Almost three in four college students feel raising awareness of mental health is important, but fewer know how to do so. Their colleges can promote advocacy in four ways.
By Ashley Mowreader
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College students say they believe mental health is important but feel uncertain of how they can effect change on their own campuses.
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Stress and poor mental health continue to be top reasons why college students walk away from their education, making it an important retention factor for higher education leaders to consider.
Unlike generations before them, college students are more likely to talk about their mental health and more likely to engage in advocacy actions for policy issues, but a recent study from TimelyCare and Active Minds finds students need more help learning how to make their campuses more accepting places to talk about mental health.
According to a February 2024 survey from the groups, while 74 percent of respondents indicated they feel it’s important to them to raise awareness of mental health, only one-third (34 percent) say they know how to help make their institution a place where people feel comfortable discussing mental health.
The research brief outlines opportunities for those in higher education to help students use their voice in addressing mental health concerns on college campuses.
“Supporting college student mental health benefits everyone—students, colleges and universities, and society. Students play a crucial role in improving mental health on campuses and have the potential to shape local, state, and national policies that support and improve mental health,” according to the report authors.
The survey was conducted between Feb. 19 and 29, 2024. The sample (n=1,089) includes college students, aged 18 to 26, who attend a two- (n=160) or four-year college (n=929) in the U.S.
This survey’s findings are part of a larger research initiative between TimelyCare and Active Minds. Read more about their findings on student loneliness and LGBTQ+ students here.
Students say: The survey showed that seven in 10 students say their institution encourages an open dialogue about mental health, but only six in 10 report that their college or university is concerned about students’ mental health.
Just over half (54 percent of students) report that their institution provides adequate mental health resources for students, and two-year college students are more likely to say this is true (56 percent). Students who identified as lonely (50 percent), experiencing high psychological distress (50 percent) or a member of the LGBTQ+ community (49 percent of LGBTQ, 44 percent of non-cisgender students) are least likely to say institutions provided adequate resources.
At the national level, when students consider mental health policies, the No. 1 priority is access to health care (93 percent), followed by affordable housing (84 percent), economic inequality (67 percent), racial justice (51 percent) and the climate crisis (46 percent), according to respondents.
Two-thirds of students are interested in voting in local, state and federal elections for leaders who support mental health policies, and three in five students are interested in advocating for mental health policies. Students at two-year colleges are more likely than their four-year peers to say they are familiar with government policies that support mental health (31 percent versus 28 percent).
Students from specific groups are more likely to say mental health awareness is important to them, including those who identified as lonely (77 percent), in high psychological distress (78 percent), LGBQ+ (79 percent) and non-cisgender students (81 percent).
Put into practice: For colleges or universities looking to do more, the research brief encourages leaders to:
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