29 January 1999 Students Give Thumbs Up to Lincoln's Inaugural Summer School

University students are very keen to accelerate their degree programmes by doing and passing papers as quickly as possible, according to a survey of participants in Lincoln University's first Summer School, which wraps up on 12 February.

"By completing some of their normal university papers in the compressed and accelerated timeframe of a five-week Summer School semester, students can significantly shorten their overall stay at university," says Lincoln University's Summer School Project Manager, Dr Jeff Heyl.

"If they do Summer School again next year they may be able to cut their total attendance time by a full semester. Naturally this relieves them of some of the associated financial costs of tertiary study such as accommodation, transport and general living expenses. Also they get themselves onto the job market faster, and such a head start could be crucial in winning jobs.

"So, while Summer School doesn't cut tuition costs, it does provide a real saving at the end of the day on other costs," says Dr Heyl.

The success of the 1998-1999 Summer School programme – Lincoln University's first – will see an expanded School on offer over summer 1999- 2000.

Nine subjects were offered in the inaugural School and these attracted over 400 registrations. Next time Lincoln plans to double the number of subjects and anticipates a doubling of registrations.

"We'll be offering more 200-level subjects and also a broader selection of 100-levels," says Dr Heyl.

Behind the students seeking to accelerate their progress, the next biggest enrolment category drawn to Summer School were those re-doing subjects – either subjects they had failed or subjects they wanted to repeat to try to achieve higher grades.

Students from universities other than Lincoln also made up a significant group among the enrolments. They were making use of the opportunity to complete papers over the summer which they could then cross-credit to their own various courses of study.

"For all the students, whatever brought them to the School, we provided the full spectrum of the Lincoln 'student experience' and it was appreciated," says Dr Heyl.

"All the student services and facilities remained open and available to the Summer School students so that they got the full feel of life at Lincoln.

"The Library, the Book Shop, Health Centre, Recreation Centre, swimming pool, computer laboratories, food outlets and entertainment all stayed open for the Summer School students.

"On the teaching side the feedback has also been very positive," says Dr Heyl.

"Lecturing staff report that the students were highly motivated and hard-working. So it has been a positive experience for everyone involved."

In addition to Kiwi students, Summer School proved popular with international students and Dr Heyl says that their personal endorsement will prove to be a useful spin-off contribution by the School to the University's already strong international reputation.

Ian Collins, Journalist, Lincoln University, Canterbury, New Zealand