Over half of students aren’t attending lectures: Why Glasgow students are missing class

In my own experience, as the teaching blocks of lectures draw to a close each semester, it is often hard not to notice the empty seats filling what was once a crammed, enthusiastic lecture hall in the first week of term time. The sparsity of a lecture hall on a Thursday morning, following the Sport’s Wednesday of the night before, might point to an overall laziness in today’s students who can now access lectures online via a simple click. However, can mere laziness be blamed for more than half of the students in the UK being absent from lectures? With a rising cost of living placing strain on students everywhere, as well as increased levels of low mental health amongst students, it appears that laziness alone cannot be blamed.

​

A third year student at UofG told us that:”It can be hard to afford life in the West End with just a student loan, so I’ve had to get a part-time job alongside my studies. I often have to work late nights, so my 9am and 10am lectures are the ones I’ve missed out on the most.”

Glasgow has been reported to be the 8th most expensive city in the UK to study in, based on estimated costs of accommodation, utilities, and day-to-day expenses. It comes as no surprise, then, that a growing number of students work alongside their studies. In the UK, it is estimated that 68 per cent of students now have a part-time job, which is a big increase from previous years. In the cafes, pubs, and restaurants of the West End and Glasgow’s City Centre, it is hard not to bump into a fellow classmate who works there, which speaks to the wider trend of students partaking in part-time employment, missing out on in-person study, to support themselves in increasingly expensive cities such as our own. For a deep dive on the realities of part-time work as a student can be read here.

​

Another student claimed: “Sometimes I find myself missing lectures when my mental health is low, or I feel more anxious.”

Aside from part-time jobs, low mental health among students can also manifest itself in an absence from lectures. The Office for National Statistics carried out a survey in 2023, which reported that “over 60 per cent of students in higher education” experience “high levels of stress, anxiety, or depression” with “one in five students having a probable mental health problem.” In conjunction with the rising cost of living in Glasgow, this points to some of the difficulties faced by some UofG students, like the one above, who simply may not be able to prioritise making every lecture at the expense of their quality of life and mental health.

​

As well as this, the Carers Trust Scotland has revealed that “50 per cent of the days young adult carers spend at college or university are affected by their caring role, including arriving late, leaving early, or missing an entire day of study or classes.” Evidently, the responsibilities of carers who must also balance their studies may also contribute to the rise in unattended lectures UK-wide, and empty seats in the lecture halls at the University of Glasgow.

A fresher told us: “Being a first-year student, I can sometimes find it difficult to attend all my lectures, as prioritising making friends and settling in seems to sound more appealing to me, especially as this year I just need to pass in order to get into second year.”

Whilst lower attendance rates speak to the challenges and responsibilities faced by Glasgow’s students, they also speak to some of the positives of modern studies. With lectures now being recorded and resources readily found online, perhaps a more independent mode of study, not available before the pandemic, is now possible. Whilst in-person attendance is a pivotal part of the uni experience, so too is having a life outside of study. A life that will have its own separate challenges, and a life of positive social interaction – whether that be the flourishing of team spirit in that Wednesday BUCS match you missed your 9am for, or that new work best friend who you might never have met in your lecture hall. University life is all about balance; however, that balance can be tipped against class attendance by the difficulties students face in today’s society.