Syftet med denna uppsats är att redogöra för varför tandhygienistyrket väljs och varför den två- eller treåriga utbildningen till tandhygienist söks?Uppsatsen ger en översikt hur tankegångarna tidigare har varit inför tandhygienist-utbildningens längd. Hösten 2010 ska den behörighetsutredning som regeringen tillsatt redovisa vad de kommit fram till om tandhygienistutbildningens längd. För att få svar på uppsatsens syfte har en enkät utlämnats till förstaårsstudenter på tandhygienistutbildningen i Kristianstad och Malmö. Resultaten från enkätundersökningen visar att endast hälften av tandhygieniststudenterna har utbildningen som sitt förstahandsval. Tandhygienistyrket väljs främst för att studenterna vill arbeta med människor men även för att de vill arbeta praktiskt och för att yrket har goda framtidsutsikter.Hälften av Malmöstudenterna valde Malmö just för att utbildningen där är tvåårig medan en tredjedel av Kristianstadstudenterna valde utbildningen för att den var treårig och de på så vis skulle få en bättre utbildning. / The purpose of this essay is to explain why the dental hygiene profession is chosen by dental hygiene students and why the two- or three-year program in dental hygiene is chosen. This essay provides an overview of previous ideas regarding the length of the dental hygiene education. A survey was made on first-year dental hygiene students at two universities in southern Sweden to find the answers to the purpose of this essay.The results from the survey shows that only half of the dental hygienist students put their education as the top choice when applying to university. The dental hygiene profession is chosen primarily because of the desire to work with people but also because they want to work with their hands and that the profession has good prospects.Half of the Malmo students chose Malmo just because the education is two years there while a third of the Kristianstad students chose the education there because it was three years and that they would have a better education therefore.

The well-being of first-year students in higher education institutions needs particular attention as their level form the foundation for future graduates, and subsequent employees. It is an important focus area for research and intervention. First-year higher education institutions’ student drop-out rate in South Africa is said to be alarmingly high and therefore a cause for concern. An overload of tasks and related time pressure associated with studies is often a reality for first-year students. The problem is compounded when such students are academically and socially unprepared to participate in higher education. The attraction to higher education institutions is that graduates enjoy a higher status in our society as they are seen to play a particularly important role in managing the knowledge-driven economy. The significance of this status relates to the extent of the application of knowledge to the economy, a status which provides competitiveness among nations. Students need to be physically healthy, psychologically well, engaged and satisfied with their lives for their well-being, and subsequently achieve their academic goals. If appropriate and timely, support and resources provided by higher education institutions can play a positive role in the first-year student transition into higher education and thereby minimise the possibilities of student burnout and ill health, whilst increasing the experience of engagement and satisfaction with life. The study aimed to assess the relationship between demands, resources, burnout, engagement, health and satisfaction with life for first-year students at higher education institutions in South Africa and to test a model of well-being for these students. A cross-sectional survey design was used to gather data regarding the burnout, engagement, ill health, and life satisfaction experienced by students. A convenience sample (N = 936) of first-year students at three campuses of two higher education institutions participated in the study. The measuring instruments used were the Oldenburg Burnout Inventory, a biographical questionnaire (including questions about available resources), Study Demands-Resources Questionnaire, Health Questionnaire, and Satisfaction with Life Scale. The results of study 1 showed that the students obtained somewhat higher mean scores on engagement compared to burnout. Significant effects on burnout and engagement were made by influences that included whom the student lived with, the distance between home and university campus during studies, frequency of visits to home, employment status of parents, frequency of library use, and gender. No relationship was established for place of residence with burnout and engagement. Study 2 showed that a measure of study demands and resources for students was sufficiently reliable and valid to be used for assessment. Results showed a statistically significant relationship between each observed variable and its respective construct. A positive relationship between study resources and satisfaction with life, as well as a negative relationship between study demands and satisfaction with life were found, which provides additional evidence for the construct validity of a measure of study demands and resources. Age was significantly related to study resources and satisfaction with life. The results of study 3 showed that study demands and a lack of study resources (including the intrinsic nature of study tasks, relationships with lecturers and social support of peers) were positively associated with burnout. The availability of study resources was positively associated with psychological well-being and engagement. Burnout predicted psychological unwell-being symptoms, while engagement predicted satisfaction with life. Burnout partially mediated the relationship between a lack of study resources and psychological unwell-being, while engagement partially mediated the relationship between the availability of study resources and satisfaction with life. / PhD (Industrial Psychology)--North-West University, Vaal Triangle Campus, 2015

