IIT Madras: New students are lonely, worry about others' opinions; 32% require help

NEW DELHI: Indian Institute of Technology Madras (IIT Madras) found that 2% of the newly-admitted students are deeply impacted by past traumas and 32% require mental health support. The institute conducted the survey in July 2024 to identify students who need psychological counselling and to prevent suicides on campus.

As per the report, 2% of freshies are deeply impacted by past trauma, and 17% are marginally affected by past trauma. “With respect to wellness levels 3% of newly admitted students fall under the worry zone and 32% are under the focus zone,” it said.

ChintaBar, a student body recognised by IIT Madras, said that it is a ‘mistake’ to call it a survey or a test, but is more of a well-being assessment. It is mandatory for freshly admitted students to take the assessment during the admission process. Approximately 1,200 undergraduate (UG), 300 PhD, 500 postgraduate (PG) took admission at IIT-M this year, the ChintaBar member said.

There were around 70 multiple-choice questions such as how do you evaluate your relationship with your parents and whether they have any previous record of psychological counselling. Answers to these questions will help the institute identify and provide additional care if required.

The assessment will also help assess the progress of students overtime and compare their mental health in second and third year with the first year. This will help in identifying the factors on campus contributing to poor well-being of students.

The well-being assessment is not conducted to evaluate students or take them out of campus, instead to pin down what went wrong in case the student faces any problem in future.

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IIT Madras well-being survey

The IIT Madras survey has three major components - psychological well-being, family dynamics and atmosphere, and self-efficacy.

Psychological well-being - Self-determination and independence, mastery of environment, personal development, interpersonal connections, sense of purpose and positive self-perception.

Family dynamics and atmosphere - Emotional bonds, open communication and conflict resolution).

Self-efficacy - Problem solving resilience, goal driven perseverance and adaptive thinking.

The number one institute of India, as per the NIRF rankings, conducted the well-being survey for all new students before getting admission.

The common challenges faced by students include, concern over others' opinion, lack of contentment with life setup, striving for self-improvement, sense of loneliness and social bonds, and comparing life accomplishments.

To tackle the challenges, the administration and student teams planned to conduct various programs on self-awareness workshops, behavioural skills training, stress management and coping skills programmes, self-compassion and resilience building workshops, and financial literacy workshops.

“Many of these programs are already in progress and counselling programs are being held for students in worry and focus zone. Student wellness is the priority of the institute,” it added.