Living and Studying at Home - Commuter Students in the Aftermath of the Pandemic

Sep 1, 2026

Upload by Terk

Research examines how commuting students navigate life and study after the COVID-19 pandemic, with a focus on widened participation and socio-economic disparities. The report integrates administrative indicators, surveys of Scottish-domiciled commuters, and in-depth interview findings to map living arrangements, commute drivers, finance and part-time work, university support, timetabling, and academic and social identity. It also analyzes the pandemic’s impact and identifies factors linked to commuting decisions and implications for institutional support.

LanguageEnglish

CategoryGeneral

FormatDOCX

Pages80

Reading Time28 min

AccessFree to download

List of Figures and Tables

Acknowledgements

Section 1 – Background and Research Questions

Introduction

Background

The Impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on the lives of commuting students

Commuting students at the University of Edinburgh

Contribution of this research

Research questions

Research methods

Structure of the report

Section 2 – Administrative Data

Introduction

Socio-economic status of commuter students

Eligibility for contextual admissions at the University

Number and social background of WP students at the University

Educational background of commuter students

Age, disability and ethnicity of commuter students

Mature students

Disability

Ethnicity

Commuter status by College and School

Summary

Section 3 – Survey of Scottish Domiciled Widening Participation Commuter Students

Introduction

Number and social background of WP students

Survey respondents’ disciplinary background and year of study

Social characteristics of respondents

Living and commuting arrangements

Reasons for commuting and implications

Financial situation

Help from the university for commuter students

Summary

Section 4 – Interview Data

Introduction

Social background and impact on commuting decisions

The commute

Reasons for living at home

Finance and part-time work

Academic experiences and university identity

Social relationships and identity

Student support services

Timetabling

Actions the university could take to support commuter students

Impact of the pandemic

Summary

Section 5 – Conclusion

Introduction

Discussion

Factors associated with commuting decisions

Reasons for commuting

Living and Studying at Home: Commuter Students in the Aftermath of the Pandemic Sheila Riddell, Laura Cattell, Hazel Christie, Rachael King, Sofia Shan & Lyn Tett University of Edinburgh Table of Contents TOC \o "1-3" \h \z \u HYPERLINK \l "_Toc136272503" List of Figures and Tables PAGEREF _Toc136272503 \h 1 HYPERLINK \l "_Toc136272504" Acknowledgements PAGEREF _Toc136272504 \h 2 HYPERLINK \l "_Toc136272505" Section 1 – Background and Research Questions PAGEREF _Toc136272505 \h 3 HYPERLINK \l "_Toc136272506" Introduction PAGEREF _Toc136272506 \h 3 HYPERLINK \l "_Toc136272507" Background PAGEREF _Toc136272507 \h 3 HYPERLINK \l "_Toc136272508" The Impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on the lives of commuting students PAGEREF _Toc136272508 \h 4 HYPERLINK \l "_Toc136272509" Commuting students at the University of Edinburgh PAGEREF _Toc136272509 \h 4 HYPERLINK \l "_Toc136272510" Contribution of this research PAGEREF _Toc136272510 \h 5 HYPERLINK \l "_Toc136272511" Research questions PAGEREF _Toc136272511 \h 5 HYPERLINK \l "_Toc136272512" Research methods PAGEREF _Toc136272512 \h 5 HYPERLINK \l "_Toc136272513" Structure of the report PAGEREF _Toc136272513 \h 6 HYPERLINK \l "_Toc136272514" Section 2 – Administrative Data PAGEREF _Toc136272514 \h 7 HYPERLINK \l "_Toc136272515" Introduction PAGEREF _Toc136272515 \h 7 HYPERLINK \l "_Toc136272516" Socio-economic status of commuter students PAGEREF _Toc136272516 \h 7 HYPERLINK \l "_Toc136272517" Eligibility for contextual admissions at the University PAGEREF _Toc136272517 \h 8 HYPERLINK \l "_Toc136272518" Number and social background of WP students at the University PAGEREF _Toc136272518 \h 9 HYPERLINK \l "_Toc136272519" Educational background of commuter students PAGEREF _Toc136272519 \h 12 HYPERLINK \l "_Toc136272520" Age, disability and ethnicity of commuter students PAGEREF _Toc136272520 \h 13 HYPERLINK \l "_Toc136272521" Mature students PAGEREF _Toc136272521 \h 13 HYPERLINK \l "_Toc136272522" Disability PAGEREF _Toc136272522 \h 14 HYPERLINK \l "_Toc136272523" Ethnicity PAGEREF _Toc136272523 \h 14 HYPERLINK \l "_Toc136272524" Commuter status by College and School PAGEREF _Toc136272524 \h 15 HYPERLINK \l "_Toc136272525" Summary PAGEREF _Toc136272525 \h 17 HYPERLINK \l "_Toc136272526" Section 3 – Survey of Scottish Domiciled Widening Participation Commuter Students PAGEREF _Toc136272526 \h 19 HYPERLINK \l "_Toc136272527" Introduction PAGEREF _Toc136272527 \h 19 HYPERLINK \l "_Toc136272528" Number and social background of WP students PAGEREF _Toc136272528 \h 19 HYPERLINK \l "_Toc136272529" Survey respondents’ disciplinary background and year of study PAGEREF _Toc136272529 \h 20 HYPERLINK \l "_Toc136272530" Social characteristics of respondents PAGEREF _Toc136272530 \h 22 HYPERLINK \l "_Toc136272531" Living and commuting arrangements PAGEREF _Toc136272531 \h 26 HYPERLINK \l "_Toc136272532" Reasons for commuting and implications PAGEREF _Toc136272532 \h 28 HYPERLINK \l "_Toc136272533" Financial situation PAGEREF _Toc136272533 \h 30 HYPERLINK \l "_Toc136272534" Help from the university for commuter students PAGEREF _Toc136272534 \h 33 HYPERLINK \l "_Toc136272535" Summary PAGEREF _Toc136272535 \h 33 HYPERLINK \l "_Toc136272536" Section 4 – Interview Data PAGEREF _Toc136272536 \h 35 HYPERLINK \l "_Toc136272537" Introduction PAGEREF _Toc136272537 \h 35 HYPERLINK \l "_Toc136272538" Social background and impact on commuting decisions PAGEREF _Toc136272538 \h 37 HYPERLINK \l "_Toc136272539" The commute PAGEREF _Toc136272539 \h 39 HYPERLINK \l "_Toc136272540" Reasons for living at home PAGEREF _Toc136272540 \h 41 HYPERLINK \l "_Toc136272541" Finance and part-time work PAGEREF _Toc136272541 \

FAQs

What groups and study area does the report focus on?

The report focuses on commuting students, particularly widening participation students at the University of Edinburgh and Scottish-domiciled commuters.

How does the report investigate the effects of the COVID-19 pandemic?

It combines administrative data, a survey of Scottish-domiciled widening participation commuter students, and interview findings to examine students’ experiences and impacts after the pandemic.

What topics are covered regarding students’ everyday study and living arrangements?

The report addresses living and commuting arrangements, reasons for commuting and for living at home, finance and part-time work, academic and social experiences, student support services, and timetabling.

Sep 1, 2026

Upload by Terk