Results fifth Caring Universities survey
26 September 2024
26 September 2024
The mental health and well-being of our students is the central priority of the Caring Universities (CU) consortium. Within this consortium, the mental health of students of all the member universities is assessed through yearly surveys, following which students are offered free interventions to improve their mental health and increase resilience.
This fifth wave of data collection was conducted between November 2023 and March 2024. The findings highlight significant psychological challenges among students, with prevalent issues including mood disorders, anxiety, stress, loneliness, perfectionism, and low self-esteem. These problems are more pronounced among specific demographic groups, particularly female, non-cis-gendered, bachelor, and international students. There also appears to be an increase in mental health issues compared to previous years, especially in terms of loneliness, perfectionism, and low self-esteem. Female students and those whose gender identity does not align with their assigned sex at birth seem particularly vulnerable, exhibiting higher levels of depression, anxiety, stress, and sleep disorders. Additionally, bachelor and international students also reported more psychological complaints compared to their master and Dutch counterparts.
We also assessed alcohol and substance use and found that a significant portion of the student population met the criteria for hazardous alcohol consumption. However, most students reported not regularly using other substances.
This survey serves as a crucial tool for early detection and intervention. It highlights the need for targeted support and suggests that those struggling with mental health are more likely to participate in such surveys. The findings are intended to guide all participating universities in developing interventions to protect and promote student mental health.
Through continued collaborative research, the CU consortium offers enhanced evidence-based support through digital interventions to address the growing mental health concerns among students. Soon, new single-session programs will be launched for students who find it hard to commit to the design of multi-session programs.
The next survey is expected to be sent out in November in the academic year 2024-2025. For details of the study results, please see the study report.