College students continue to report poor mental health, with more than one in three students saying they experience moderate anxiety or depression. <\/p>\n
Data from the most recent Healthy Minds Survey<\/a>, published Tuesday, found that only 36\u00a0percent of college students are thriving\u2014reporting high levels of success in relationships, self-esteem, purpose and optimism\u2014down slightly from 38\u00a0percent the previous year. <\/p>\n But in some areas, the data shows slight improvement since the COVID-19 pandemic, with fewer students reporting anxiety, self-harm and suicidal ideation than in 2021\u201322. Student usage of mental health resources also continues to climb; 37\u00a0percent of all respondents said they\u2019d accessed therapy or counseling in the past 12 months, compared to 30\u00a0percent in 2018\u201319. <\/p>\n \u201cWe should be encouraged that we\u2019re seeing some signs of a positive trend, but we also should keep in mind that the levels are very high,\u201d said Daniel Eisenberg, the study\u2019s lead author and a professor at the University of California, Los Angeles. <\/p>\n The 2024\u201325 Health Minds Study includes data from over 84,000 undergraduate and graduate students at 135 colleges and universities, collected between September 2024 and May 2025. The annual study provides a snapshot of student well-being across various institution types, sizes and degree programs. <\/p>\n The report also underscores the relationship between student well-being and academic success; 68\u00a0percent of respondents indicated their mental or emotional difficulties had impacted their academic performance at least one day that month, while 17\u00a0percent said they felt the impact six or more days. <\/p>\n A new normal: <\/strong>During the COVID-19 pandemic, students reported high levels of emotional distress, anxiety and depression, sparking discussions about a student mental health crisis<\/a> and the lack of available resources. <\/p>\n One potential explanation for this year\u2019s decline in reported anxiety and depression could be a return to more in-person instruction and \u201ca sense of normalcy that things are improving,\u201d Eisenberg said. But mental health, like many public health issues, is not likely to ever be completely solved. <\/p>\n \u201c[Student mental health] is always an important issue and probably always will be. It\u2019s a normal part of life that large sums of people experience distress,\u201d Eisenberg said. \u201cThis is a long-term agenda we should have to create the most supportive environment we can to prevent as many people as we can from reaching high levels of distress and to support as many people as we can.\u201d <\/p>\n Health and well-being: <\/strong>Twenty-eight\u00a0percent of respondents screened positive<\/a> for disordered eating this year. During the survey cycle, researchers used a slightly different instrument to evaluate eating disorder symptoms than in years past, Eisenberg said. The new scale is more inclusive of different behaviors, resulting in higher numbers than years past and perhaps revealing an underrepresented population of students who need assistance with eating habits or body image. <\/p>\n More young people are discussing eating and nutrition online<\/a>, but many of these conversations can be harmful<\/a>, including a focus on how to be skinny<\/a>. Eating disorders<\/a> spiked for young people during the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020, when many of today\u2019s traditional-age college students were in middle school, said Eric Woods, director of counseling services at Texas Christian University. <\/p>\n \u201cWe were expecting a jump [in eating disorders] as this cohort started college, and maybe [this data] is the first indication of that,\u201d Woods said. <\/p>\n A significant number of college students also reported long-term mental health conditions<\/a>, with over half of respondents indicating they had received a lifetime diagnosis of a mental disorder; the most frequent diagnoses were anxiety (40\u00a0percent) or depression (35\u00a0percent), followed by an intellectual disability (17\u00a0percent). <\/p>\n National surveys have shown fewer young people drink alcohol<\/a> compared to previous generations, and the Healthy Minds data affirmed this trend. Sixty-one\u00a0percent of respondents said they had not drunk alcohol in the past two weeks, and an additional 17\u00a0percent said they had not engaged in binge drinking. Twenty-two\u00a0percent of students said they had used marijuana in the past month, but 76\u00a0percent of respondents said they didn\u2019t use any drugs during that time. <\/p>\n