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Bucking the Trend: Understanding Depression in College Students
College can be a tough ride for many students. Perhaps it’s no wonder that cases of mental illness and depression in college students have steadily risen over the past decade. Considering the new experiences, increased workload and peer pressure facing incoming freshmen, it should not be too surprising. According to a new study conducted by the Higher Education Research Institute at UCLA, fewer college students rate their emotional health among the top ten percent than ever before, meaning that campus counseling centers have been flooded with students needing help with mild to severe cases of depression.
Causes for Increased Depression in College Students
While the raw data looks alarming, experts say that for many college students, depression begins before they ever arrive on campus and can be traced back to a dysfunctional home life, previous abuse, the death of a loved one, or other prior factors. However, the stress of college life can cause a recurrence or increase in symptoms for the following reasons:
- Tougher academics
- Pressure to engage in risky behavior such as excessive drinking, drugs, and excessive unprotected sexual encounters
- Questions about sexual identity
- Homesickness
- Financial difficulty
- Sleep deprivation
Depression can be caused by a number of factors including genetics, family history, and psychological factors; but the issues named can cause or worsen depressive symptoms in a large percentage of college students.
What Colleges Can Do to Help Students Struggling with Depression
As depression continues to dominate the list of mental health issues faced by young people in their early twenties, colleges must take some decisive steps to address the issue.
- Teach students to recognize symptoms.
Colleges can help students take depression seriously by providing learning opportunities including informational workshops, self-study opportunities, and other mental health resources.
- Provide counseling opportunities.
Engaging in therapy and taking medication can reduce or eliminate the symptoms of depression in most students. Campus counseling centers should be promoted among students so they know where to turn for help when they need it.
- Provide emergency help.
While the suicide rate in many colleges has declined, the rate of moderate to severe depression has increased. Providing after-hours help and making sure students know how to reach a crisis line 24 hours a day can prevent suicides due to depression.
Depression in college students remains a serious issue on most campuses. By knowing the causes and taking proactive steps to help students get treatment, colleges can make sure their students remain mentally and physically healthy, enabling them to tackle the college experience with confidence.
More posts by Lynetta Bowen »
Author: LynettaBowen
Lynetta Bowen is a staff writer at copy-hub.com. She has experience writing for printed publications including Bob Jones University's continuing education catalog and summer camp publications. She has also written for both personal and professional websites and has editing experience. She holds a master's degree in counseling and enjoys reading and being outdoors.
2 Comments
Most colleges and universities already do those things, though. Are there further steps they should take? After all those things have been provided, at what point can the school say, “We’ve done everything we can?”
Anyone who knows young people in or about to enter the college environment surely has some anxiety over the current trends of behavior on campuses across the U.S. What an excellent commentary from Lynetta Bowen! The documentation and the suggestions prove that the material was well researched and heartfelt. Thanks for some great insight. Let’s hope that this message reaches many educational professionals!