Universities, once struggling to keep up with the surge in demand for counseling during the pandemic, have since scaled up their support services. As a result, more students are asking for help.
"The ability to connect with another human to bounce ideas off of is going to become even more important when an increasing percent of the internet is auto generated," says Casey Clark, a dean at Western Governors University who recently earned his coaching certification.
The challenge lies not in the medium but in how it's structured. Institutions can do more to foster the essential communal aspects of traditional learning to combat the loneliness of remote learning.
"Knowing the trends of what's going on with students can help inform them on their initiatives, what to bring onto their campus and what resources to promote," says Erin Andrews, Uwill's Director of Clinical Affairs.
These survey results come two weeks after the U.S. Surgeon General testified before a Senate Health, Labor and Pensions Panel advising social media to be given a warning label due to its contribution to youth mental health becoming “the defining public health issue of our time.”
