Debt has profound effects on mental health
Parties, alcohol, dancing, the occasional recreational drug, oh, and some studying here and there — these all seem to constitute the standard undergraduate experience. But a new UCLA study suggests that first-year students are focusing on success in education more heavily than ever before. The pressure of attending a university and becoming professionally successful could cause more harm than good, especially in the form of serious mental health issues. Universities, as a result, must carefully examine how high-cost tuition and student debt affect their students’ mental health.
As the study conducted by UCLA’s Higher Education Research Institute,finds, students now focus more on their studies in the face of crippling anxiety when thinking of their economic future. For 82 percent of students, the survey suggests that it is “very important or essential” to be financially well off. Meanwhile, 61 percent of students reported only partying one hour or less a week. Studying is up, while partying is down; the desire of undergraduates to pursue higher degrees of learning past a bachelor’s, shows that, yes, ambition may be increasing, but stress levels are as well. This raises concern for the well-being of students, as many might become more prone to violence, depression or suicide.
These fears were only reaffirmed in the UCLA survey, in which 12 percent of freshmen scored their “mental health as worse than most others their age.” In addition, 9.5 percent said they felt depressed, “signaling that students are
bringing with them emotional struggles.” The pressures to succeed in university could make the emotional well-being of students seem nearly impossible.
The rise in mental-health related issues hardly exists in a vacuum Numerous university students witnessed their parents or guardians struggle during the economic crash in 2009. From this detrimental period, millennials learned the lesson that in order to succeed economically, a college degree is necessary. With looming student debt and rising tuition, the stakes of succeeding in the job market are just as elevated as the pressure students feel to succeed. Colleges must work to prevent this mental instability.
“Colleges around the country are struggling to meet the higher demands for psychological and crisis counseling,” said Kevin Eagan, interim managing director of UCLA’s Higher Education Research Institute.
Eagan’s observation comes at the heels of a lack of adequate mental health care for an increasingly stressed generation. A 2012 nation-wide survey from nami.org reported that 64 percent of college students who no longer attend an institution of higher learning dropped out for a mental health related reason. Of these students, more than 45 percent did not receive accommodations in addition to 50 percent who did not access mental health services.
Attending a university should feel like a second home, not a prison cell. To counteract rising mental health issues, universities should study potential stressors. For many, the student debt that follows graduation is enough reason to panic. Colleges should reduce tuition that can create student debt, and more research should be conducted to study the impact of debt on mental health. Many universities offer groups or classes centered around stress management in addition to lessening anxiety. While this can be considered effective, universities should also focus on how increasing student debt and tuition affects students’ well-being.
It’s not just the courses or professors that make up a university, it’s the students’ well-being and passion for education that do. Universities should look toward making their tuition more realistic in order to lessen the potential economic and mental detriment.