The Internet is a way of life for US college students, with research showing them to be one of the most connected demographic groups.
A recent study by Harris Interactive and 360 Youth revealed that 93 percent of American college students access the Internet, and this market is expected to grow from 15.2 million in 2003 to 16.4 million in 2007. That is slow but it could be attributed to the already high number of college Internet users.
About 88 percent of American college students own a computer, and more than half (56 percent) have broadband connections. Furthermore, 67 percent own cell phones and 36 percent use their mobile devices to access the Internet. Study findings are that 42 percent go online mainly to communicate socially, and 72 percent of college students check emails at least once a day, with 66 percent using at least two email addresses.
The most popular online social activity is forwarding messages to friends or family, with 37 percent of college students saying they do so. The study also looked beyond the Internet surfing habits and into the buying habits of this group, and found them responsible for more than US $210 billion in sales last year alone.
College students have learned how to spend their money, with 93 percent saying low prices were important when shopping.
The study also showed that 65 percent make loan payments; 41 percent of freshmen have a credit card; and 79 percent of seniors have a credit card. A significant number of charges on those credit cards are likely to be for entertainment and leisure expenses.

　　对于美国的大学生来说，因特网就是一种生活方式，研究显示，他们是与网络联系最密切的一个人群。

　　“哈里斯互动”和“360度青年”最近一项研究显示，93%的美国大学生上网，由他们构成的市场规模已从2003年的1520万人扩大为2007年的1640万人。这个增长速度并不快，但那是因为因特网的大学生使用者的基数已经很庞大了。

　　大约88%的美国大学生拥有电脑，其中半数以上（56%）使用宽带。不仅如此，67%的大学生拥有手机，36%的大学生利用移动通讯设施上网。研究表明，42%的人上网的主要目的是进行社交，72%的大学生每天至少查看电子信箱一次，66%的大学生每人使用至少两个电子信箱。

　　网上最受欢迎的社交活动是将信息转发给朋友或家人，37%的大学生表示他们曾这么做过。这项研究不仅观察了大学生的上网习惯，还关注了他们的购物习惯，发现仅仅去年一年，美国超过2100亿美元的销售额是大学生们实现的。

　　大学生们已经学会了如何消费，93%的大学生表示，购物时价格低廉非常重要。

　　研究还显示，65%的大学生通过贷款付账，大学新生中41%的人拥有信用卡，大四学生中79%的人拥有信用卡。这些信用卡开支的重要部分多用于娱乐与休闲支出。