Facebook Negatively Affects Students’ Grades

By: Katie Sullivan
Posted In: News

Facebook, friends and failing grades, oh my!

A recent study conducted at Ohio State University has proven that college students’ use of Facebook leads to lower grade point averages. The study showed that Facebook users generally had GPAs from 3.0 to 3.5. Those who do not use the site had GPAs between 3.5 and 4.0.

“Students spend too much time on Facebook,” said Kevin Kaczynski, a senior majoring in healthcare administration at Salve Regina. “I feel a lot of people waste a lot of time on it instead of being productive.”

Kaczynski admitted to having a Facebook profile, but says he only spends about twenty minutes a day on the site before he starts his homework. This method works for him because it gets Facebook out of his system so he does not use it to procrastinate later.

“I do have one, but if I need, like need, to get something done, then I do it and stay off Facebook,” Kaczynski said.

Amy Degnan, an alumni of the Salve Regina nursing program and a graduate student in healthcare administration, says Facebook is still a distraction in her life even after graduation.

“Yes, it’s very distracting,” Degnan said holding up her Blackberry. “I’m on it right now.”

Degnan said she was on Facebook a lot more as a freshman, but with each year the amount of time she spent on the site went down.

“My freshman year was when Facebook first kind of got really big so everyone was exploring it whenever they had free time,” Degnan said. “There were no applications or games on it back then, so once you were done figuring it out, you were over it.”

Degnan said her grades never suffered because of Facebook, but she can assume others’ grades did. She believes even without Facebook people would find something other than homework to do.

“Anything other than homework is procrastinating,” Degnan said. “People are going to procrastinate with or without Facebook.”

Christine Migliaro, a junior in the early childhood education program, describes her Facebook use as simply too much. She spends two or four hours a day on the site, more when she is at her work study job in the University Computer Labs, but still manages to get all her work done.

“My sleep suffers more than my grades,” Migliaro said.

Migliaro uses Facebook to keep in touch with family and friends from home. Her sister had a baby in April and posts pictures. She said it is the highlight of her day when she goes on Facebook and sees new pictures of her niece.

Migliaro does not use Facebook to procrastinate anymore. Now she prefers playing Tetris, but she said Facebook used to be the number one distraction in her life.

“You just sit there looking at pictures or creeping on other people’s profiles,” said Migliaro. “The next thing you know, hours have past and you’ve done nothing with your life.”