Although the need for and importance of self-directed learning are well documented, studies reporting on the influence of teaching–learning strategies, fostering self-directed learning skills, are limited. The aim of this investigation was to determine and understand the impact of the implementation of cooperative base groups on the self-directed learning readiness of first-year Life Sciences students. In order to achieve the research aim, a mixed method approach was followed. During the quantitative phase, the Self-Directed Learning Readiness Scale, a cooperative base group perception questionnaire, a checklist for social skills, and the academic achievement of first-year Life Sciences students at the Potchefstroom Campus of the North-West University were analysed. In the qualitative phase of the investigation, semi-structured interviews were conducted with randomly selected first-year Life Sciences students of the experimental group. The questions in the interviews were aimed at determining the students‟ perception of cooperative base groups, how this perception contributed to their self-directed learning competencies, as well as the role that active involvement, the cooperative base group folder and personal support play in the development of self-directed learning competencies. The results of the investigation contribute to the body of knowledge on cooperative learning as it provides insight into how students experience cooperative base groups. The implementation of cooperative base groups contributes to the development of the following characteristics and skills, which are vital for becoming self-directed in one‟s learning: viewing peers as resources; being able to give and receive help; developing good social skills; being motivated to learn; and taking initiative and responsibility for learning. / MEd (Natural Sciences Education), North-West University, Potchefstroom Campus, 2015

Although the need for and importance of self-directed learning are well documented, studies reporting on the influence of teaching–learning strategies, fostering self-directed learning skills, are limited. The aim of this investigation was to determine and understand the impact of the implementation of cooperative base groups on the self-directed learning readiness of first-year Life Sciences students. In order to achieve the research aim, a mixed method approach was followed. During the quantitative phase, the Self-Directed Learning Readiness Scale, a cooperative base group perception questionnaire, a checklist for social skills, and the academic achievement of first-year Life Sciences students at the Potchefstroom Campus of the North-West University were analysed. In the qualitative phase of the investigation, semi-structured interviews were conducted with randomly selected first-year Life Sciences students of the experimental group. The questions in the interviews were aimed at determining the students‟ perception of cooperative base groups, how this perception contributed to their self-directed learning competencies, as well as the role that active involvement, the cooperative base group folder and personal support play in the development of self-directed learning competencies. The results of the investigation contribute to the body of knowledge on cooperative learning as it provides insight into how students experience cooperative base groups. The implementation of cooperative base groups contributes to the development of the following characteristics and skills, which are vital for becoming self-directed in one‟s learning: viewing peers as resources; being able to give and receive help; developing good social skills; being motivated to learn; and taking initiative and responsibility for learning. / MEd (Natural Sciences Education), North-West University, Potchefstroom Campus, 2015

