GPSS IN THE NEWS
As the representative body for 11,000 graduate and professional students, GPSS is often in the news, both on campus and off. Members of the Press are encouraged to contact the GPSS President for interviews.
SURVEY OF GRAD STUDENTS HIGHLIGHTS IMPORTANCE OF WORK-FAMILY BALANCE
Source: The Daily
Author: Abby Walker
Date: Jun 28, 2006
A recent survey of UW graduate students found that a balance between work and family life is the main factor in making career or educational decisions.
The desire for this balance covers all demographics and illustrates that the future of the job market is beginning to transition to more family oriented choices and benefits.
“Many careers will need to be flexible — not just academic ones — to be able to recruit and retain this generation of highly educated people,” said Dr. Kate Quinn, the graduate student who conducted the survey as part of her dissertation. Quinn recently graduated with a PhD. from the Educational Leadership and Policy Studies program.
Prior to her study, Quinn had read articles that suggested graduate students who had intended to pursue academic careers switched to a different career path, in hopes of having a stronger balance between work and home life. The literature also implied that a work-family balance was difficult to achieve in higher education.
A survey was sent out to graduate students in hope of discovering their perceptions and beliefs about maintaining this balance at the UW. Over 1,100 graduate students responded to the survey.
The “ability to balance work and personal life” was chosen by 85 percent of respondents as one of the top three factors in deciding on a future career. Financial security and opportunities for research rounded out the top three.
Whether students believe that the UW is family friendly is nearly split evenly.
“On questions about whether it looks like faculty can balance work and life, and that the UW is supportive of work-family balance, many respondents were neutral and almost evenly split between the ‘no’s’ and the ‘yeses,’” Quinn said.
She believes that some departments may be more understanding than others when it comes to family issues.
Although the survey was targeted specifically at UW students, its results could reflect the beliefs of other universities as well.
“UW is a doctoral research extensive university, and rather competitive, so the types of pressures our faculty and students face would be similar to other universities,” Quinn said.
Close to 45 percent of the graduate students who responded to the survey are married, however the majority of them do not have children. Those who do have children say they have missed important events or delayed having additional kids in order to focus on their education.
There are several steps that the UW can take to alleviate the negative feedback and make it more welcoming to students with families, Quinn said.
“Having subsidized and campus-based childcare seems to make a world of difference,” she said. “Having ‘child friendly’ spaces where families could hang out on or near campus is also helpful.”
The Graduate and Professional Student Senate (GPSS) hopes to improve the current relationship between work and family life.
“Student government can help with the burdens of social service access as well as activities to release the tensions associated with our academic lives,” said Kimberly Friese, the incoming GPSS president.
It is important for students and faculty to have a life that is separate from the UW or future careers, Quinn said.
“We need to make this experience one that provides the ability to excel academically while still being able to know the joy of family life,” Friese said. “Students should not be made to feel like they have to choose. Quinn agreed.
“We’re all here to do a job or complete a degree, but we shouldn’t have to surrender our identities and our families at the door to be welcomed,” she said.
The desire for this balance covers all demographics and illustrates that the future of the job market is beginning to transition to more family oriented choices and benefits.
“Many careers will need to be flexible — not just academic ones — to be able to recruit and retain this generation of highly educated people,” said Dr. Kate Quinn, the graduate student who conducted the survey as part of her dissertation. Quinn recently graduated with a PhD. from the Educational Leadership and Policy Studies program.
Prior to her study, Quinn had read articles that suggested graduate students who had intended to pursue academic careers switched to a different career path, in hopes of having a stronger balance between work and home life. The literature also implied that a work-family balance was difficult to achieve in higher education.
A survey was sent out to graduate students in hope of discovering their perceptions and beliefs about maintaining this balance at the UW. Over 1,100 graduate students responded to the survey.
The “ability to balance work and personal life” was chosen by 85 percent of respondents as one of the top three factors in deciding on a future career. Financial security and opportunities for research rounded out the top three.
Whether students believe that the UW is family friendly is nearly split evenly.
“On questions about whether it looks like faculty can balance work and life, and that the UW is supportive of work-family balance, many respondents were neutral and almost evenly split between the ‘no’s’ and the ‘yeses,’” Quinn said.
She believes that some departments may be more understanding than others when it comes to family issues.
Although the survey was targeted specifically at UW students, its results could reflect the beliefs of other universities as well.
“UW is a doctoral research extensive university, and rather competitive, so the types of pressures our faculty and students face would be similar to other universities,” Quinn said.
Close to 45 percent of the graduate students who responded to the survey are married, however the majority of them do not have children. Those who do have children say they have missed important events or delayed having additional kids in order to focus on their education.
There are several steps that the UW can take to alleviate the negative feedback and make it more welcoming to students with families, Quinn said.
“Having subsidized and campus-based childcare seems to make a world of difference,” she said. “Having ‘child friendly’ spaces where families could hang out on or near campus is also helpful.”
The Graduate and Professional Student Senate (GPSS) hopes to improve the current relationship between work and family life.
“Student government can help with the burdens of social service access as well as activities to release the tensions associated with our academic lives,” said Kimberly Friese, the incoming GPSS president.
It is important for students and faculty to have a life that is separate from the UW or future careers, Quinn said.
“We need to make this experience one that provides the ability to excel academically while still being able to know the joy of family life,” Friese said. “Students should not be made to feel like they have to choose. Quinn agreed.
“We’re all here to do a job or complete a degree, but we shouldn’t have to surrender our identities and our families at the door to be welcomed,” she said.