) The Best Students for Academic Year 2012-3, in the Context of Previous Years. UC Bulletin (this issue).