The well-being of first-year students in higher education institutions needs particular attention as their level form the foundation for future graduates, and subsequent employees. It is an important focus area for research and intervention. First-year higher education institutions’ student drop-out rate in South Africa is said to be alarmingly high and therefore a cause for concern. An overload of tasks and related time pressure associated with studies is often a reality for first-year students. The problem is compounded when such students are academically and socially unprepared to participate in higher education. The attraction to higher education institutions is that graduates enjoy a higher status in our society as they are seen to play a particularly important role in managing the knowledge-driven economy. The significance of this status relates to the extent of the application of knowledge to the economy, a status which provides competitiveness among nations. Students need to be physically healthy, psychologically well, engaged and satisfied with their lives for their well-being, and subsequently achieve their academic goals. If appropriate and timely, support and resources provided by higher education institutions can play a positive role in the first-year student transition into higher education and thereby minimise the possibilities of student burnout and ill health, whilst increasing the experience of engagement and satisfaction with life. The study aimed to assess the relationship between demands, resources, burnout, engagement, health and satisfaction with life for first-year students at higher education institutions in South Africa and to test a model of well-being for these students. A cross-sectional survey design was used to gather data regarding the burnout, engagement, ill health, and life satisfaction experienced by students. A convenience sample (N = 936) of first-year students at three campuses of two higher education institutions participated in the study. The measuring instruments used were the Oldenburg Burnout Inventory, a biographical questionnaire (including questions about available resources), Study Demands-Resources Questionnaire, Health Questionnaire, and Satisfaction with Life Scale. The results of study 1 showed that the students obtained somewhat higher mean scores on engagement compared to burnout. Significant effects on burnout and engagement were made by influences that included whom the student lived with, the distance between home and university campus during studies, frequency of visits to home, employment status of parents, frequency of library use, and gender. No relationship was established for place of residence with burnout and engagement. Study 2 showed that a measure of study demands and resources for students was sufficiently reliable and valid to be used for assessment. Results showed a statistically significant relationship between each observed variable and its respective construct. A positive relationship between study resources and satisfaction with life, as well as a negative relationship between study demands and satisfaction with life were found, which provides additional evidence for the construct validity of a measure of study demands and resources. Age was significantly related to study resources and satisfaction with life. The results of study 3 showed that study demands and a lack of study resources (including the intrinsic nature of study tasks, relationships with lecturers and social support of peers) were positively associated with burnout. The availability of study resources was positively associated with psychological well-being and engagement. Burnout predicted psychological unwell-being symptoms, while engagement predicted satisfaction with life. Burnout partially mediated the relationship between a lack of study resources and psychological unwell-being, while engagement partially mediated the relationship between the availability of study resources and satisfaction with life. / PhD (Industrial Psychology)--North-West University, Vaal Triangle Campus, 2015

