College Student Stress
Steve Cameron
ENG115
Evanita Wallace-Lewis

Abstract
When it comes to the subject of stress, most people have encountered it in some form or fashion. Some people do not realize they are under stress but show every sign and symptom of being stressed out. Stress is a condition that can come about from a vast amount of causes and can effect everyday life. Stress can start at a very young age, depending on the situation. For college students, stress can start almost instantly, as soon as the school year starts. The main causes for a college student to stress out would be finances and academic performance; and these causes can have personal and even an economic effects. Stress is not a good condition for any one person to have because it can effect themselves, others around them, and even on a global level.

Going to college is an experience that can never be forgotten. Most people go to college fresh out of high school, thinking it is going to be a fun and joyous experience, which it is; but it can also be a very stressful and a somewhat problematic time in life, also. A major cause of stress in college students has to do with finances. Most students who first enter college are just entering into a state of independence that one may never have thought they would have entered into. They may be used to their parents fully supporting them financially and getting what they need with no hassle. Most colleges have a very high cost to attend. Things that are expensive for the student would be tuition, room and board, meal plans, books, and etcetera.
First year students were found to be significantly more stressed than the average student when it came to the Cost of Education (means of 4.09 and 3.74, respectively) and the Cost of Living (means of 3.86 and 3.45, respectively). These students may be experiencing higher stress due to the novelty of managing their money and living away from home for the first time, or it may be due to the awareness of recent tuition increases combined with a slow job market, and perhaps even job loss of family members contributing to these statistical differences within the sample (Trombitas, 2012).
Considering finances to be one of the most prominent stressors amongst college students, it will affect other aspects within their lives, like their academic performance.
Next to the major cause of stress among college students’ being adequate finances, the leading cause of stress amongst college students is their academic performance. Academics can be stressful depending on the type of degree one is trying to obtain and the amount of classes being taken at the moment. Most people go to college thinking they know what they want to do for the rest of their life as a career but then realize, maybe that major is too difficult. When it comes to academics, college students have to learn how to balance their time with studying for each class, having a social life, sleeping, and even working to have adequate finances. Academics and time management were often mentioned together as factors causing stress and were marked by 42 percent of students as being one of the most stressful factors (Britz & Pappas, 2009). Considering the amount of stress a college person can deal with, when it gets to be too much, something has to be changed to make the stress level go down. Thus, leading to the change in major. Changing ones major can very well lead to a decreased amount of stress because the subject of choice maybe easier to grasp. Due to the economic state of the world but specifically the United States of American, a college student may realize that it does not matter what major they pursue because the job market does not have a great amount of open jobs for recent graduates fresh out of college, with little experience in their major. And it seems that jobs for recent college graduates are getting less plentiful every year.
Stress from one aspect of life can very well impact another. The stress that college students go through with obtaining adequate finances and maintaining a decent level of academic performance, can lead to economic effects; even though ones individual stress level is small compared to a global level, when most people are stressed, collectively it can have a great impact. Financial stress recently pushed the U.S. economy into its most severe recession since the Great Depression. Despite the apparent risk financial stress poses to the real economy, the relationship between financial stress and economic activity is complex and not well understood (Davig & Hakkio, 2010). When looking into the history of the economy, one can conclude that when the collective as a people have a high amount of financial stress, the economy is going to be in a recession. This in turn makes it harder for college students to get jobs to pay for accumulated debt obtained from attending college and that continues to increase due to interest charges. Which leads students to thinking that it is pointless to struggle with sticking with a particular major that is difficult and time consuming. As a recent college student, it seems that everything college students go through after high school, is a means by way of making money; and this can lead people to thinking, maybe it is better to stay healthy by staying stress free and just get a job making money. Because, although, one may obtain the degree, they well be less likely to be hired for a particular job when compared to a person with no degree but has multiple years of experience. The ultimate goal for college students should be to obtain a degree in the healthiest environment possible but with the things are set up these days, stress is inevitable, and therefore, there will be health problems.
With the accumulated amount of stress and debt a college student can obtain, comes health problems. When a person has health problems they will also have health expenses that could be covered by insurance and some that needs to be paid out of pocket, which then causes more stress. Stress is not a simple matter of only outward experiences but it pays a big part on how the body reacts to it.
There are many known negative implications of stressful life circumstances on personal health. Temporary stress can cause elevated blood pressure, headaches, stomachaches, sleeping problems, and chest pains. Stress also has been shown to inhibit the immune system, leading to more colds and sickness in times of stress. Further, chronic stress can severely impact both mental and physical health. It can decrease the likelihood of individuals to practice healthy habits (including eating a nutritious diet, obtaining adequate sleep, avoiding smoking and drinking in excess, and fostering positive relationships). Distress, a form of stress that negatively impacts the body, is associated with many serious and deadly health risks including various cancers, cirrhosis of the liver, heart disease, lung problems, and in some instances, suicide (Chakraburtty, 2005).
These health problems from stress can also lead to effecting the economy because some people will not be able to be a working class citizen due to their health problems. Thus, the need for more medicine and the cost of that on the economy is another effect. Stress is not a condition that anyone should take lightly. Stopping all the unnecessary causes of stress should be a priority for every individual.
In conclusion, seeking a higher education can be a very rewarding experience and also a difficult one, at the same time. Expanding ones knowledge on something that interest them enough that they want to do it for the rest of their life as a career, is awesome. When it comes to paying for the education to obtain the career goal, there may be a problem. Financially, a student may not be able to pay for that particular education, causing financial stress. It also causes academic stress because one must figure out if they are able to balance the time in making enough money to pay to the education, or taking the easy road and studying something they like but did not plan on letting it be a career goal. This stress can also impact the country on an economic level. Financial stress will lead people to spend less, causing jobs to dwindle because production of a necessary good is not in high demand. With the amount of jobs that are available not being on the plentiful side, causes even more stress. People begin to worry about how they will then survive day to day. Stress caused from either situation is not good for anyone, mentally or physically. Stress can cause a great deal of health problems ranging from stomach aches to cancer. Disease latches on to negativity and stress is negative. Ultimately, the college experience should be and is a learning experience that most people are able to have. There just comes a point in that experience where it gets stressful for each individual. The goal is knowing if it is worth it and if it is learning how to balance each situation.

Reference List Britz, J., Pappas, E. (2009). Sources and Outlets of Stress among University Students: Correlations between Stress and Unhealthy Habits. URC Resources. Chakraburtty, A. (2005). Stress, Anxiety, and Depression: How They Affect Your Health. The Cleveland Clinic. Davig, T., Hakkin, C. (2010). What Is the Effect of Financial Stress on Economic Activity? Federal Reserve Bank of Kansas City. Economic Review. Trombitas, K. (2012). Financial Stress: An Everyday Reality for College Students. Inceptia.