University is Not for the Weak: Student Communication of Mental Health on Twitter

Abstract

Well before the COVID-19 pandemic exacerbated postsecondary students' mental health challenges, students were already struggling with issues that were pervasive in higher education, including anxiety, depression, overwhelm, burnout, and difficulty accessing mental health supports. This paper examines 1007 Twitter posts pertaining to higher education students' mental health between February 2019 and March 2021. Students expressed feelings that their institutions did not care about sound mental health and that higher education is an environment primed for anxiety and depression. Students also expressed a desire for timely, online counselling and closer contact and communication with their instructors. Online/virtual therapy/counselling was particularly valuable for students, and they appreciated accommodations that faculty made for them during the pandemic. Students also used Twitter to offer support and encouragement to one another. This study has implications for pedagogical developments and revisions to mental health supports available to college and university students in both online and face-to-face environments.