Thesis (PhD (Education )--University of Stellenbosch, 2008. / 352 leaves, preliminary pages xxiii and numbered pages 1-329. Includes bibliography and a list of figures. / ENGLISH ABSTRACT: The South African school system is increasingly producing students who do not make the grade in higher education. Universities are concerned about the quality of the students who register as first-years at higher education institutions. The findings of various studies have clearly shown that more and more students are inadequately prepared and therefore not ready for higher education. In South Africa the problems resulting from the gap between school and university have been exacerbated by the inequalities that exist in the secondary school system, and which are still part of the legacy of apartheid. Within the context of learners’increasing unpreparedness for university studies, their difficult transition from school to university and the concomitant high drop-out figures in higher education, this study investigated the extent to which universities – with Stellenbosch University as a case in point – can contribute towards preparing students for university studies from as early as school level, and thus facilitate their transition from school to university. Taking this research question into account, the researcher investigated the extent to which specific variables played a part both in the pre-university phase and after admission. In addition, the study also focused on the extent to which students’ school background (previously disadvantaged privileged school) influences students’ preparedness, and to what extent academic standards (amongst others final examination results)are related to success in the first year at university. The research design was a case study of black newcomer first-year students who participated in a Stellenbosch University bursary project (the Merit Bursary project) in their Grade 12 year. The data generation consisted of two phases, namely a quantitative approach in the pre-university phase and a qualitative approach, after admission, in the transitional phase. The research findings have revealed that the inequalities in the South African schooling system influence the transition from school to university. The classification of schools (previously disadvantaged or privileged school) plays a crucial role in students’ preparedness and how they handle the transition from school to university. There are various academic, social, emotional, cultural and financial factors that impact on this transition. However, the factors are interdependent – no one factor can be regarded as being more important than another. Universities must adopt a holistic approach to the transition that newcomer students are required to make. It was concluded in the study that universities have a responsibility to ensure that the diminishing pool of potential students in higher education be expanded. Universities should also ontribute towards preparing prospective students more effectively so that the transition process will be less challenging. It is believed that this will also improve the throughput rate. In this regard the study proposes a theoretical framework for a pre university intervention. / AFRIKAANSE OPSOMMING: Die Suid-Afrikaanse skoolstelsel lewer toenemend studente wat nie die mas in hoër onderwys opkom nie en universiteite is bekommerd oor die kwaliteit van die studente wat as eerstejaars aan hoëronderwysinstellings registreer. Uit die bevindinge van verskeie studies het dit geblyk dat studente toenemend nie voldoende voorbereid en gereed is vir hoër onderwys nie. In die Suid-Afrikaanse konteks word die gaping tussen skool en universiteit vergroot deur ongelykhede in die sekondêre skoolstelsel as gevolg van die land se apartheidsgeskiedenis. In die konteks van leerders se toenemende onvoorbereidheid vir universiteitstudie, die moeilike oorgang van skool na universiteit en die gepaardgaande hoe uitvalsyfers in hoër onderwys, het hierdie studie ondersoek ingestel na die mate waarin universiteite - met die Universiteit Stellenbosch as spesifieke geval - reeds op skoolvlak ’n rol kan speel om voornemende studente beter vir universiteitstudie voor te berei en sodoende die oorgang van skool na universiteit te vergemaklik. Met die navorsingsingsvraag in ag genome, het die navorser die mate waarin spesifieke veranderlikes ’n rol speel in die pre-universitêre fase asook die fase na toetrede tot universiteit, ondersoek. In samehang hiermee, het die studie ook gefokus op die invloed van skoolagtergrond (voorheen benadeelde of bevoorregte skole) op die voorbereidheid van studente en die mate waarin akademiese maatstawwe op skool (onder meer eindeksamenresultate) verband hou met sukses in die eerste universiteitsjaar. Die navorsingsontwerp was ’n gevallestudie van swart nuwelingeerstejaarstudente wat in hulle graad 12-jaar aan ’n beursprojek (die Verdienstelikheidsbeursprojek) van die Universiteit Stellenbosch deelgeneem het. Die data-generering het uit twee fases bestaan, naamlik ’n kwantitatiewe benadering in die pre-universitêre fase en ’n kwalitatiewe benadering na toetrede in die oorgangsfase. Die ondersoek het gevind dat die ongelykhede in die Suid-Afrikaanse skoolstelsel die oorgang van skool na universiteit beinvloed. Skoolklassifikasie (voorheen benadeelde of bevoorregte skole) speel ’n bepalende rol in die voorbereidheid van studente en ook in die wyse waarop studente die oorgang hanteer. Daar is ’n verskeidenheid akademiese, sosiale, emosionele, kulturele en finansiële faktore wat ’n rol speel in die oorgang van skool na universiteit. Die faktore is egter interafhanklik van aard – geen een kan uitgesonder word as belangriker as die ander nie. Universiteite moet die oorgang van nuwelingstudente holisties benader. Hierdie ondersoek kom verder tot die slotsom dat dit ook die verantwoordelikheid van universiteite is om te sorg dat die krimpende poel potensiele studente vir hoër onderwys vergroot en beter voorbereide studente toegelaat word om sodoende die oorgangsproses te vergemaklik en deurvloeikoerse te verhoog. In die lig hiervan stel die studie ’n teoretiese raamwerk vir ’n pre-universitêre intervensie voor.

Women are returning to study as mature age students in increasing numbers. Typically, these women have been away from study for a number of years and, in order to gain entrance into a university course most women are required to undertake a bridging program. Bridging programs can provide women with an alternative pathway into university and are designed to develop the academic and study skills required to successfully undertake undergraduate studies. The Women into Science and Technology (WIST) bridging program, offered by Central Queensland University, is a self-paced bridging program which provides a low cost, study at home option specifically designed to accommodate women’s needs. This research focuses on the perceived needs of women who are enrolled in the WIST program. To this end a survey instrument has been developed to identify the needs and challenges of women undertaking the WIST program. This instrument was used to explore the needs and challenges of women enrolled in the WIST program. The survey results revealed that women have a range of needs which include support from the university, development of study and academic skills, personal qualities such as motivation and determination as well as support from their family and personal networks. The results indicate that the university needs to provide a range of support mechanisms and processes. These outcomes were used to develop the Get SET for Study framework that can be used for the planning and design of bridging courses similar to WIST for women who are considering enrolling in university.

