As a Motivator, UCI Plan Doesn’t Make the Grades

A new discount card that rewards UC Irvine undergraduates who get good grades with goodies like free hamburgers and cheaper ice cream has many on campus wondering why such benefits are offered to adult students who already have enough reasons to succeed.

“I think college students have more important things on their minds,” said freshman Michael Boswell. “What motivates them is probably something more than 10% off a cheeseburger.”

Students on campus--many of whom didn’t even know about the card--said their grades are affected more by their personal goals than any prizes.

“It’s not programs like this that motivate me, it’s mostly me just wanting to do better,” said Julie Yrigollen, a third-year student majoring in psychology, who doesn’t qualify for the card.

The Academic Achievement Cards are available to undergraduates with fall and winter quarter GPAs of 3.0 or higher and can be flashed at almost 80 retailers in Irvine and Newport Beach for discounts.

On the discount list are such mainstream chains as McDonald’s (buy one large sandwich, get one free) and Jamba Juice (50 cents off a smoothie) as well as smaller shops offering deals on dry cleaning, haircuts and photo developing.

UC Irvine’s program appears to be the only one of its kind in the UC system and isn’t part of any new collegiate trend. Similar rewards programs are more common at high schools, said an official at the University of California Students Assn., which represents all eight campuses.

Student leaders at UCLA, UC San Diego and UC Santa Barbara said discount cards for academic achievement will not be appearing on those campuses.

The UC Irvine students who put together the program readily acknowledge that the cards won’t be sending people to the library in droves. They framed the program as an added benefit, icing on the cake for those who work hard to do well.

“We just want to recognize students for academic achievement,” said Debbie Hsu, student body vice president for academic affairs. “It’s usually the students with really high GPAs that receive recognition, so we wanted to recognize students with a 3.0, which is the average.”

Campus educators agreed.

“We work hard to motivate students to learn for the purposes of curiosity and achievement,” said Meredith Lee, UC Irvine’s dean of undergraduate students. “No one is going to alter their study habits in order to acquire this card. I think the intention [of the card] is to be positive and very supportive.”

Hsu also pointed out that the card can help students afford services in the Irvine and Newport Beach neighborhoods off campus, which usually cater to a clientele with thicker pocketbooks.

Still, with many of the discounts offering only 10% or 20% off, some students said the card isn’t worth carrying.

And demand hasn’t been staggering either, with about 500 of 6,000 eligible students picking up their cards during the first three days they were distributed earlier this month. .

But students who did get their cards said they deserved the reward.

“I’m going to get good grades regardless,” said Jennifer Sorge, a second-year student, after she had her photo taken and put on the card. “But it’s kind of a nice perk.”