Burnout in academia: Pharmacy students’ burnout level during the resumption of in-person classes post-pandemic lockdowns

Abstract

Background: As the COVID-19 pandemic gradually recedes, Philippine universities have begun to reopen their campuses to students, marking a return to normalcy. Thus, academic burnout began to manifest among many students, resulting in multiple academic breaks across the country. Objective: This study aimed to examine the level of academic burnout among pharmacy students from a private university during the reopening of university campuses for in-person classes after pandemic lockdowns. Methods: The study had a quantitative, descriptive cross-sectional design, and the survey questionnaire included the Copenhagen Burnout Inventory Student version (CBI-S). Descriptive statistics, t-test, and Analysis of Variance (ANOVA), were used to analyse the data. Results: Of the 318 respondents, 63% (n=202) exhibited moderate academic burnout. In contrast, 11% (n= 34) had low burnout levels, and 26% (n=82) had high burnout levels. Students had a high level of Personal Burnout (M=3.80, SD=0.92) and Studies-Related Burnout (M=3.88, SD=1.00). They also exhibited a moderate level of Classmate-Related Burnout (M=2.69, SD=1.10) and Instructor-Related Burnout (M= 2.87, SD=1.10). Academic burnout levels among the respondents did not show any significant differences based on their living situation. Conclusion: The impact of shifting academic demands on pharmacy students caused moderate to high levels of academic burnout.