A total of 200 people responded, of whom 50.6% were female (after adding weighting). Twenty three and 3/10% were first-year students, 39.9% were second-year students, 17.8% were third-year, 12.6% were fourth-year (seniors), and seven and one half percent were taking additional semesters (fifth or higher year). Fifty eight percent were first-generation students, and 36% considered themselves to be “a member of the LGBTQIA+ community.” The distributions of responses to each question are summarized in the Appendix, and each question is explored in detail in this section.
How has COVID-19 impacted your mental health?
For this question, multiple responses were allowed. Increased anxiety, depression, and feeling of loneliness were found in 60.8%, 54.1%, and 59.8% of the weighted population, respectively (Fig. 1). More than eighty percent (83.8%) reported an increase in at least one of these three symptoms. On the other hand, decreased anxiety, depression, and feelings of loneliness were respectively found in only 9.1%, 5.3%, and 4.6% of the population. For 10.7%, their mental health was unaffected. Using Fisher’s exact test, we found no significant differences in the prevalence of having at least one increased mental health symptom across first-generation status, gender, or LGBTQIA+ status. A general trend of decreased prevalence of symptoms as students drew closer to graduation was noticed. Using Fisher’s exact test, academic year and prevalence of mental health symptoms are not independent, with p < 0.0001.
If you are not feeling at ease, what contributes MOST to your mental health status?
Twenty percent of respondents said that worries about the health of loved ones was their primary concern, 19.2% were most concerned about school/continuing education, 19.0% had anxiety about lack of proactivity, 15.9% were worried about finances, 10.8% were worried about future job offers, and 5.0% feared contracting the virus. Only 6.8% said that they were feeling at ease. Interestingly, there was no significant association between the proportion of respondents who were most worried about finances and income level (Fig. 2).
Was it easier or harder to complete this semester away from campus?
Almost sixty-one percent of students found it harder to complete the semester away from campus, while 32.7% found it easier and 6.4% reported no change. There was no significant difference across age, gender, income level, LGBTQIA+ status, or first-generation status in this response.
How has COVID-19 affected your physical health?
Fifty percent of respondents indicated that they gained weight due to increased eating, while 20.2% reported that they felt/looked better due to exercise or dieting, 13.3% lost weight due to a lack of appetite, and 16.6% reported no changes. Among the students who reported an increased feeling of loneliness (59.8%), 57% reported that they gained weight, compared with just 39.4% of those who did not experience symptoms. Using Fisher’s exact test, this was significant with a p-value of 0.0301. The odds ratio (OR) is 2.04 (95% CI 1.15–3.62).
How has COVID-19 impacted your current and future plans?
COVID-19 disrupted the lives of most students, with only 26.4% stating the pandemic has not impacted their current or future plans. 27.1% lost an internship or job offer, 22.9% are taking a gap year or time off from school, and 31.8% need to support family. Only 16.6% say that the pandemic has given them other beneficial opportunities.
The groups of people most likely to have other beneficial opportunities due to the pandemic were men (OR 3.18, 95% CI 1.41–7.22, p = 0.0039), first-generation students (OR 2.27, 95% CI 0.99–5.19, p = 0.0329), and low-income students (OR 3.05, 95% CI 1.35–6.99, p = 0.0042). First-generation students were significantly more likely to take a gap year/time off from school (OR 2.42, 95% CI 1.17–5.02, p = 0.0251).
On the other hand, the groups that were significantly more likely to report no impact on future plans were women (OR 2.05, 95% CI 1.07–3.92, p = 0.0159), non-first-generation students (OR 3.12, 95% CI 1.62–5.97, p = 0.0003), and non-low-income students (OR 3.77, 95% CI 1.89–7.53, p < 0.0001). Given that these three groups correspond exactly to those which were least likely to say they gained beneficial opportunities, we investigated the rate at which gender, first-generation status, and low-income status affects having either a beneficial opportunity or no change in future plans. When performing this analysis, we found no significant differences across any of the three groups. Combined with the other evidence, this suggests that the key difference between demographic groups lies in the rate at which they gained beneficial opportunities in light of the pandemic.
How has COVID-19 impacted your relationships with your family?
29.4% of students had improved relationships with family, while 34.1% had strained relationships with family and 36.5% had no impact on relationships with family. The people who had strained relationships were significantly more likely to consider it harder to complete the semester at home (OR 2.59, 95% CI 1.36–4.94, p = 0.0036) compared to those who had improved relationships or no change.
How has COVID-19 impacted your relationships with your friends?
27.8% of students had improved relationships with friends, while 45.7% had strained relationships with friends and 26.5% had no impact on relationships with friends.
How have you specifically taken care of your mental health amidst COVID-19?
29.0% of students engaged in mindfulness activities (meditation, yoga, journaling, etc.). 46.7% were exercising or engaging in physical activity, 22.0% were using a health app, 17.7% were obtaining mental health care from a professional, and 30.3% were not taking any specific actions to take care of their mental health. Of the people who were exercising, 35.9% gained weight while 32.0% said they felt/looked better due to exercise or dieting. In contrast, of those who were not exercising, 62.2% gained weight and only 9.8% said they felt or looked better. Using Fisher’s exact test, this effect was significant with p < 0.0001.
At what point was your concern about COVID-19 heightened?
29.8% of students had their concern first heightened when college campuses sent students home, whereas 29.0% were first alarmed by states beginning lockdown guidelines. For 10.5%, they became more concerned when a friend or relative was diagnosed with COVID-19. For just 6.4%, the turning point was that friends or relatives were taking prevention measures seriously. Only 4.1% of the population indicated that they were not concerned about COVID-19. The distribution of responses was roughly equal across demographic groups.
How are you spending most of your time during the pandemic?
71.0% were watching TV shows or movies, 30.5% were reading books, 39.6% were exercising, 34.9% were learning new skills or picking up new hobbies, 33.6% were cooking or baking, 29.5% were working or interning, and 8.0% said they were not doing very much at all (Fig. 3). Note that the 39.6% figure of those exercising does not conflict with the 46.7% figure above, as some of the respondents may not be devoting very much time to exercise, and do not consider it a major use of their time during the pandemic.
Is there anything else you would like to share about the effect of COVID-19 on your mental health?
As this was a free-form text box, we used JMP’s text analysis suite to identify keywords. However, neither keyword identification nor singular value decomposition provided very much insight into the sentiments expressed. Given that this was an optional question, there was not enough information for numerical patterns to emerge. Instead, we have included a few quotes that demonstrate the range of ways that the COVID-19 pandemic has affected people’s mental health (not ordered by frequency).
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“Everything has been so uncertain and has made me increasingly anxious”
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“It is comforting to know that every college student in the country, and most around the world, are dealing with the same struggles that I am, and I am not alone in being fearful and anxious.”
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“I smoke more”
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“Its very hard to hold it together knowing the world as we once knew is no longer in existence..”
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“Not getting help from my college financially has really drained me from even thinking about returning to college for FALL semester 2020.”
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“One good thing is that it's given me more time to sleep, which has been one of the only benefits of the lockdown/pandemic.”
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“It has increased productivity in approaching music & business”