Earlier this year, and for the second year, we partnered with Angus Reid to create the 2022 Canadian Student Wellbeing Study, with the intent to understand current postsecondary student feelings toward study, stress, cheating, optimism for the future, and more.
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Throughout this year, chapters of the 2022 Canadian Student Wellbeing Study have been published with the latest, Chapter 4: Study Habits & Transition to Postsecondary now accessible for download. This chapter explores current students study habits, thoughts toward student support services, and feelings during the transition to college/university.
This latest chapter, which surveyed 1,014 post-secondary students in Canada, includes insights such as:
- 72% of students say they have had to study all night without sleep to meet a deadline or get through their course workload, with 20% reporting it happens regularly
- Students report studying an average of 3.3 hours per day, with male students reporting 3 per day and female students reporting 3.5 per day on average
- 31% of students report feeling anxious as a result of studying alone with 71% of students aged 18-19 having considered dropping a course because of it
- 57% of students say that having access to flexible channels would make them more inclined to use student support services
- 68% of students believe their institution is providing them with the skills for success in their future career
On the topic of study habits and ways of learning, there was a common theme around poor or unsupported mental health being a potential cause for needing to complete coursework through the night to make deadlines. On why they have had to study all night without sleep, one student remarked, “Mental health issues (ADHD, depression) make it difficult to start assignments, leading to staying up all night as I feel too guilty about not doing my work to go to sleep.” Another student said, “I have ADHD. This makes it very hard for me to get a reliable sense of how long things will take. It also makes it hard for me to get started, so I often have to rely on last-minute adrenaline to help me get motivated.” Some students even go on to explain their struggle with motivation and conflicting responsibilities, with common references to lack of will and having children.
Dr. Noreen Golfman, member of Studiosity’s Academic Advisory Board and former Provost and Vice-President Academic at Memorial University, says “The way that students study and learn is changing, and the way that our institutions change and adapt with student needs is continual and crucial. The resources that universities have in place to deal with mental health, anxiety concerns are welcome additions to our total student support and just weren't there before. We still have a ways to go, but what has changed is investment and dedication to student wellbeing. Financial investment is continuing to be significant across the board at just about every institution, signaling the move in the direction of holistic support.”
This chapter on Study Habits & Transition to Postsecondary includes benchmarked data from the 2021 Canadian Student Wellbeing Study to understand the evolution of student thoughts and feelings.
This survey was conducted among 1,014 current postsecondary students in Canada. The sample frame was balanced to ensure representation and statistical significance of gender and region in proportion to their overall share of the Canadian postsecondary student population. For comparison purposes only, a sample of this size would yield a margin of error of +/- 3.1 percentage points, 19 times out of 20. The survey was conducted in English and French.
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