2023 College Student Fall Mental Wellness Survey

February 7, 2024 - The 2023 Thriving College Student Survey was conducted in the U.S. in October 2023 by Ipsos. It was commissioned by the College Student Mental Wellness Advocacy Coalition and the Hi, How Are You Project with support from The Jed Foundation. The first Thriving College Student Index Report was published in 2022 and serves as the baseline for this year’s data comparisons. Its purpose is to provide resident insights on mental wellness that help to inform mental wellness programs for college and university students, especially at off campus residential communities.

Compared to the 2022 results, students reported less frequent feelings of stress, anxiety and being overwhelmed.

• 65% reported feeling stressed “all the time” or “often” (down from 70% in 2022)
• 57% reported feeling anxious/worried “all the time” or “often” (down from 63% in 2022)
• 57% reported feeling overwhelmed “all the time” or “often” (down from 61% in 2022)
• 55% reported feeling happy “all the time” or “often” (up from 50% in 2022)

For the second year in a row, listening to music remains the number one behavior students engage with to manage stress (cited by 82% of respondents) followed by socializing with friends (cited by 67% of respondents). 

Thriving Students:

1. Thriving students (79%) are more likely to socialize than Maintaining (55%) and Struggling (28%) students. They regularly practice healthy behaviors such as getting fresh air, good sleep, and healthy eating to feel their best. 
2. Thriving students are more likely to feel thankful (79%) and happy (76%) and are less likely to feel stressed (53%) anxious/worried (44%), overwhelmed (44%) or lonely (14%) than students in Maintaining and Struggling categories.

On-Campus Support:

1. One in four students surveyed feel a strong connection to their residential community.
2. 74% acknowledge that opportunities to socialize within their residential communities are abundant.
3. 41% are unsure whether residential communities can support their mental well-being. • Friends (90%) are the most utilized source students turn to for information about mental health, followed by the Internet (83%) and parents (77%). 
4. 52% of students have received mental health treatment from a mental health professional; 1 in 6 have done so on campus.

Click here to learn more about the College Student Mental Wellness Advocacy Coalition and to view the full report. 

About the Study

These are the findings of an Ipsos poll conducted October 10-31, 2022. For this survey, a sample of 18,169 currently enrolled college students age 18+ from the continental U.S. and Canada were interviewed online in English, Spanish and French.

The sample for this study was provided by the College Student Mental Wellness Advocacy Coalition members who conducted email outreach to residents. 

For more information on this news release, please contact:

Mike Ilecki
Vice President, US
Public Affairs
[email protected]

Haley Gullquist
Research Manager, US
Public Affairs
[email protected]

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