College students at risk could use more mental health support
A report from the Center for Collegiate Mental Health (CCMH) at Pennsylvania State University suggests that while students with a history of self-harm report lower levels of distress after engaging with counseling center services, they remain at higher levels of distress overall compared to their peers.
This (finding) highlights the need for additional services and support mechanisms beyond basic counseling to promote suicide prevention within higher education, said Brett Scofield, executive director for the CCMH.
“The data show that students with a history of suicidal or self-injurious behaviors could benefit from access to longer-term and comprehensive care, including psychological treatment, psychiatric services and case management at counseling centers, as well as adjunctive support that contributes to an overall sense of well-being, such as access to disability services and financial aid programs,” he said in a statement.
The statistics about college students and suicide risk show:
• The overall suicide rate in the United States increased by 36% between 2000 and 2022, according to the Centers for Disease Control (CDC). An estimated 1,100 college students die each year by suicide, reports the National Mental Health Association and the JED Foundation.
• Two-percent of U.S. college students reported making at least one suicide attempt during the previous 12 months, according to the 2022-2023 Healthy Minds Study, a national survey of 76,406 students at 135 campuses.
• Youth and young adults ages 10–24 years account for 15% of all suicides, per the CDC. In this age group, suicide is the second leading cause of death and emergency room visits for self-harm among this age group are 2.5 times higher than among middle-aged adults ages 35-64.
Certain collegiate populations may be at higher risk for suicidal behavior or self-harm. For example:
• Suicides among US college athletes have more than doubled in the last 20 years, per a 2024 study by the University of Washington School of Medicine. In the last 18 months, student athletes from both University of Massachusetts Dartmouth and UMass Lowell died by apparent suicide.
• The CDC reports that in 2021, more than a quarter (26.3%) of high school students identifying as lesbian, gay, or bisexual reported attempting suicide in the prior 12 months.
• Students at “high-achieving schools” may be two or three times more anxious than typical college students, per a report from the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine.
In the last three years, six undergraduate deaths at Princeton have been ruled suicides or related to mental illness, reported The Daily Princetonian. And, in an eight-month period in 2021, Worcester Polytechnic Institute experienced seven student deaths, including three suicides.
In response, the STEM-focused school launched a Mental Health and Well-Being Task Force, which released a report based on student surveys, town halls, and other feedback. “Academic pressure” was cited as a significant mental health challenge by more than eight out of 10 WPI students.
“Members of the community report difficulty finding the information they need and are unaware of existing resources,” the report noted. “More resources are needed. Growth in faculty/staff has not kept pace with growth in the student body. And students report a lack of a sense of belonging; feelings of loneliness/isolation; an inability to connect to peers and the larger community; and not feeling valued.”
Nearly six out of 10 students (58%) accessed mental health services before entering college, according to a 2023 TimelyCare survey.
Nate Woods, DSL, executive director for student wellbeing and inclusive excellence at the Pennsylvania College of Technology, told WITF’s “The Spark” podcast that post-COVID, more students begin college with pre-existing experience accessing therapy. Still, the stigma of seeking help still exists, and being in an unfamiliar environment away from home for the first time can be a barrier.
“It’s cultural. Cultures are the hardest thing to move,” said Woods. “So we’ve taken this one-degree-at-a-time approach to show students, faculty, and staff that it’s okay to ask for help. That’s not a weakness—it’s a strength.”
The Pennsylvania College of Technology and Bucknell University each recently received the PA Cares designation from the Pennsylvania Department of Education for campuses that demonstrate a strong commitment to student mental wellness.