Students' Preferences On Halls Of Residence

Press, Volume CI, Issue 29903, 17 August 1962, Page 13

Students' Preferences On Halls Of Residence

A survey of two men's university hostels and a womens hostel on preferences for new halls of residence showed that the students wanted separate men's ' and women's hostels, said Mr G A Shouksmith. lecturer in psychology at Canterbury University, in an address to the social sciences section of rhe New Zealand Science Congress. The women s hostel students showed the greatest dislike for a co-educat ion al ball of

residence. "I can leave you to draw your own conclusion from that.” said Mr Shouksmith. However, separate halls with common dining and common-rooms were favoured by a number of students, he said. The most popular type of accommodation was the single study-bedroom. Others that were popular were doublestudy bedrooms and single bedrooms with a study room for two or three students.

A Barge building for study bedrooms—which opened off a corridor with common rooms in separate buildings, was the type of building selected by the students.

A common room was regarded as the most necessary room in a new hall of residence. The room' considered as next most important was a library; followed by a games room. Mr Shouksmith said this showed that most students regarded study rooms as most important, contrary to an often expressed view that the students first choice would have been for social rooms.

Most students preferred the number of students at a hall of residence to be about 100 Some students from one hostel asked for more students, but that had related to making the hall of residence an economic unit, said Mr Shouksmith. Nearly all the students thought there should be gardens and lawns around the new halls of residence. This indicated that the students wished to have their own campus within the university. Mr Shouksmith said that in compiling information from the survey, it was found, that st u dears tended to approve what they were accustomed to already.

Night Soil.— The Halswel! County Council decided yesterday to send a circular to all residents within the urban fence, asking if they wanted a night soil collection.