The nature of burnout and its negative ramifications on individuals’ well-being and performance has attracted considerable attention within management literature. Though much has been written about burnout in working organisations, limited studies have explored this phenomenon with respect to university students.

Construction undergraduates are the future construction professionals. This survey was conducted to investigate the phenomenon of ‘burnout’ among construction undergraduates in Hong Kong.

A widely recognised scale to measure burnout, previously used in countries outside Hong Kong, was tested and found to be valid and reliable in the Hong Kong context. Emotional exhaustion, cynicism and personal efficacy were identified as the factorial structure of burnout which was consistent with previous studies.

The levels of burnout in construction undergraduates were found to be higher when compared to other professional samples. The burnout scores of the second and final year students were also compared to those obtained from a recent similar study of construction professionals within the Hong Kong construction industry.

Data suggested that burnout progressively develops during the course of construction education which may contribute to the experience of burnout after graduation. It was therefore indicated that the burnout phenomenon exhibited among both construction undergraduates and construction professionals employed in the industry, ultimately contributes towards a detrimental impact on the overall performance in the industry.