Impacts of a Continuing Pandemic on the Health of Students in Higher Education: A Focused Look Over time

Abstract

The rapid emergence of Covid-19 caught many people off guard worldwide. Online images and videos of patients in Chinese hospitals heralded a pandemic that would negatively impact not just peoples’ health, but would hinder efforts by organizations worldwide, including the operations of most universities. Colleges and universities moved learning to virtual delivery and cancelled on-campus activities with little warning. Students and faculty alike had to adapt to the new reality of forced distance education, isolation, and an uncertain future. As might be expected, the pandemic affected students’ lives in many ways. This article investigates the impact of a stay-at-home order on the health of students in a higher education environment across two semesters during the height of the pandemic.

Three Semesters in: COVID’s Impact on the Health and Well-being of Students over Three Semesters of the Health Emergency Order Concerning the Pandemic

“…The pandemic witnessed an increased use of distance education (Budden et al, 2022), with consequences that were not all positive. Students in K-12 fell behind in math and reading (Dorn et al, 2021).…”

“…This study involves health-relevant questions administered at the end of three semesters during the pandemic (Spring 2020, Fall 2020, and Spring 2021) at a university in the southeast U.S. This analysis continues looking at the health impacts of the continuing pandemic preliminarily reported over two semesters previously (see Budden et al, 2022). The independent, convenient surveys were administered in junior/senior and graduate business classes at the end of each of these three pandemic (stay-at-home) semesters.…”