Glenn Altschuler addresses the difficulties and conundrums associated with entering college in his article “Adapting to College Life in an Era of Heightened Stress” He presents the experience of Kate Wilkinson and her feeling of unpreparedness for college. Glenn brings together statistical evidence to show how students are more stressed today than any time in the past. Glenn presents many solutions to decrease stress and uses Henry David Thoreau’s short story “Walden” as a basis of how stressed students should come back to a state of relaxation by meditating on what really matters in life. Glenn says that “A 1999 UCLA survey of 683 colleges and universities showed that 30.2 percent of freshmen acknowledged that they frequently felt overwhelmed.”(Atschuler, 2000) This increase is what he says has led to the need for more psychological services and counseling. The fact that many college students travel far from home to study is also a large factor in the increased amount of stress. Glenn points out Dr. David Fasslers conclusion in his book “Help Me I’m Sad”, “Many live far away from their …show more content…
He points out at the end of his article the effect of reflecting and reviewing oneself and the beneficial results it can have on a person mentally. He refers to Henry David Thoreau’s story “Walden” and compares the times when a student can “Seize opportunities to reflect on life—your life and the lives of other.”(Altschuler, 2000) He points out that there are many ways which a student can retain a determination and have confidence in themselves and a chance to rest, relax and let off stress, “Even the traditional organized activities of freshman year – ice cream socials, wilderness reflection weekends, wrestling parties in kiddie swimming pools filled with yogurt—have therapeutic undercurrents to help students let off steam and face the seemingly monumental task ahead.”(Altschuler,
Picture this. You are heading off to college to begin the next chapter of your life. It is a moment you have always been waiting for. You are past the high school drama, and are ready to start taking classes that will allow you to obtain a degree in something you have always been passionate about. It’s your first week on campus and you are invited to a party being hosted by a group of upper classman. You show up to the party and immediately are handed a red cup with what you know is something you shouldn’t be drinking. You take a sip anyway and soon start talking to that guy in the corner who at first seems friendly, but soon begins to take advantage of you. Just like that everything changes. This is a situation millions of people face every
Coming to college as an adult, we have many expectations and preconceptions of what college will or will not be. The expectations we have can influence our college life for the better or the worse. My experience since starting college has been an interesting one. People have misconceptions about college because they do not know what to expect. After doing some research, I have concluded that there are three major factors that are often misunderstood about college life. The first is the financial aspect of college. Second, is the relationship between the professors and students. Third is time management. These three factors play an important role in why people are afraid to go down the path to college.
It seems as though the majority of college students these days aren’t looking to further their education because it’s what they really want, they do it to please their parents, to be accepted by society, or because there’s nothing else for them to do (Bird, 372). These expectations have led to students being unhappy and stressed, and have pushed them into a school or a job that they don’t particularly care for.
In Paul Toughmay’s “Who Gets to Graduate,” he follows a young first year college student, Vanessa Brewer, explaining her doubts, fears, and emotions while starting her college journey. As a student, at the University of Texas Brewer feels small and as if she doesn’t belong. Seeking advice from her family she calls her mom but after their conversation Brewer feels even more discouraged. Similar to Brewer I have had extreme emotions, doubts, and fears my freshman year in college.
Powell, Kathryn. "Stressed and Obsessed Part 5: The Effects of Stress on Student Life | Online Gargoyle." Gargoyle RSS. 3 May 2013. Web. 11 May 2014.
4 Giancola, J.K., Grawitch, M.J., and Borchert, D. (2009). Dealing with the stress of college: A
The clock ticks, sweat drips down foreheads, and the professor watches intently as the students take their tests. It’s finals week, a dreaded time when students cram as much information into their heads as possible and try not to burn out until the completion of their semester exams. There isn’t much to be done about the stress. At this point it is inevitable. The stress put upon students while attending college has caused an increase in the number of suicides as well as a rise in cases of depression.
According to the College Health website, “No one is immune from stress, but those entering the ivory towers of college are particularly vulnerable to it.” Attending college for the first time gave me a feeling of displacement, nonetheless, I maintained my sense of priority, I am here to learn, here to excel, and here to focus on my objective.
