C.C. ISHIEKWENE

This was an empirical study to determine the usage and impact of social media on academic learning and performance of undergraduates of University of Benin students. To achieve this general objective, four research questions was raised and four null hypotheses formulated, which guided the study. A survey research design was used for the research. Questionnaire was used to generate primary data from a representative random sample of 150 students (100 representing 100 percent was correctly filled and returned). The students who participated in the survey were drawn from various faculties in the University. Descriptive statistics of frequency counts and percentages were used in analysing demographic variables and research questions while Chi-Square (X2) were used to test the stated hypotheses at a 0.05 level of significance. The results and contributions to knowledge include that the most common reason for social media usage to keep up with trending issues on news and sports as well as to access an incredible amount of valuable information on a variety of topic, also that there is a significant relationship between social media usage and student academic performance; a significant difference between male and female students usage of social media; and that age has a significant relationship with social media usage. It was recommended that parents and guardians should help to ensure that students utilize the benefits of social media and that scholars and opinion leaders should make effort to educate undergraduates to minimize time wastage on frivolities (chatting, cyber stalking, etc.) and other irrelevant engagements that are not of major importance in their academic lives.