A piece by Caitlin Kerswill and Brianna Veale
Many people describe their student days as the best years of their lives but is that really true? There are many concerns about the increased pressure of workloads and educational expectations causing a rise in mental health problems amongst young people. This has triggered a worldwide conversation about mental health, academic stress and the rising expectations placed upon young people.
In recent years, the pressure to excel that weighs on university students, placed on them both by themselves, as well as often family and educators has reached new heights, triggering a worldwide conversation about mental health, academic stress, and the rising expectations placed on young adults.
Alongside the expectations of excellence comes an overwhelming workload. Students often find themselves buried under a mountain of assignments, tests, and projects. The educational system, particularly in university, frequently emphasizes quantity over quality
Over the last few weeks, a group of Journalism students at Plymouth Marjon University – have been collaborating with a group of international Journalism students studying at Thomas More in Belgium, a Flemish university of applied sciences that promises “outstanding higher education” to prepare students for the labor market
This is a university that, in comparison to our somewhat relaxed university’s three-day week with just three to four hours of lectures per day, appears to operate on a loaded schedule, with students required to be on campus all day, every day, resembling the structure of the UK’s secondary school system. Both concerned and intrigued, we set out to find the student body’s true feelings towards their education system and the mental health issues that many may be facing.
Neal Ramesh is studying International Media and Entertainment Business at Thomas More. He said, “it’s interesting to me how the goals are set high, but they are set realistic.” Neal had originally started his studies in America however then ended up moving to Belgium he found a contrast big between the two. “In America you have a score out of 100, you get a hundred points you did it perfectly and 100 points is easy to obtain if you do the work. Here I’m learning that the scores are based out of 20 and an 18 means you did a fantastic job, which means a 20 is not very accessible, not very doable. So, it’s an interesting shift in mindset.”
Neal spent several years working in a cooperate job before returning to study at university. He believes that this experience has helped him cope with the pressures of academic work. “Going back to college after working in corporate for ten years, college is so much easier if you get a chance. Because instead of a boss breathing down your neck and if you don’t do the work, you’ll be fired, they’re asking you to write a paper. Can I write a paper? No problem. I don’t have to go and call a client who’s visibly upset and do something very stressful.”
However Neil did tell us that he had struggled with mental health issues “I hit a major depression wall that I had never hit before and so in high school I was very lucky my parents and my teachers worked together to come up with a plan to help me out of this academic rut and that was diagnosis of ADHD and depression. At Thomas more I have ADHD and depression tools; I have the medications that I need to focus and succeed and keep moving forward. I Was lucky enough that my mental health was addressed early. I feel as though not a lot of students my age got that, and I am hopeful for students that are younger than me who are getting those tools when they need them.”
Another student, who we call Anna, also compares academic standards at Thomas More favorably to previous experience. “I wouldn’t say they are set too high; I’ve been in higher education before in Portugal and I feel like they were way more demanding there than they are here.” anna also struggles with being an international student studding in Belgium and feeling like there arn’t as many resources and help ready for her as there are for Belgium students who already live in the country. “I mean, I feel like as an international I am in disadvantage because there are people in my class that are Belgian that maybe have more resources how everything works.”
We found that Thomas More doses offer help for international students studying in Belgium. Martine Micheals works on the international support teams and offers help to the oversea students deal with and overcome stress issues caused by academic expectations.
Martines says that for the first week of university “There are people coming in constantly. So, to give you a number that will be about 20 a day or even more. This this time of the year 2-3 people.”
Martine offers help with many problems big or small but the main help she offers is balancing students’ school stress and social life, especially for international students, by letting the students come down and have a clam talk, reflect and gain the right mindset. She also helps with stress of university life like housing, creating a Belgium bank account or just some general tip for the course they are taking.
With the benefit of his own experiences, Neil believes there are things that Thomas More can do to help students who are struggling. “Dedicated counselor services, maybe, and that’s expensive because you need a dedicated counselor. But if you can set up a buddy system where everyone knows what they’re getting into, then you may be helping some very, very good people who just need that help and just need that extra perspective. But it takes work.”
