Student Mental Health Crisis in Universities

Student mental health is in crisis in our higher educational institutions. University life can be challenging. In fact, around 75% of mental health problems develop during this period. Shockingly, 64% of students in Scotland report low mental well-being and 54% show signs of depression. Living away from family for the first time makes it more difficult for students to cope. This article provides an overview of the problem, how to recognise mental health difficulties, and what can be done about it. Let’s explore this together.

Student Mental Health is a bigger crisis than you think

Half of all school leavers are going to university in the UK now. This makes universities a significant sector in addressing mental health difficulties in young people. At the end of the university life, graduates look to enter the workforce. University life is therefore a bridge between student and work life. Although this is a short span of time, lasting typically between 3 to 5 years, struggles with useful habits, learning, physical health, mental health, achievements and problems will shape the rest of adult working life. It is therefore critical to maximise this short time to set yourself up for the future. Mental illness or emotional difficulties present a potential barrier to the achievement of this goal and cannot therefore be ignored. Optimal mental health will allow students to achieve their potential whereas, poor mental health will hinder this and potentially affect the rest of their adult life.

The numbers of young people struggling with mental illness are staggering. Here are some statistics to reveal the scale of the problem:

• 50% of mental health problems are established by age 14 and 75% by age 24.¹
• Young people have the lowest levels of happiness and confidence in their emotional health since reporting started in 2009.¹
• 64% of college students in Scotland had low mental well-being. ²
• 54% reported having moderate, moderately severe, or severe symptoms of depression. ²
• 55% of students said they had concealed a mental health problem due to fear of stigma. ²
• Suicide was the leading cause of death for males and females aged between five to 34 in 2019.³

Many more statistics can be listed here but the message is loud and clear. Student mental health problem cannot be ignored! The mental health of children, young people and university students is a national scandal. 319 students died by suicide between 2017-2020 with an average age of death being 27 years. All these shocking numbers convey one important message, If you are a university student, are related to one or work with them, mental health difficulties are a big problem. They cannot be ignored. Ignoring early symptoms of mental health problems is a guaranteed strategy to increase suffering and potential suicide.

What are the most common mental health difficulties among students?

The most common mental health problem in young people is anxiety followed by depression. Anxiety disorder is an umbrella term that houses different types. These include:

• Generalised anxiety disorder. Also known as ‘free-floating anxiety’. Severe anxiety symptoms present in many different settings.
• Panic disorder. Recurrent unexpected panic attacks that are not restricted to particular stimuli or situations.
• Agoraphobia. Marked and excessive fear or anxiety that occurs in response to multiple situations where escape might be difficult or help might not be available, such as using public transportation, being in crowds, being outside the home alone (e.g., in shops, theatres, standing in line etc).
• Specific phobia. Symptoms upon exposure or anticipation of exposure to one or more specific objects or situations (e.g., proximity to certain animals, flying, heights, closed spaces, sight of blood or injury) that are out of proportion to actual danger.
• Social anxiety disorder. Symptoms that consistently occur in one or more social situations such as social interactions (e.g. having a conversation), doing something while feeling observed (e.g. eating or drinking in the presence of others), or performing in front of others (e.g. giving a speech).

Depressive disorders. Characterised by depressive mood (e.g., sad, irritable, empty) or loss of pleasure accompanied by other cognitive, behavioural, or neurovegetative symptoms that significantly affect the individual’s ability to function.

Other disorders such as bipolar disorder, personality disorder, psychotic disorders and eating disorders also affect the student population and therefore cannot be ignored.

Why are students vulnerable to mental health problems?

There are a number of reasons why students are vulnerable to mental health problems.

Age related expectations and responsibilities

Most university students are around 18 years of age when they first start their course. This is a transitional age as they are suddenly labelled adults, having been classed as children beforehand. It comes with many new responsibilities and expectations from family and society. Most students attend university away from home therefore new responsibilities must be undertaken immediately as families can no longer shield them from these and allow them to focus on education. These include managing budget, and finances, washing, cooking, cleaning, paying the bills, studying, socialising, and looking after their mental and physical health etc. These all can cause stress and require many new habits that if not developed, will lead to stress and problems.

Risk of isolation

Most students live away from home, away from their families or carers, friends, and from the city or town they grew up in. This makes the transition much more difficult for students as it puts them at risk of isolation.

Multiple losses

Students also face many losses at the same time. These include losing close contact with their family or carers, school friends, and neighbours and being cut off from all of these supportive structures. They need to quickly familiarise themselves with a new place, new accommodation, new city or town and new institution like university etc.

Higher academic expectations

We must also consider academic expectations. There is a gap between expectations as a student whilst doing A-levels or college and university. At university, you’re expected to manage, organise and take care of your own student activities. If you don’t turn up to lectures your parents will not be notified. If you don’t keep up with your homework or assignments you won’t get any warning given to your parents or to yourself. If you choose not to study hard and instead party or just isolate yourself completely this is likely not to be noticed by anyone.

Complete self management

This makes it very easy to struggle in managing your own motivation levels, attendance and engagement with education. Once you fall academically behind, the stress of that is likely to compound other stressors mentioned above.

Living with strangers

In addition to these factors, students might be living with a group of flatmates who are likely to be strangers. Their personalities and interests might be different from yours. You might feel isolated and lonely. You might even feel that they don’t like you, which may or may not be true.

Unknown university system

New students won’t know any of the tutors. They will not know how the university system works and who to ask for help. Attending lecture theatres where there might be 100 or more students might make them feel more anxious or vulnerable especially if they don’t know anyone.

Financial pressures

In addition, we must also consider financial pressures. For the first time ever, most students would have taken a large student loan and might be worried about this. Many students will have a tight budget and may have to ration or restrict shopping. They may worry about what they can and can’t buy. Can they afford to go out or not? Can they engage in social and recreational activities or not? These are likely to add additional stress.

Discharge from local health services

Finally, most students would also have lost touch with their local health services like GPs or specialist mental health teams. They would have also been discharged or in the process of being transferred from their home CAMHS (child and adolescent mental health service) to adult mental health teams. This process may have resulted in a lack of immediate access to specialist support precisely at the time when all the above stressors started.

Combined assault and lack of preparation

All of these stress factors combine simultaneously during the move from home to university life. If they have not prepared for this by practising some of these skills prior to attending university or if they don’t have social support for example a family member nearby to help them ease into all these new responsibilities and environments, then it is understandable that university students will be highly vulnerable to develop mental health problems. It is worth remembering that although we often consider stress to be a negative factor, it is also an opportunity to improve and develop resilience.

Summary

This article outlines how big of a problem student mental health is and explains why university students are at risk of developing poor mental health. Some of the factors that contribute to this include the new responsibilities and expectations that come with being an adult, living away from home, academic pressures, financial pressures, isolation, and loss of social support. All of these factors combine to make it difficult for students to manage their own motivation levels, attendance, and engagement with education. As a result, students need to develop resilience to cope with all these challenges.

Next section: Learn to recognise signs of mental health issues at university.