Mit ca. 40.500 Studierenden und 9.200 Studienanfängern im Wintersemester 2007/08 ist Dresden der bedeutendste Hochschulstandort im Freistaat Sachsen. Für die Landeshauptstadt Dresden ergeben sich durch ihre Hochschulen und Studierenden eine Reihe positiver Effekte, von wirtschaftlicher Innovationskraft bis zur Bereicherung des kulturellen Lebens. Aufgrund der demographischen Entwicklung wird für den Freistaat Sachsen jedoch im Zeitraum 2008 bis 2015 ein massiver Einbruch der Studienanfängerzahlen prognostiziert. Wie stark diese Abnahme ausfällt, ist nicht nur abhängig von der Größe der relevanten Altersjahrgänge, sondern auch von der Studienberechtigten- und Studierquote sowie der Mobilität der Studienanfänger. Im Fokus der Studie steht die Mobilität der Studienanfänger bzw. Studierenden: Um die mit einem starken Rückgang der Studierendenzahlen drohenden negativen Folgen für die Stadtentwicklung zu vermeiden, müssen zukünftig Dresdner Abiturienten und Studierende verstärkt in Dresden gehalten sowie Abiturienten und Studierende aus anderen Bundesländern für ein Studium in Dresden gewonnen werden. Mit Bezug auf die Stadt Dresden vermittelt die Studie ein umfassendes Bild vom Prozess der Studienstandortwahl und geht dabei insbesondere auf kommunale Handlungsspielräume ein. Anhand von Befragungsergebnissen und unter Bezug auf vorhandene Initiativen im Bereich Hochschulmarketing werden Empfehlungen entwickelt, wie die Stadt Dresden ihre Attraktivität für Studienanfänger und Studierende weiter erhöhen kann.

The purpose of this study was to investigate the challenges faced by first-year students as they negotiated the transition from the wrting environment of high school to the writing environment of university. The research for the dissertation was undertaken using a mixed-method explanatory design. This yielded a description of students' perceptions of the differences between their high school writing and first-year university writing environments. The research questions were as follows: what are high school students' perceptions of their writing environment; and what differences, if any, do students perceive as different in the writing environment between high school and first-year university? A total of one hundred and forty-four Grade 12 students completed a quantitative survey asking for their perceptions of the high school writing environment, and twenty students took part either in qualitative focus groups or individual interviews. A follow-up interview was conducted with fourteen of the original twenty participants while they were in the process of completing their first term at university. The results indicated that students' perceptions were very much influenced by individual teachers and instructors and by their own expectations. Recommendations, implications for further research, and implications for program development are offered as a way to extend the knowledge in this area.

The purpose of this study was to investigate the challenges faced by first-year students as they negotiated the transition from the wrting environment of high school to the writing environment of university. The research for the dissertation was undertaken using a mixed-method explanatory design. This yielded a description of students' perceptions of the differences between their high school writing and first-year university writing environments. The research questions were as follows: what are high school students' perceptions of their writing environment; and what differences, if any, do students perceive as different in the writing environment between high school and first-year university? A total of one hundred and forty-four Grade 12 students completed a quantitative survey asking for their perceptions of the high school writing environment, and twenty students took part either in qualitative focus groups or individual interviews. A follow-up interview was conducted with fourteen of the original twenty participants while they were in the process of completing their first term at university. The results indicated that students' perceptions were very much influenced by individual teachers and instructors and by their own expectations. Recommendations, implications for further research, and implications for program development are offered as a way to extend the knowledge in this area.