An evaluation of the coping mechanisms of working students at the University of the Western Cape

Abstract

This study investigated the work-life balance phenomenon by closely focusing on the individual coping mechanisms that working students adopt during their academic journey. The research was motivated by the serious financial, student burnout, psychological well-being and other obstacles that working students face, which often result in poor academic performance among this group. Exploratory survey research design was adopted in the study, while the qualitative data collection approach was employed using a structured interview as an instrument to elicit information from five research participants (postgraduate students at the University of the Western Cape). Content analysis was run to identify key themes within the data which pointed strongly towards time management as a coping strategy.