“One of our goals was to collect enough data to break down our results by faculty and learn whether and how the stress levels differ between them,” Dr. Mira Tschorn explains. The circumstances of the studies were also examined in the anonymous survey: Do students work on the side? How heavy is the workload in their field of study? Are the participants the first in their family to study? Together with questions about age, gender, and country of origin, this provides an extremely nuanced picture of students’ well-being at the University of Potsdam, albeit with some limitations. “With surveys of this kind, you have to plan for a certain degree of bias, since people experiencing mental health challenges are more likely to feel addressed by these questions and want to provide information,” Tschorn says.
A detailed picture
Nevertheless, the survey clearly shows that the number of students experiencing mental health issues has risen again. 42.5% of the students surveyed report elevated levels of depression, while as many as 51.8% report high levels of anxiety. Breaking the results down by gender shows a more differentiated picture. While the number of men and women reporting increased depressive symptoms does not differ, significantly more women are affected by anxiety symptoms. Among participants who identified as non-binary, nearly 60% show elevated depression levels and over 70% elevated anxiety levels. There is a similar distribution among international students. First-generation academics, i.e., students from non-academic families, are more frequently affected by depression, while students with chronic physical illnesses are more likely to experience anxiety symptoms.
General health status, a factor developed by the WHO to measure subjective health, was also surveyed. “51% of our students reported that they rate their health as very good or good. That is 10% less than the general population and even over 20% less than peers who do not study,” Tschorn explains. The collected data can be used to identify risk factors such as socioeconomic background and subsequently develop approaches that directly address vulnerable groups. However, the negative results come as no surprise, says Julia Seiffert from Student Health Management: “We wanted to know in advance how those who interact with students every day, that is, faculty and university staff, assess the situation. Many of them said they felt that students were doing worse.”
Promoting campus life
The next step will involve holding expert discussions with these very individuals to compare the survey results with their observations. The third step will be a Think Lab with students, during which a concrete catalog of measures will be developed – together with those affected. “It’s important to us to promote campus life so that people can come together and we can counteract the increasing isolation experienced during studies,” Seiffert says. At a university where more than 50% of the students commute to Potsdam from neighboring Berlin, however, it is not always easy to establish such a campus life. That is why the Feel Good Campus offers workshops on topics such as stress, sleep, and resilience, which are very well received and, not least, bring people together.
In the long term, the campaign’s goal is to give the topic of health a permanent place in studies and teaching. “A six-week stress management course is an additional appointment and, paradoxically, initially causes more stress. It would be better to integrate health into the basic course program. Just as there are introductory courses on academic writing or mathematics, there could be a course where students learn about mental health or time management,” says Seiffert. Ultimately, this would also benefit the job market, as alumni who are already at acute risk of burnout after graduation are very unlikely to be able to reach their full potential.
Air and Love
Another goal of the survey is to raise awareness of the issue of mental health during studies. After all, some problems cannot be solved within the university itself but require the attention of policymakers and society. Financial hardship, housing shortages, and the stress caused by shortened standard study periods all contribute to the increased burden on students. “Studying still has the reputation of being the most wonderful and carefree time of life. Unfortunately, that’s not the case, since most students have to balance successful studies, a job, and their personal lives. After all, living on air and love alone wasn’t possible in the past, and it’s even harder today,” Seiffert says.
More information on HAY: https://www.uni-potsdam.de/en/feelgoodcampus/1/howareyou
This article appeared in the university magazine Portal - Eins 2026 „Inklusion“.