Graduate Students, Particularly Women, Suffer From High Levels of Anxiety and Depression

A new study lead by researchers at the University of Texas Health Science Center in San Antonio, finds that graduate students are six times more likely than the general population to suffer from depression or anxiety. The study found that 41 percent of graduate students suffered from moderate to severe anxiety and 39 percent suffered from moderate to severe depression.

And women graduate students are more likely to suffer from mental health problems than male graduate students. Some 43 percent of women graduate students reported moderate to severe anxiety compared to 34 percent of male graduate students. For depression, 41 percent of women and 35 percent of men reported moderate to severe levels.

“There is a growing cry for help from graduate students across the globe who struggle with significant mental health concerns,” the authors wrote. “Despite increased discussion of the topic, there remains a dire need to resolve our understanding of the mental health issues.”

“The strikingly high rates of anxiety and depression support a call to action to establish and/or expand mental health and career development resources for graduate students through enhanced resources within career development offices, faculty training and a change in the academic culture,” the paper concludes.

The study, “Evidence for a Mental Health Crisis in Graduate Education,” was published in the journal Nature Biotechnology. It may be accessed here.