College Students' Mental Health a Growing Concern

Read this and other items, including full reference citations, in SCUP's Trends in Higher Education (PDF; August 2008)

Observation

The mental health of students attending college is increasingly becoming a cause for concern, in both the US and Canada.
• Campus shootings appear to be simply the most visible sign of a population that is reporting more depression, anxiety, and major psychological disorders. The rate of students reporting ever being diagnosed with depression has increased from 10 percent in spring of 2000 to 16 percent in spring of 2005.
• Over 90 percent of campus counseling center directors report that the recent trend toward greater numbers of students with severe psychological problems continues to be true on their campuses with 8.5 percent of enrolled students seeking counseling in 2007.

Our Thoughts

The number of students who seek and need mental health services is only likely to rise. Increased awareness and decreased stigmatization for treatment contribute to this trend, but don’t explain it all. How can campuses provide appropriate help?
• The ratio of counselors to students is 1 to 1,969. While smaller schools have better ratios, there are clearly not enough counselors to address the needs of students.
• Ironically, the passage of the new GI bill is only likely to exacerbate the problem as veterans from Iraq and Afghanistan return to college with an increased likelihood of stress related disorders and physical disabilities

What are your thoughts? Please comment.