Student Preferences for On-campus Hostel Accommodation at Kogi State University, Kabba, Nigeria

Abstract

Background: New admitted students have high expectations finding a conducive and futurist hostel facilities to rent. Hostel accommodation for students can be referred as student housing, dormitories, campus apartments, student hostels, halls of residence and student accommodation housing. Aims: The achievement of academic excellence is intrinsically associated to the standard of students’ accommodation. This survey sought to investigate students’ preferences regarding on-campus university accommodation at newly gone operational Kogi State University, Kabba, Nigeria. Methods: A school-based cross-sectional with a purposive sampling study was conducted from February 2024 to March 2024. A Close-ended, self-administered and pre-tested questionnaires were used to collect data. Data entry and cleaning were carried out on excel and analyzed using SPSS version 20.0. Analysis was done to measure the strength of association between potential predictive factors and students’ rooms preferences. Results: A total of 844 students participated in the study, giving an overall response rate of 84.4%. Students of >20 - ≤ 25 years old were 2.1 times (p=0.001) more likely to reside in cheaper room, 2.3 times room with an attached toilet (p=0. .005), and 2.084 times in a new building (p=0. 003) than younger one (>20 years). The students affiliated at the faculty of SC were 1.404 times more likely to share their rooms with students of their own State (p=0.033), 1.588 times advocating entertainment halls in the residence (p=0.010) compared to students from MASS. The survey indicated significant differences in the students ‘preferences based on their age, gender, state/geopolitical location of the secondary schools, and faculties. Conclusion: The study revealed that the most considered room' attributes were living in a new building, attached toilet to the room and the rental cost. Taken into accounts these attributes while conceptualizing, designing and constructing hostel accommodations for the students will create an ideal environment for them to excel academically.