A Herald poll found that seniors, non-straight students and those studying the arts and humanities were mostly likely to be taking medication for a mental health illness or disorder. Among all polled undergraduates, roughly one in five respondents answered that they are either currently taking medication for a mental illness or disorder or have previously taken medication.
The Herald spoke with mental health experts and a variety of Brown students studying different disciplines to understand what might be driving these trends.
Physical science concentrators — which includes those studying engineering — were the least likely to respond that they were taking or have taken medication relative to their counterparts, according to the poll.
“I’m an engineering major, and within that space, mental health isn’t talked about very openly,” said Sola Idiaghe ’28. “There’s a strong culture of pushing through stress and heavy workloads, which can sometimes discourage people from acknowledging when they’re struggling.”
“In STEM concentrations, stress is often normalized and almost expected,” said Lena Mitchell ’28. This standard can make “students who may not feel pressure feel like they’re doing something wrong,” she added.
Miguel Bessa, an associate professor of engineering, recognized the feelings of stress and pressure among students within STEM concentrations. He explained that STEM courses often require students to engage in more continuous practice — solving exercises and completing problem sets — that may lead to higher stress and heavier workloads.
Beyond the rigorous nature of STEM and engineering subjects, Bessa added that exceptions — like extensions to assignment deadlines or test makeups — are difficult to grant due to large class sizes. “If you open one exception, the next day, there’s 20 students at your door asking for the same,” Bessa said. “It’s tricky when the classes are very big.”
For Bessa, creating more accessible and transparent dialogue between professors and students is the first step to reducing student stress levels.
“I think students should understand it’s really okay to reach out to faculty and complain or suggest things,” he said.
According to Bessa, professors are often told to refer students to other resources when needed, such as Counseling and Psychological Services.
Relative to those studying other disciplines, concentrators in the arts and humanities were more likely to state that they were taking or have previously taken medication for mental health illness.
But while the same patterns of stress in STEM courses may not apply to courses in the arts and humanities, comparative literature concentrator Lusia Austen ’27 said that there is still “a bit of a stigma around seeking help and medication,” but mostly from older individuals rather than other students.
“I expect or have faced more judgement from older people like teachers and parents and parents’ friends surrounding things like therapy and medication,” she added.
But at Brown, Austen has found that “professors are so willing to provide extensions and accommodations to anyone, regardless of personal circumstances,” she added.
The Herald’s poll also found that students who indicated that they were not straight were twice as likely to also respond that they have taken or were taking psychological medication, compared to their straight peers.
“LGBTQ individuals continue to have the highest rates of depression, suicidal thinking and suicide attempts,” explained Jeffrey Hunt, a professor of psychiatry and human behavior, in an interview with The Herald. “We know that it can be very stressful, depending on family support. Our political climate adds a huge amount of stress to that group.”
The Herald poll also found that students in their later years of college were more likely to be taking psychological medication.
This finding didn’t come across as a great surprise to Hunt. Such an increase in use “from freshman to seniors is related to disorders of stress and then also maybe reduction in stigma to access care through Brown,” he said.
With continued stigma surrounding mental health treatment and psychological medication, Hunt said a cultural shift in mental health research, awareness and treatment is vital to combat the disparities.
He suggested a “culture of openness” and “transparency from role models that you trust and respect” as two ways to begin these cultural shifts and send a message “that it’s okay to be treated for.”
