ORIGINAL RESEARCH article
Front. Educ.
Sec. Higher Education
Volume 10 - 2025 | doi: 10.3389/feduc.2025.1552278
This article is part of the Research TopicThe influence of Internet and technology on mental health and psychological adjustment of young adultsView all 8 articles
Impact of WhatsApp on First-Year Students' Transition
Provisionally accepted
- Al Ain University, Al Ain, United Arab Emirates
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In a world that is rapidly becoming more digitized, it is likely for first-year students who come from diverse socio-economic and cultural backgrounds to face a number of challenges during their academic and social adaptation to university life. In this study, we explore the influence of the use of WhatsApp on the transition experiences of 205 first-year students attending Al Ain University in the United Arab Emirates. More specifically, the study explores the correlation between firstyear students' usage of WhatsApp and their academic and social adaptation. Areas related to the academic aspect include group discussions and academic support, while social aspects include social experiences and level of adaptation to the social context. A structured questionnaire with predefined response options was constructed and then distributed among first-year students enrolled in various colleges. Descriptive, inferential statistics, and correlation techniques were used to analyze data and address research inquiries. The results revealed that WhatsApp is a pivotal tool for first-year university students with a strong inclination toward academic collaboration and support. Furthermore, WhatsApp has a notable influence on academic life, assisting in receiving university announcements, seeking advice from professors, and adapting to university responsibilities. Additionally, WhatsApp significantly contributes to students' social experience, aiding connections with fellow students and organizing social events.
Keywords: experiences, first-year students, Transition, WhatsApp, University
Received: 27 Dec 2024; Accepted: 12 May 2025.
Copyright: © 2025 Qiqieh, Hussein and Abou Adel. This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (CC BY). The use, distribution or reproduction in other forums is permitted, provided the original author(s) or licensor are credited and that the original publication in this journal is cited, in accordance with accepted academic practice. No use, distribution or reproduction is permitted which does not comply with these terms.
* Correspondence: Sura Qiqieh, Al Ain University, Al Ain, United Arab Emirates
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