Causes and Structural Effects of Student Absenteeism: A Case Study of Three South African Universities

The aim of the study was to investigate the extent of student absenteeism in selected universities in South Africa, explore the reasons why student absent themselves from classes and examine the implications of student absenteeism. The study adopted the mixed methodology and used a survey research design as the operational framework for data gathering. Data were collected by self administered questionnaires and interviews with one hundred and twenty-six students from three universities in South Africa. The study revealed that student absenteeism is rampant in the universities under study due to reasons such as: lack of subject interest, poor teaching strategies by lecturers, unfavourable learning environment, too much socialization, part-time jobs to augment meagre bursaries granted by various sponsors and poor relations with the lecturers. The study also found an inverse relationship between student absenteeism and course performance.