An Analysis of Students Financial Well-being and Problems During the Pandemic by Digital Footprint in Social Networks

   The article presents the results of a study of the financial well-being and problems of students during the pandemic in the context of distance and hybrid learning formats using data from students’ digital footprints in social publics. The study was initiated by the Ministry of Science and Higher Education of the Russian Federation to assess the mood of Russian students in the conditions of distance and hybrid learning format and implemented by the Consortium of Big Data Researchers. The empirical basis for the study was the data of social networks with a total of about 3 million posts and comments taken from 9,187 official and unofficial publics of 679 higher educational institutions of the Russian Federation, the participants of which were students of Russian universities. The period of the 2021-2022 academic year was chosen as the analyzed period; therefore, the download of data from the social communities of universities was carried out for the period September 2021 – July 2022. Preparation of data for the analysis included downloading data from social networks, selecting relevant messages, identifying categories and thematic stories, and determining the tone of messages. Based on pre-loaded community messages using specialized software (Polyanalyst, machine learning libraries, Yandex.Toloka crowdsourcing platform), all messages were tagged according to the relevance of the topic under study, which made it possible to further systematize messages by topic and tone. The content of the analyzed relevant messages made it possible to single out four main thematic categories, such as scholarships and material assistance, the cost of educational and additional services, the possibility of obtaining additional income, and miscellaneous. In the thematic category of issues of scholarships and financial assistance, thematic topics were highlighted on the amount and timing of payment of scholarships and financial assistance and on the procedure for calculating scholarships. In the category of messages on the cost of basic and additional services, thematic stories were highlighted on the price and quality of educational services, the return of tuition fees in a remote work format. In the category of messages about the possibility of obtaining additional income, students talked mainly about the size of the scholarship and the delay in payments, as well as the need to look for additional sources of income. In the Miscellaneous group, low-frequency messages on various thematic topics were considered. The tone of messages in which students expressed their opinions and assessments was predominantly neutral, but negative tone dominated at the beginning of each academic semester, positive tone had a low frequency among messages. The results of the study, based on a sample of data from the social network VKontakte for the analyzed period, revealed a number of systemic problems and indicate the need for students in state financial support, can serve as a rationale for monitoring and analyzing the emergence / development / withering away of problems and issues in the field of students’ financial condition.

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