In high school, students are told their four years of education will prepare them for the rigorous academia of college. For Alex Giordano, this was not the case.
A 2010 graduate of the Latin High School of Chicago, a private school with stringent academic standards, Giordano was told ""College will be a breeze,"" compared to her time in high school. Now a freshman at UW-Madison, Giordano feels she was advised incorrectly, having felt immense stress since getting to campus, and she's not the only one.
The National Norms Fall 2010 study found that stress levels for first-year college students are at their highest and self-rated emotional health is at its lowest.
Robert Sepich, a stress management counselor at UW-Madison, helps students deal with emotional health and stress. Students of all ages are referred to him by medical staff for issues including public speaking, sleep issues and anxiety.
According to Sepich, someone who can function fairly effectively academically and personally without too much wear and tear on their minds and bodies is considered to have ideal emotional health.
The study found that students increased stress was largely a result of them being less confident in themselves. General feelings of competence and confidence are declining in college freshmen.
Stress is hitting an all-time peak, and emotional health is suffering along with it.
The explanation for this decline in emotional health is multi-faceted. Much of it is due to the fact that pressures, in both college and high school, are at a much higher level than ever before. Both academically and financially, students are coming into college feeling more stressed, the study found.
Sepich said men and women handle stressful feelings in different ways.
""Women are more likely to use free time to volunteer or to help family,"" said Sepich. ""Guys are more likely to work out or play video games. I think women seek help more than men, both for mental health issues and for physical health issues.""
For Elena Besser and Libby Borders, two seniors at the Latin School of Chicago, the fears of getting into college began two years before the actual application process, as both began ACT preparation their sophomore year. Additionally, the process of applying to college is becoming much more stressful, according to Besser.
With overwhelming amounts of stress already existing in the high school setting, it makes sense that with the additional pressures of college, freshmen are facing the highest anxiety levels ever.
""I applied to 12 schools,"" said Besser. ""That number really stressed me out during the application process.""
Sam Kaplan, a freshman at UW-Madison, said larger university class sizes can be daunting.
""Before college, I was getting a lot more one-on-one attention from my teachers,"" Kaplan said.
Kaplan, a 2010 graduate of Paul D. Schreiber High School in Port Washington, New York, said the autonomy of college work added pressure to her already full schedule.
Anxiety and stress can also arise from the pedantic duties of being a student.
""Work here comes in much larger loads and all at once,"" said UW-Madison freshman Lauren Rosenberg. ""In college, I have hours of reading to do, papers that are several pages long to write, and hours of math problems to solve—all on top of the classes that I have to attend.""
The surplus of work leads freshmen to think each grade they earn makes a difference in terms of possible graduate programs and jobs, only adding to stress, according to Sepich.
""When you're feeling like a nuance of a grade can make a difference between a graduate program or a job, and it feels like so much rides on every little quiz that's only five percent of your grade—that keeps stress at a chronically high level."" Sepich said. ""That certainly hurts your emotional health.""
Sepich sees that freshmen are trying to achieve more than previous applicants. High school seniors already have jobs, clubs and other activities on their plate before coming to college.
To handle all of the madness and uncertainty of college, Sepich recommends students take care of themselves.
""Getting decent sleep, doing some kind of exercise, paying attention to what you eat and some regular relaxation practice,"" Sepich said.
Rosenberg takes academics and her extracurricular activities seriously but has learned to keep a natural balance with school.
""Rather than thinking about the amount of work that I have to do, I find taking breaks and doing stuff that I enjoy, like watching TV and hanging out with friends, helps me relax,"" Rosenberg said.
