5 Bristol university student suicides since the start of this academic year. Why?

[Restorativepowersoftea]

This is so sad and such a shock. Why so many at Bristol though?

• More a recognition that some DC are very privileged, and time spent in a more everyday setting might help them to appreciate the good fortune that fate dealt them. Some time and space away from academia and the pressure that students (or their parents) put themselves under, could help a student recognise that they are close to having mental health issues and that university might not be in their own best interests at this point in their lives. *

Absolutely, and I wouldn't disagree with any of those points. However, mental health issues aren't as simple as stepping back and recognising your privilege.

There is also a difference between struggling to adapt to the university environment and its pressures - something that needs support but is part of the normal student experience, to an extent - and suffering mental health difficulties that are so bad you would consider taking your own life.
The first can maybe be solved by taking a step back, getting some fresh air and taking some time out. The second, not necessarily.

Don't get me wrong, there is a middle ground and nothing is black and white. But I do still find it rather dismissive to say that struggling students should recognise how lucky they are to be where they are. That just doesn't help.

TBH I do think that the luxury lifestyle and tiny class sizes of some independent schools, coupled with a lot of pressure to achieve, set up some DC for entirely unreasonable expectations of support in the world beyond school. Some university students have been propelled and cajoled through life, with all sorts of very comfortable "opportunities", until 18. It makes them anxious and worried, not secure.

I think it's possible to be successful academically and have lots of other interests but it's finding the balance that seems to be harder to achieve these days.
I've encouraged my children to study hard and participate in extracurricular pursuits but only the activities they genuinely enjoy. Too many young people spend time on things that their parents think will look good on personal statements or cv's.
This is a forum where we can discuss the minutiae of our children but honestly parents in general appear to have an all consuming involvement in their children and significantly their ' achievements'. My parents didn't love me any less than I love my own, but at no point would they have attended a social situation, dinner party etc and informed the assembled throng of every last 'fascinating' thing I'd done. This appears to be de rigour these days or perhaps we need to change our social circle....
In trying to ascertain why some of our young people are struggling these days, I do wonder if this is contributing to the pressure they feel but again I would stress that serious mental health issues require proper support from suitably qualified professionals.

de rigueur - sorry !

Snurfle, you misunderstand my post. I was talking about undergraduates generally, not those with health problems. If you read the thread, you'll see I was responding directly to a poster advocating a year away from formal education between school and university.

I agree that there is a proportion of students who shouldn't be at university. And parents need to take some responsibility for this.

I deal with mental ill health all the time with undergrads. I can recognise incipient depression at 10 paces, and each year I deal with undiagnosed learning difficulties in several students. Academic staff shouldn't have to do this, and we get very little support for the emotional effects on us of anxious and ill students.

FlyAwayPeter, in that case, I apologise - you're right, I didn't RTFT and took the comment out of context.

MH issues really are so difficult to deal with, and academic staff certainly shouldn't be the ones left to deal with it and its repercussions.

No problem, Snurfle although it doesn't help a colleague of mine who didn't sleep properly for a week after an entirely inappropriate accusation of bullying. Students are lucky that academics are devoted and resilient.

I am always surprised at the number of people who contribute to these threads who have children with considerable needs and will require a great deal of support at university and never a second is spent wondering if this is the right environment for them for three years or more. I can see why the university staff are concerned.

I do think more young people should apply post A level and try and ensure they are healthier in the intervening year. I know this is easy to say, but upthread, yet again, a vulnerable student has a place at Bristol and the poster is worried. It is highly unlikely that anywhere else will be better. A perfectionist can be even worse in a "lesser" university because they believe being the best should be relatively easy and when it is not, there are problems. A few years ago my local very low ranking university had suicides. It is not the university, it is the student. Over anxious ones do need help to adjust to student life and this should start with the "gap" year where perhaps a sense of perspective can be introduced.

I am very keen on students doing more than studying. It makes them more employable and actually reduces angst about jobs. Organising student events, doing a year abroad, getting a job all help and are interests outside studying. If someone on a fairly basic degree has to study all the time it is not good for them. Few employers are truly bothered about employing a student with a first if other skills are absent.

Bojo I agree with what you are saying, however for a lot of families there is not the choice to take a gap year - finances simply don't permit or the young person is adamant that they are going to university this year regardless.

My DS is determined to go this September and is determined to go to Bristol (grades permitting). I have privately wondered about a gap year for him to chill and work part time but he hates his part time job and says that if he stops studying now then he probably won't go back so he wants to go this year and get on with it and take a gap year when he finishes.

I'd love to be able to support him during a gap year but unless he works full time then it's simply not possible

doublesnap, DD decided to take a gap year very late in the day and defer her Bristol place. For a number of reasons Yr13 had been tough, and to put it simply, she was tired, and not ready for a new challenge. The University were very helpful.

There are a couple of middle options between staying at home and earning, or doing the expensive gay yah thing. A couple of her friends have managed to land internships within the fields they want to study, or have done quite interesting, experience enhancing things. (Special constable!) DD instead worked through the summer but is now doing a ski season (try Crystal or workaseason, both take 18 year olds) and will go on to Camp America. She probably wont save, but she earns enough to support herself.

The ski season has been great. It is really really tough, but well structured, with management stepping in if work performance dips. DD has learnt that to play hard you need to sleep and eat properly and pace yourself. Key first year University skills.

At the moment she does not want the season to end. When she gets back she will catch up with friends already at University and possibly go to Bristol to look at accommodation, which should remind her why she was so delighted to get the place. She has learnt a lot in the past year, and if she decides, either before she goes or when she is there that University is not for her, she also knows that there are other things out there she enjoys doing.

gap.... not gay

I know several young people that have done exactly as your DD, needmore. My own children did go straight to university but it is absolutely clear it is not the best decision for all. I certainly understand the need to keep studying and losing skills can be an issue, but this is yet another sign of self imposed pressure. You have to keep going to keep up! In many gap years, if you plan, you can work, enhance your skills and be a more rounded person. Sometimes a young person of 17/18 does not know what is the best course of action and gets caught up in the continual pressure of work and exams because they do not know anything else. After A levels , there is a chance to break this cycle and for some it is vital but they need guidance.

I am also pro gap years for some students. My DD (12) will only be 17 1/2 when she leaves school and I have already started having the gap year conversation with her. If she wants to go straight t university, that will be fine, but I would like her to be fully aware of the advantages of not being among the very youngest in her year group. We would support all sorts of gap year experiences, depending on where her interests lie and whether there is something relevant to her course of study that she would like to do in preparation.