Students in the UK suffered worse levels of psychological distress during the Covid-19 pandemic than some healthcare professionals, according to the results of a new study.

Undergraduate students also reported significantly lower levels of well-being, happiness and life satisfaction compared?with pre-pandemic levels.

Researchers from the University of Bolton tracked 554 undergraduates across the sector over a one-year period between May 2020 ¨C when the UK was in its seventh week of lockdown ¨C and May 2021 ¨C when the country was at Step 3 of its roadmap out of lockdown restrictions.

Students were also asked about their mental health and well-being in June and July 2020, when lockdown measures were beginning to ease, and November and December, when stricter lockdown restrictions were introduced in the?run-up to Christmas.

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, the results showed that?students¡¯ levels of distress were three times higher than pre-pandemic levels, with periods of rising numbers of Covid-19 cases and of lockdown and intense confinement also associated with poorer mental well-being.

The data showed that students¡¯ scores were consistently higher than those of some healthcare professionals, which were measured using the same scoring system in separate studies.

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¡°Often in small student accommodation rooms, undergraduates were cut off from friends and close family, and unable to rely on their usual routes for seeking physical or emotional support,¡± said Chathurika Kannangara, an associate teaching professor at Bolton and co-author of the report.

¡°In addition, common entertainment and socialisation facilities such as restaurants, bars and clubs were closed for long periods ¨C completely stripping away the normal social aspect of university life.¡±

Conversely, periods of the pandemic that saw the relaxing of rules and restrictions saw a slight improvement in the moods of students.

The study also found that both students¡¯ well-being and happiness ¨C how much they ¡°flourished¡± ¨C?declined significantly between May 2020 and May 2021.

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According to co-author Jerome Carson, the very ingredients that contribute?to flourishing and happiness were stripped away.

¡°For example,?students experienced heightened loneliness and social isolation, which we know are linked to lower levels of flourishing,¡± he added.

¡°Likewise, building and maintaining healthy and effective relationships, a fundamental part of flourishing mental health,?were obstructed due to social distancing measures.¡±

The authors suggested that, considering the lasting and widespread changes to higher education since the Covid-19 pandemic, more needed to be done to support students physically, mentally and academically.?

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¡°There is clear evidence that the mental health needs of university students in the UK have increased since the outbreak of Covid-19,¡± they wrote.

They recommend the introduction of new mental health services accessible via social media platforms or mobile phone applications, which ¡°could combat the stigma associated with seeking professional help and would alleviate the strain on overwhelmed mental health services¡±.

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patrick.jack@timeshighereducation.com