With mental illness a growing concern within graduate education, data from a new survey should prompt both academia and policy makers to consider intervention strategies.
This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.
References
Gewin, V. Nature 490, 299–301 (2012).
UC Berkeley Graduate Assembly. Graduate Student Happiness and Well-being Report http://ga.berkeley.edu/wellbeingreport (2014).
Smith, E. & Brooks, Z. Graduate Student Mental Health (University of Arizona, 2015).
Löwe, B. et al. Med. Care 46, 266–274 (2008).
Kocalevent, R.D., Hinz, A. & Brähler, E. Gen. Hosp. Psychiatry 35, 551–555 (2013).
Dhejne, C., Van Vlerken, R., Heylens, G. & Arcelus, J. Int. Rev. Psychiatry 28, 44–57 (2016).
Eaton, N.R. et al. J. Abnorm. Psychol. 121, 282–288 (2012).
Hogan, V. et al. Ir. J. Psychol. 35, 133–150 (2014).
Tenenbaum, H. et al. J. Vocat. Behav. 59, 326–341 (2001).
Fuhrmann, C.N. Hum. Gene Ther. 27, 871–879 (2016).
NIH Office of Intramural Training & Education. How to Teach and Advise on Career Development Topics for the Next Generation of Biomedical Scientists: a Train-the-Trainers Event https://www.training.nih.gov/train_the_trainers_2016 (NIH, 2016).
Pryal, K.R.G. Disclosure Blues: Should You Tell Colleagues About Your Mental Illness? ChronicalVitae https://chroniclevitae.com/news/546-disclosure-blues-should-you-tell-colleagues-about-your-mental-illness (13 June 2014).
Powell, K. Nature 538, 446–449 (2016).
Acknowledgements
The authors thank D. Story, Markey Cancer Center Research Communications Office, for graphic design assistance; P. Chambers of Versatile PhD for her comments on and aid in distributing the study survey; D. Weiss, Graduate School of Biomedical Sciences (GSBS) at UT Health San Antonio for his guidance; and the GSBS for providing partial funding for the study. Lastly, the authors dedicate this body of work to all graduate trainees who persevere in silence to overcome mental health struggles.
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Corresponding authors
Ethics declarations
Competing interests
The authors declare no competing financial interests.
Supplementary information
Supplementary Table 1
Self-Reported Institution (PDF 180 kb)
Rights and permissions
About this article
Cite this article
Evans, T., Bira, L., Gastelum, J. et al. Evidence for a mental health crisis in graduate education. Nat Biotechnol 36, 282–284 (2018). https://doi.org/10.1038/nbt.4089
Published:
Issue Date:
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1038/nbt.4089
- Springer Nature America, Inc.
This article is cited by
-
Prevalence of depressive symptoms and depression literacy (D-Lit) among Saudi postgraduate students
Middle East Current Psychiatry (2024)
-
Exploring the Relationship Between Supervisor Support and Anxiety of Graduate Students in China: The Mediating Role of Scientific Research Efficacy
The Asia-Pacific Education Researcher (2024)
-
A Scoping Review of Acceptance and Commitment Therapy in Higher Education
The Psychological Record (2024)
-
COVID-19, Mental Health, Technology Use, and Job Satisfaction Among School Psychology Trainers
Contemporary School Psychology (2024)
-
The mental labyrinth of postgraduate research: a qualitative study of postgraduate mental health and wellbeing and the impact of the supervisory relationship
Higher Education (2024)