Stress is an important problem faced by many college students, especially first year students, and it can have a large impact on college freshmen. For example, according to Hirsch and Keniston (1970), about half of first year students do not graduate from college due to dropping out (p. 1-20). Also, David Leonhardt (2009) agrees that the United States excels at putting “teenagers in college, but only half of students who enroll end up with a bachelor’s degree” (p. 1). In addition, the level of stress seems to increase each year. For instance, the National Health Ministries (2006) claim that many college students have become “more overwhelmed and stressed” than the student generation of the last fifteen years (p. 2).
There is not one college student who has not experienced stress in at least one of their classes. The constant reminder of failing an assignment or not finishing one is enough to cause stress in anybody. The big issue though is how students overcome this stress. A survey funded by the Framework Programme for Research and Technological Development in Europe was conducted to determine how students are coping with school stress. This survey was performed in the United States and Switzerland. It was discovered that “An estimated 35–50% of college and university students drop out prematurely due to insufficient coping skills under chronic stress, while 85% of students receiving a psychiatric diagnosis withdraw from college/university prior to the completion of their education” (Mohr et al.). College students are finding help to their massive amounts of stress by ending their college career all together. Some students are even developing other mental illnesses from not getting help with their stress like anxiety, depression, and even suicide (Sharma and Tripathi). These students are so unstable that they cannot even function properly because of their stress and what it has caused them. Families are taking their loved ones out of college because the student needs significant help. The amount of stress that a college student experiences is unreal. This stress does not have an exact source but instead multiple sources leading to various consequences like taking a life or developing a mental
The numbers of hours in a day never change nor the days in a week, but one thing that is sure to change are the things that one needs to accomplish. Many college students spend a majority of their time studying, however, numerous students also have jobs and other responsibilities they have to attend to. At the start of every semester the cycle of having to balance work and school starts up again. As soon as registration is open, students scramble to pick classes that fit into their busy lives. Even if they have managed to balanced their work and class schedules, it does not mean that stress will be absence from their life. Students who go to class during the d...
College students face strenuous workloads daily, causing them to feel more pressure about their schoolwork and academics and resulting in anxiousness. About 50% of college students today are suffering from depression, a larger number than most believe, but not all reveal that they have a depressive issue (Deroma, Leach, Leverett 325). Researchers suggest that academic stress plays a big role in a college student’s depression. Most people know that college is a lot harder than high school ...
Going to college can be an exciting new experience that can challenge a person more than he or she thought was possible. Attending college, especially for the first time, can be a very stressful time in a person’s life. Some of the stress that is associated with attending college are living in a new place, having to meet new people, having new responsibilities, and of course the homework that goes along with taking classes. If a person does not learn to cope with these stressors in a healthy way, that person may become very overwhelmed and possibly depressed (Hoeger & Hoeger, 2010) .To keep one’s body and mind safe from the overexposure of stress, they can practice the following techniques.
A significant percentage of college students spend their time on campus with a lot of stress. This is due to a tight schedule that requires them to balances class time, assignments, tests, projects and extra curriculum activities. Other students are attached to the corporate world notably adult education offered in our campus. The working lot fined it challenging to meet extra workload in their courses. The final exams have a difficult feeling for the candidates due to anxiety of passing. Cheating has become a modern trend in college life with 32% of students admitting that they have practices unethical conducts in their college life. College life has turned into a competitive field which has to be balanced on the pay slip when creating a budget. Even though life is full of stressing situations, experts argue that college life has emerged as a major cause of stress to students. Stresses can be limited or overcome once we understand the major roots of its occurrence in a different setting (Jason, 2011).The discourse determines the cause of stress among students in Strayer University. As mandated by the President of Strayer University, we are going to determine the cause of stress in college life and its effect on the economy and the victim at large. Strayer University is a for-profit higher education institution that offers degree program for working adults and undergraduate and graduate courses.
Without stress life is empty. No matter where we go stress will be there always. Stress is a big problem for college students. The first year of college is a new adventure, but there is few challenges to on the way. On a college campus, student’s life change — behavior, academic performance, career or major choice, and values. Faced with many kind of common stress, managing stress, finance, academic performance, symptoms of stress, stress and mental stress. "You can determine how you use your time or by default, let others plan it for you," says Beverly Coggins. Coggins believes that in order to calm college student stress we need to have a grasp on our own passions and priorities so that we’re in a stronger position to not be led around by the whims of other.