This may come as a surprise, but depression is one of the biggest factors that college students face. There are many factors that can tie into this. For example; some people may have just lost a loved one and recently moved to college without them, or they may be feeling lonely because they do not have any friends. Whatever the reason, depression is more common among college students than some people think, and for this reason, it is important that the issues is addressed. As “The Top Mental Health Challenges Facing Students” states, “Depression among college students wears many faces, and, in a survey conducted by the Association for University and College Counseling Center Directors, 36.4% of college students reported they experienced some level of depression in 2013. Furthermore, depression is the number one reason students drop out of school, and it is left unchecked, suicide may occur as well” (“Best Colleges”). This is an example of how severe depression is among college students. This is the reason why it is important to talk to people, because when people bottle up their feelings, they will end up spilling over eventually. As for my personal experience, I went through a depression when I was first starting off in college. I did not have any friends, and I was homesick a lot. As “The Top Mental Health Challenges Facing Students” says, ways for college students to overcome depression are not only through talking with friends and family, but also therapy as well. For example; when I was going through a depression during my first college year in 2009, not only did I talk with friends, but I went through therapy as well, and this is something that ended up helping. Now, depression is only one factor that students face when it comes to a transition from high school to college. Another major issue that some students tend to deal with during their college years is time management.
When teens are in high school, they have less freedom than they think. They go from class to class, go home, eat, do homework, sleep, and rinse and repeat. However, college is a different story. They have a lot more freedom than usual, but the fact of the matter is that it comes at a price. The reason stems from the fact that while there is so much free time, it provides students more of an opportunity to oversleep, hangout with their friends when they should be working, or doing their papers at the last minute. For reasons such as these, this is why time management is very important to the life of a college student. As “The 3 Challenges Most Students Face Making The Transition From High School To College” says, the key reason why time management is difficult for some college students, is because from kindergarten through the final year of high school, schedules were always structured, but college has students choose not only what time they will take their courses, but how courses will conflict or not conflict with other obligations as well (“Your University”). Although I am an orderly person, college time management was difficult for me at first. As a result, I not only set a timer for myself every morning so that I can wake up at the proper time, but I also set a weekly schedule for myself in a daily planner. Without this, it would have been extremely difficult to keep track of everything. This also helps with getting papers done on time, so that an assignment is not forgotten at the last minute either. Lastly, another challenge that college students can face is struggling in classes because of failing grades.
It is important to note that while failing grades are common in all grade schools, poor grades in college can lead to probation letters and even expulsion if the grades do not pick up. Sometimes the reason a student is doing poorly in class is because they do not understand the material well. However, there are other factors that can lead to poor grades as well. As Fottrell (2015) says, new research has shown that over 60% of students are not ready for the social and emotional demands of the first year of college. First-year students who said they felt less emotionally prepared for college than their peers were more likely to have a lower grade point average (“This is the biggest challenge facing first-year college students”). Two solutions to these problems are to express how one is feeling so that they can be emotionally open, and seek tutoring help if one is having trouble understanding certain material.
In closing, depression, time management, and poor grades are some challenges that college students face. Some of the points that I brought up do bring in some triggers, because I have struggled with them at one point or another. However, the positive side is that by seeking help through other people and learning to manage time by oneself, college can end up being a great experience.
Works Cited
Fottrell, Quentin. (2015). “This is the biggest challenge facing first-year college students”. MarketWatch. Web. 26 December 2015. Retrieved 29 March 2016.
“The 3 Challenges Most Students Face Making The Transition From High School To College”. Your University. Web. 2016. Retrieved 29 March 2016.
“The Top Mental Health Challenges Facing Students”. Best Colleges. Web. 2016. Retrieved 29 March 2016.
