College freshmen's emotional health hit an all-time low this academic year, reflecting the stress of wanting to succeed and the cost of acquiring a quality education during a struggling economy, a report from UCLA's Higher Education Research Institute says.
In the survey of more than 200,000 first-time freshmen at 279 colleges and universities, only 52% rated their emotional health high or above average, a drop from 64% in 1985 and down 3.4% from 2009.
The survey, released Wednesday, reinforces the need for college administrators to identify and help students who are struggling emotionally, researchers say.
"This is new for college faculty," says Sylvia Hurtado, one of the study authors. "They're used to dealing with students' cognitive abilities and not emotional.
"But colleges are responding. They're looking at emergency plans and giving information to faculty so they can help identify students having trouble."
Lower levels of emotional health can lead to poor judgment around time management, alcohol consumption and academic motivation, the authors say.
Female students were far less likely to report high levels of emotional health (46%) than male students (59%). This follows the current trend, Hurtado says, adding that "reports have shown men have better ways of working off stress than women."
Other findings:
• More students (71%) than ever before rated their academic abilities as "above average" or in "the highest 10%."
• More students (73.4%) reported receiving grants and scholarships than at any point since 2001, an increase of 3.4% since 2009. Hurtado says this shows more students are seeking better buys and relying on aid, with "fewer students going to their first choice."
• More students (72.7%) than ever before said "the chief benefit of college is that it increases one's earning power.
"They're wondering, how am I going to make all of this work?" Hurtado says. "The only way I can get a good job is to have a higher education."
• The percentage of students (5%) who reported their parents were unemployed was at an all-time high.
"This is the first time this generation is not sure if they're going to do better than their parents," Hurtado says.
By Janice Lloyd, USA TODAY
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