time students spend studying has a positive impact on their academic success (Bruinsma
2003; Loyens et al. 2007; Severiens and Wolff 2008; Van den Berg and Hofman 2005).
Summarising: on the basis of the research described, we argue that course programmes
may be more successful when (1) students’ experience of these course programmes is more
positive and (2) when students make a greater effort, are more involved and spend more
time studying. These arguments are investigated by testing a structural model that
describes the expected links between experiences, effort and engagement, time spent
studying and academic success. In Fig. 1 the conceptual model is illustrated.