Education & Family

Rising numbers of stressed students seek help

   By Sean Coughlan Education correspondent
--

   Instead of a stereotype of student life being about long lazy days, she
   says increasing numbers experience anxiety and stress, beyond the
   "transitional" problems of leaving home.

--
   moment."
   Image caption University has always been a balancing act, but more
   students are needing help with stress

   "I think there is a very strong stigma still surrounding mental health
--

   Marina Della Giusta, responsible for the research, says students are
   "definitely feeling more stressed".

   "The factors that really drive it are financial stress, university
   education has become more expensive. And job prospects are more
   uncertain, so they're not sure whether it's going to pay off."
--

   "Universities take student mental health very seriously. For some
   students, an unfamiliar higher education environment can be stressful,
   particularly for those who already have an underlying illness," says
   chief executive Nicola Dandridge.
--
   studying was relatively easy for them. Now your average Jo(e) is
   expected to get a degree they have to work much harder and are under
   much more stress to achieve. David, Northampton

   Thanks for this piece; I really appreciate it. I've just finished my
--
   health issues at our university. Henry, London

   Judging by the numbers of very stressed sixth form students I teach I
   am totally unsurprised by this statistic. Most students are terrified
   of failing, constantly reminded how important it is to get high grades.
--
   really time to rethink what an education is worth. EJ, Heswall

   I was at medical school 1994-2000. We all felt stressed periodically,
   but it was most unusual (<2% of the whole year) for any of us to seek
   to postpone. Part of the increase is likely to be due to availability.
--
   days. "I'm a graduate" doesn't cut a lot of mustard in the milk-round
   if you got a 3rd. Medicine and dentistry students, I believe, had less
   stress because there was a cast-iron guarantee of a job. Max, Yarm

   I actually think the figures of those using counselling display
--
   I first received counselling and a diagnosis of depression at
   university (ten years ago now) but I don't think that was to do with
   the stress of university per se. On the contrary, I was so much happier
   there than at school, and made friends for life. I wonder if some of
   this increase is because of the well-documented increase in poor mental
--

   I've sought counselling during my undergraduate and postgraduate
   studies for stress, anxiety and acute insomnia. However, in my
   experience, university counselling services are way over subscribed and
   under funded and are unable to cope with the rising numbers of students
--
   mental health. Clare, Leeds

   As a private tutor with a long career in teaching, I think the stress
   starts long before students arrive at university. Many of my students
   are put under huge pressure even at primary school, by parents, school
   league tables, 11+ , common entrance, SATs, GCCEs, Bacs, A Levels and
   so on and so on. By the time students get into uni, stress has already
   been the default situation for years. Un fact, it you are not stressed,
   you are not keeping up with the competition and there is something
   wrong with you(!) Chris, Shepperton
--

   Conscientious, intelligent, and empathic people (by no means a
   minority) are the most stressed by formal education because they
   understand and try to meet complex and contradictory expectations. Both
   meeting them and not meeting them are equally stressful.

   The brightest young people I know, Oxbridge graduates some, are the