• by Wendy Davis  @wendyndavis, September 19, 2006

Many college students spend more time with the Web than other more traditional media, according to a new Burst Media study.

The study found that about 34 percent of college students recently reported spending more than 10 hours a week online, while only around 19 percent say they devote at least the same amount of time to watching television or listening to the radio. For the report, Burst last month surveyed 800 college students between the ages of 18 and 24.

The findings confirm other recent reports concluding that college students are heavy online users. For instance, earlier this month Alloy Media + Marketing reported that students spend 3.5 hours a day e-mailing, instant messaging and Web surfing, and 6.5 hours a week on social networking sites.

Burst also found that a large number of students spend minimal time with either the TV or the radio. Around 30 percent of respondents reported spending less than three hours per week watching television, while almost half--46 percent--said they devote less than three hours a week to radio listening.

What's more, many college students who watch TV or listen to the radio are multi-tasking at the time. Around 64 percent of respondents report using the computer when viewing TV, while around 60 percent use a computer while the radio is on.

In the same study, Burst also examined what factors persuade students to change brands. Better price was the single most important consideration, cited by almost 61 percent of respondents. Friends' recommendations also were influential, with almost 49 percent of respondents saying such recommendations influenced decisions to change brands.