Image: (Volker Weihbold)
Around 80 percent feel stressed by their studies, but more than half also feel stressed by current world events and more than two thirds also because of their personal financial situation, as an online survey on mental health among around 8,000 students in November 2023 showed.
Only 16 percent are doing really well
When asked “How are you?” In most cases you will hear the answer “Good, thank you”. But that’s not always the case. Apparently not among students either: In the survey conducted online by the Graz online platform for psychological advice “Instahelp” and the student app “Studo”, 49 percent of students said that they were not doing well or poorly mentally. Only 16 percent described their mental state as very good or excellent, as Instahelp summarized in its broadcast on Tuesday.
In addition to study-related stress, according to the so-called “Mental Health Barometer 2023”, global events such as inflation and geopolitical crises are likely to have a negative impact on the mental health of the average 23-year-old student. The majority of those surveyed were in their bachelor’s degree, mostly at a public university, and around a third worked for up to ten hours parallel to their studies.
Healthier physically than mentally
68 percent of those surveyed said that world events with crises and wars had a negative impact on their financial situation. As a result, around 35 percent felt impaired in their studies and more than 42 percent in their mental health. Most students felt physically healthier than mentally; 33.5 percent described their physical health as very good or excellent, while only 16 percent considered this rating to be accurate for their mental health.
While more than 70 percent rated mental and physical health as equally important, it was shown in detail that although half of the students invest two to five hours a week in their own physical health, more than 70 percent do not have time for conscious mental health care ( reflection, meditation or advice). Almost two thirds of those surveyed said they were unable to talk openly about their mental health. Most students therefore resort to self-research or self-help with meditation apps.
Increased educational work required
“We are conducting the study for the third time and see that the psychological stress among students has not changed. What is sad is that students are psychologically stressed, but many do not know what they can do or how they can take care of their mental health “There is an urgent need for increased educational work on mental health,” summarized Bernadette Frech, CEO of Instahelp.
At some Austrian universities and colleges, awareness of mental health during studies is already increasing, says Frech: In addition to on-site student advice, they finance online psychological advice from Instahelp via the student app Studo. The students can then take advantage of a certain number of free consulting units. The TU Graz, Montanuni Leoben and Kunstuni Graz, as well as VetMed Vienna and the FH der WKW are already on board.
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Source: Nachrichten
