Stress is for the week
There’s nothing shocking about the news that students are stressed, particularly in a university where the workload is so intense. What The Oxford Student’s survey has uncovered, however, is more disturbing. The fact that 44 per cent of students admit to drinking alcohol in order to relieve stress is a worrying reminder of the pressures which students across the country face.
If it were possible to come up with a tick-sheet of factors affecting stress levels in modern society the average life of a student would tick almost every box. Between money worries (particularly in the light of tuition fees and, now, top-up fees to boot), isolation from family and friends, the need to take care of oneself (often for the first time) and the feeling of upheaval associated with such a huge lifestyle change, there’s certainly plenty to chew on.
Add to this the very real pressure of knowing that your performance for these three or four years may affect you future prospects and it’s easy to see why students feel compelled to resort to unorthodox methods to get through those essays. It goes without saying, of course, that this is not the ideal way to deal with stress at all.
A little stress is healthy, it encourages us to perform at our best, but the line has been crossed when students are regularly having to go without sleep in order to get everything done. Too much stress can lead to a feeling of constant tiredness, irritableness and even, horror of horrors, sexual problems. Although Oxford terms are comparatively short it’s a mistake to think that you can blitz it all term and then crash out for the holidays.
For one thing, this is a strategy which will inevitably be detrimental to your physical and emotional health. For another, there simply isn’t time • with the cost of university soaring across the country, more and more students are having to take part time jobs. In universities which allow students to work during term time this causes its own problems • with many feeling that they are unable to fulfil commitments to both their degree and their paid work.
In Oxford, the problems are different, but the general outcome the same. If you have to work throughout the holidays to earn money for the following term you are necessarily going to limit the amount of time you can spend on vacation work • putting yourself at further disadvantage. There is light at the end of the tunnel, however.
The fact that the university is gearing up to award more generous bursaries to students is a sign that they are at least aware of the difficulties faced by their students. If there is this kind of awareness at the university level it suggests that individual colleges and tutors may we’ll be willing to work around student schedules.
The important thing is not to be scared of asking for help and to remember that your time in university is supposed to be a fun as well as an educational experience. Also, remember that you’re not just here to study • the education you’re here to get is wider, and involves learning to manage your time for the promotion of your wellbeing.
If you’re not able to look at your plan for the week and see that there’s a fun extra-curricular activity to look forward to, it might be time to reassess your work pattern. Everyone needs a break. If anything is causing you undue stress it is going to be far more detrimental to your degree than one missed essay.
2nd Mar 2006