The Influence of Social Media on Students’ Academic Life in Higher Education: The Case of University for Development Studies, Tamale

In recent times the proliferation of Information and Communication Technology has facilitated social interaction among different groups of people. Besides, communication in different forms is now easy with the creation of social media platforms that enable large groups of people to have a common discussion on a common platform. Some students of higher educational institutions are addicted to the use of these social media sites and could be detrimental to their academic achievement if not used effectively. This study provides empirical evidence from the Wa Campus students of the University for Development Studies (Ghana) on their awareness, use and effects of use of social media on their academic life. Primary data were collected from 380 randomly selected students through the use of a questionnaire and the data were analysed using descriptive statistics. With the exception of 2go and Tumblr where 46.1% and 44.7% of the respondents respectively are aware of, almost 80% of the respondents are aware of all the social media sites identified. The results therefore, indicate high awareness of current social media sites among the students with all the respondents becoming aware of at least Facebook and WhatsApp. Average time spent on frequently used social media sites is 40 hours per week. The use of smartphones, tablets and laptops which are very mobile is responsible for the relative higher intensity of social media use. The results also point out that social media sites are used for entertainment, social networking with friends and families, as well as for academic purpose. It is concluded that there are mixed effects of social media use on students’ academic life. The University’s Students Representative Council in collaboration with top management should develop strategies of informing students on the negative use of social media in their life. Keywords: Social Media, Academic Life, Information Literacy, Tertiary Students DOI: 10.7176/RHSS/10-4-13 Publication date: February 29th 202