High Anxiety and Stress for America's Students from Economic, Political and Social Pressures, Chegg Study Shows

SANTA  CLARA, Calif., Sept. 18, 2018 /PRNewswire/ -- Chegg, Inc. (NYSE: CHGG), the Smarter Way to Student, today announced the release of its 2018 State of the Student report – a comprehensive study that sheds light on the realities, thoughts and attitudes of the modern student. Highlighting insights from a survey of 1,000 students across a representative spectrum of demographics and colleges, the report provides a sweeping view of what today's college students are experiencing in their daily lives, covering such areas as financial issues, anxiety and mental health, campus safety, inclusivity and discrimination, political divisiveness and their outlook on the future.

Anxiety is a prevalent issue in college life, according to survey results. As much as 60 percent of students say they are anxious "frequently" or "all the time," 66 percent worry there will be an incident of gun violence on campus and 68 percent worry about their futures ("frequently" or "all the time") – yet 63 percent said they have never taken advantage of their college's mental-health resources or are unaware that they exist.

"College students are facing many of the same pressures that adults face. They're stressed by work and finance, plus they deal with the additional urgency of fitting in socially," said Dan Rosensweig, president and CEO of Chegg. "That may not seem particularly new, but today's complex economic, political, social and tech-dominated landscape has accentuated the tension and burden students feel."

Finances are the main source of student anxiety: 66 percent say they cannot comfortably afford housing at their college, 37 percent have felt social pressure to spend more money than they can afford, 34 percent find it challenging or impossible to afford food, and 73 percent work while in school.

Conversely, 73 percent feel optimistic about finding a job that will support them after college – and 35 percent say they're having "the time of their lives."

Other key findings include:

• Nearly two-thirds of students (65 percent) have studied all night in college, while only one 1 of 4 (25 percent) have partied all night.
• 43 percent of students (and 61 percent of LGBTQ students) have felt "very lonely" at college.
• One in three students (30 percent) has fallen in love at college, and on average, males are 38 percent more likely than females to have fallen in love. Over half (54 percent) have made a best friend.
• Nearly 1 in 5 students (17 percent) have had a crush on one of their professors.
• Male students were more likely than females to report feeling discriminated against on every front, including gender, sexual orientation, race, religion, socioeconomic background and political views.
• 73 percent of Republican students believe the country is going in the right direction, compared to 24 percent of Democratic students.
• Half of Hispanic students (50 percent) are concerned that someone they know personally may be deported.
• Less than half of students (42 percent) are confident that their school administration adequately addresses cases of sexual assault.
• 22 percent have at least one child.

Survey methodology

The 2018 State of the Student research project was designed and managed by Chegg, Inc. to gain a deeper understanding of the perceptions of enrolled college students. The online research was conducted using empaneled respondents provided by Research Now. The sample for this research was collected in June and August 2018. It consists of 1,001 students currently enrolled in U.S.-based colleges. To guarantee the sample is reflective of the college population at large, the data is weighted to match data from the U.S. Census. Data points used for weighting include: gender, age segment, college type (2-year vs. 4-year) and school attendance (full-time vs. part-time).

For more information and to download the State of the Student report go to:
https://www.chegg.com/press/stateofthestudent/

About Chegg

Chegg puts students first. As the leading student-first connected learning platform, Chegg strives to improve the overall return on investment in education by helping students learn more in less time and at a lower cost. Chegg is a publicly-held company based in Santa Clara, California and trades on the NYSE under the symbol CHGG. For more information, visit www.chegg.com.

Media Contact:
Marc Boxser, [e-mail]

 

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