Syftet var att undersöka skillnader mellan olika studentgrupper uppdelat efter år av arbetslivserfarenhet och ålder. Detta för att se om arbetslivserfarenhet och ålder hade någon betydelse för studenters interna motivation, externa motivation, amotivation och kontrollokus. I tvärsnittsstudien deltog 71 studenter (60 kvinnor och 11 män) från en högskola i Mellansverige och deltagarnas ålderspridning var 19-47 år. Undersökningen byggde på två enkäter; The Academic motivation scale (AMS-C28) for college students (Ryan & Deci, 2000) och Academic locus of control scale for college students (ALC) (Trice, 2013). Statistiskt signifikant skillnad fanns mellan en studentgrupp som var 19-22 år gamla och en studentgrupp som var 26 år och äldre på kontrollokus, där resultatet visade att den äldsta gruppen upplevde mer externt kontrollokus än den yngre gruppen. Statistiskt signifikanta skillnader fanns även mellan en studentgrupp som hade mellan 0-2 års arbetslivserfarenhet och en studentgrupp som hade mer än 4 års arbetslivserfarenhet på kontrollokus där de studenter som hade mer arbetslivserfarenhet upplevde mer externt kontrollokus än den grupp som hade mindre arbetslivserfarenhet. Arbetslivserfarenhet och ålder visade ett positivt statistiskt signifikant samband samt externt kontrollokus och ålder. Externt kontrollokus och arbetslivserfarenhet visade svagt positivt statistiskt signifikant samband och det fanns även ett svagt negativt samband mellan externt kontrollokus och extern motivation. Ytterligare ett positivt signifikant samband fanns mellan intern motivation och extern motivation. Resultatet visade inga skillnader eller samband vad gäller arbetslivserfarenhet och motivation. Ytterligare variabler är avgörande för att skapa en helhetsbild kring arbetslivserfarenhetens betydelse för studenter

The purpose was to examine differences between different groups of students disaggregated by years of work experience and age. The reason was to examine if the work experience and age had any significance for students' internal motivation, external motivation, amotivation and locus of control. Correlations between the above variables were also examined. In the cross-sectional study 71 students participated (60 women and 11 men) from a college in central Sweden with an age range of 19-47 years. The survey was based on; The Academic Motivation Scale (AMS- C28) for college students (Ryan & Deci, 2000) and the Academic locus of control scale for college students (ALC) (Trice, 2013). A statistically significant difference was found between one group of students who were 19-22 years old and a student group that was 26 years and older on locus of control, where the results showed that the oldest group experienced more external locus of control than the younger group. Statistically significant differences were also found among a group of students who had between 0-2 years of work experience and a student group that had more than 4 years of work experience on locus of control in which the students who had more work experience experienced more external locus of control than the group that had less work experience. Work experience and age showed a positive statistically significant relationship as well as between locus of control and age. Locus of control and work experience showed a weak positive statistically significant relationship and there was also a weak negative correlation between locus of control and external motivation. A positive significant correlation was shown between internal motivation and external motivation. The results showed no differences or relationships regarding work experience and motivation. Additional characteristics are essential to create an overall picture to the work practices relevant to students