College students are now slightly less likely to experience severe depression, research shows – but the mental health crisis is far from over
In recent years, mental health has emerged as a pressing concern for college students, particularly as they navigate the rigors of academic life and the pressures of college applications. A 2023 Gallup poll highlighted that emotional stress, mental health issues, and tuition costs are the primary reasons students drop out of college. Despite this alarming trend, a comprehensive study conducted by the University of Michigan—one of the largest of its kind—revealed a positive shift: reports of severe depression and suicidal thoughts among college students have declined for three consecutive years. Specifically, the percentage of students experiencing severe depression dropped from 23% in 2022 to 18% in 2024, while those having suicidal thoughts decreased from 15% to 11%. This is a hopeful sign, yet experts in student affairs caution against complacency, noting that mental health concerns remain prevalent and acute across campuses.
To address these ongoing challenges, many colleges are adopting proactive strategies aimed at fostering student well-being. Understanding the multifaceted sources of stress—ranging from academic pressures to financial concerns—is vital for developing effective support systems. For instance, universities are increasingly implementing early alert systems, known as “care teams,” to identify students in distress and connect them with necessary resources. Additionally, some institutions are experimenting with non-disciplinary policies that facilitate medical withdrawals for students seeking intensive mental health treatment. These approaches not only aim to support students during difficult times but also enhance the likelihood of their return and eventual graduation. Moreover, colleges are recognizing the importance of cultural competence in mental health services, advocating for hiring diverse faculty and staff who can better relate to and support students of color.
The emphasis on well-being as a cornerstone of academic success is gaining traction, with many institutions integrating mindfulness practices and stress-relief activities into their offerings. Schools like New York University and Harvard are providing free meditation and breathwork sessions, while others have introduced therapy dogs to foster community engagement and support mental health. Furthermore, some campuses are re-evaluating their operational hours to encourage students to prioritize rest and self-care. As we move forward, it is clear that prioritizing mental health and well-being not only contributes to students’ emotional resilience but also plays a critical role in their academic and personal success, ultimately enhancing retention rates and fostering a healthier campus environment.
Some schools have started experimenting with preventive strategies to promote the mental health of their student body.
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Many high school seniors across the country are in the throes of college applications – often a high-stakes, anxiety-ridden process.
But the stress doesn’t necessarily stop once students are admitted.
Emotional stress, mental health and tuition cost are the top three reasons that college students drop out, according to a
2023 Gallup poll
of 14,032 students.
By most standards, there is a
mental health crisis
among college students. But the University of Michigan’s healthy minds survey, the
country’s largest student mental health study
to date, recently found that college students are reporting lower rates of depressive symptoms, anxiety and suicidal thoughts for the third year in a row.
Conducted in 2024 and 2025 and surveying more than 84,000 students across 135 American colleges and universities, the study finds that
severe depression symptoms
among college students dropped in the past two years to 18% – down from 23% who said they experienced severe depression in 2022. Students who have suicidal thoughts dropped from 15% in 2022 to 11% during 2024 and 2025.
I have worked in student affairs and college health for the past 25 years, leading substance abuse prevention and mental health promotion efforts, and overseeing a range of clinical services. Despite these recent optimistic findings, I’m still alarmed by the prevalence and acuity of students’ mental health concerns nationwide.
Students’ emotional well-being in college has carryover effects into their academic performance, and whether or not they stay in school.
Rick Bowmer/Associated Press
Taking a break
College students experience
high levels of stress
due to a confluence of factors, including academic pressures, financial concerns and complex social dynamics. Understanding the root causes of students’ stress is an important precursor for schools to come up with effective ways to help students manage their anxiety and succeed in school.
But even when schools offer extensive mental health support programs, students occasionally need to take a break to focus on their health and well-being.
Over the past 10 years, I have reviewed and approved medical withdrawals for 133 students at Babson College. From fall 2015 to early spring 2020, before the COVID-19 pandemic, an average of 12 students per year left on medical leave out of the nearly 4,000 students enrolled at the school.
The average number of students taking medical leave then increased by about two people a year from fall 2020 through 2025. Approximately 82% of these cases are mental health-related.
Roughly 70% of these students ultimately return to campus and eventually graduate. In general, very few students who take a leave of absence from school end up returning.
However, there are some schools that use proactive, nondisciplinary policies to support students taking a break to pursue more intensive treatment. These policies can provide clear treatment recommendations and instructions on what conditions students need to be met in order to return to school, resulting in a higher likelihood of the students enrolling once again.
Understanding well-being
Well-being is a word that is top of mind for many higher education leaders, yet colleges and universities do not have a single
definition of what well-being
means, though it is often a term schools use to talk about students’ mental health. Well-being
generally encompasses
acknowledging and being comfortable with your feelings, and being equipped to manage stress.
While there is movement toward embedding student mental health and well-being into the very fabric of an institution, many colleges and universities still rely on reaching students in more
traditional ways
– through health fairs and information tables in the student center, for example.
While these strategies certainly serve a purpose in helping to raise awareness of mental health resources, when used in isolation, they are unlikely to
result in actual behavioral change
among students.
Students of color
, particularly Black and Latino students, are more likely than white students to temporarily withdraw from college.
One step institutions can take:
Hire more faculty, staff and mental health counselors
who are people of color and can better connect with minority students through shared lived experiences.
Well-being is central to students’ success
In 2007, an undergraduate student at Virginia Tech University
shot and killed 32 people
, and wounded 17 others, before he died by suicide.
Schools since then have adopted early alert systems – often referred to as
care teams
– to help identify students who are struggling, either academically, socially or emotionally. The idea is that schools can intervene and get students connected with campus resources such as academic advisers, student success coaches, accessibility services, financial aid and mental health support.
Ongoing training for faculty, staff and students on how to activate these systems of support and make referrals to a care team is critical to their success. The goal is to cast a wide net so students do not fall through the cracks and go unnoticed when they are not mentally well, which is what happened
with the Virginia Tech shooter
.
Dozens of campuses
, including New York University, Indiana State University, the University of North Dakota, The Ohio State University and Harvard University, have also embraced mindfulness practices in recent years, offering breath work and other forms of meditation for their students as free services on campus.
Some campus police departments
have also begun using therapy dogs
to help support students’ mental health and bolster community engagement.
Other schools, like
Stevens Institute of Technology
and
Princeton University
, have stopped keeping labs and libraries open 24/7 as a way to encourage students to take a break and rest – though admittedly most institutions that have made these changes have done so as a result of budget cuts, and less so as a proactive, preventive measure.
Positioning students for success
I have long argued that
well-being is central to academic, personal and professional success
.
In recent years, I have also encouraged schools to position well-being as the key driver to student academic, personal and professional success.
Research has linked students’ well-being to them staying in school, and findings suggest that colleges can develop
targeted mental health programs to improve retention rates
. In other words, focusing on the health and well-being of students may, in fact, lead to better outcomes – emotionally, physically and academically.
Ryan Travia received funding from the American College Health Foundation for serving as lead author and researcher for a series of papers on framing and measuring well-being from 2019-2022.
