Understand yourself: Mental health and wellness
Example hero paragraph text.
Identify strategies to strengthen your mental health and well-being
Understand how the STEM climate impacts graduate students’ mental health
Understand the importance of prioritizing mental health and well-being while earning a graduate degree in STEM
“…I was depressed…I felt like I was dragging my bones to work [referring to her research lab]. I had no motivation, or energy, or enthusiasm, or desire to do this.”
“I was not able to go to the gym because I was working on the weekends. I was eating very poorly, so I was gaining weight. It was taking a toll on my relationships. I didn’t go out on the weekends and I didn’t have a social life…I was very, very sad and my anxiety was through the roof.”
“I did talk to [a university staff person] because I felt safe with her, and I knew that she cared, and that’s demonstrated by her actions and her passions. When I talked to her about it, she gave me some advice. Largely what she did was listen, which was all I really needed for someone to do, who could understand. …[With her], I didn’t have to just be student Angela, I was human Angela… that was really important.”
As a graduate student, you face myriad stressors (e.g., advisor challenges, interpersonal difficulties in the lab, unexpected delays), and the cumulative impact of these stressors can take a considerable psychological toll. Consider the following statistics:
- Compared to the general population, graduate students are six times more likely to meet the clinical criteria for depression and/or anxiety (Evans et al., 2018).
- A full 47% of Ph.D. students qualify for a diagnosis of depression (Mousavi et al., 2018).
- Graduate students who experience depressive symptoms are significantly more likely to engage in suicidal thoughts and/or behaviors (Garcia-Williams & Moffitt, 2014).
- Graduate students pursuing degrees in STEM fields may be even more likely to experience mental health concerns (Arnold, et al., 2020).
- Among graduate students in the biosciences, 46% reported depression during their degree programs (UC Berkeley Graduate Assembly, 2014).
Mental health can be a difficult topic to discuss, and you might feelespecially uncomfortable bringing it up with others in your academic environments. The CareerWISECoach is here to provide information, resources, and support for you, whether or not you decide to disclose your mental health challenges to faculty or peers. Elements that can negatively impact the mental health of women in particular while enrolled in a STEM graduate program are discussed below.
Women pursuing graduate degrees in STEM fields face significant challenges, including systemic barriers, discrimination, and negative interpersonal interactions within their STEM environments (Espinosa, 2011; Wilkins-Yel et al., 2019). For Women of Color (WoC), these challenges are often compounded by the intersecting experiences of both racism and sexism from colleagues and professors (Alexander & Herman, 2015; Anderson et al, 2020). More on challenges that WoC face can be found here.
Many factors force women and WoC in STEM to focus more energy on doing well in their programs and less energy on self-care, placing them at a higher risk for burnout.Following are some key stressors you may experience as a graduate woman in STEM and their psychological impact.
Racism and Sexism
Women and WoC report frequently experiencing gender-racial microaggressions (Wilkins-Yel et al., 2019) and pressure to assimilate to the masculine STEM environment (Ong et al., 2011). These experiences can lead to increased psychological distress. See Recognizing Sexism.
Lack of Belonging and Community
Women in STEM often receive the message that they do not belong, which can create a sense of disconnection from academic and social communities. Isolation can make an already challenging academic path even more stressful and lead to mental health conditions such as depression and anxiety. To avoid this outcome, consider joining an online professional network for women. See Climate for more on belonging.
Inadequate Interpersonal Support
Lack of satisfying support from faculty, staff, and peers can amplify academic challenges and reinforce feelings of inferiority. In the quote below, a Latinx PhD student in mathematics named Gloria shares her attempt to discuss her academic challenges with her professor. Gloria decided to discontinue her program.
“I was trying to approach [my professor] and say, ‘Hey, I’m having all these troubles. What do you suggest? Do you have maybe some book that can help me, or can I set up more time with your office hours?’ His answer was like, ‘Well, have you [sought] help?’ I was like, ‘Yeah, I’m reaching out to you.’ He was like, ‘Well, I cannot help you.’ So, he was more like ‘I know about math… Emotions, overwhelm, anxiety, I cannot help you, but you should reach out to someone that can help you.’”
The dual pandemics of COVID-19 and systemic racism have affected women in STEM by adding external challenges to the existing systemic barriers found in the STEM climate.
In a survey conducted during the peak of the pandemic (May-July 2020), the prevalence of major depressive disorder among graduate students was found to be two times higher when compared to rates in 2019, and the prevalence of generalized anxiety disorder was found to be 1.5 times higher (Chirikov et al., 2020).
A recent report on stress levels in the United States conducted by the American Psychological Association (2021) found that 84% of adults had experienced an emotion associated with prolonged stress within the past two weeks.
Pandemic-related stress has disproportionately impacted communities of color, with 54% of Black Americans, 48% of Hispanic Americans, and 45% of Asian Americans expressing serious concern about the future.
The specific ways that the dual pandemics impact women in STEM are listed below.
COVID-19 Related Stressors
The pandemic has depleted interpersonal support, increased family responsibilities, and significantly reduced access to quiet space for those caring for children and/or residing in multi-generational households (Heyward, 2020). Having to share several spaces with family members is a particularly salient challenge for WoC, who also contend with cultural pressures to care for younger siblings or aging parents.
Acts of Racism and Xenophobia
The current spread of hate and prejudice and the incitement of violence against Black, Latinx, and Asian communities can exacerbate stress and mental health challenges faced by graduate women in STEM. In a 2021 study (Briseño et al., 2021), a graduate WoC in STEM, explained the psychological cost of being bombarded with social media images of police brutality toward unarmed Black men and the subsequent feelings of lack of support from her colleagues in her lab:
“It was hard to go back to the lab when I’m in an environment where everyone else in the lab, whether they be international students or just people who aren’t getting the same type of social media barrage with the same imagery when they log onto Facebook or when they log into Instagram or Twitter. I didn’t feel like they empathized or could really understand what it felt like to feel so insignificant, even though we’re both pursuing the same type of degree. That was a really hard time for me to recover from because I didn’t feel like there was anyone… I felt there wasn’t anyone.”
The quote illustrates the negative mental health impacts of trauma, stress, and isolation resulting from systemic racism and racial underrepresentation in STEM. The “business as usual” mentality within STEM fields in the wake of police brutality led to efforts such as #ShutDownSTEM. Access the link for further information on this effort and how you can do your part to help end systemic racism in STEM.
Sociocultural Pressure to Hold Multiple Roles
Women and WoC often hold and perform several roles at the same time (i.e., mother, financial provider, nurturer, caretaker, along with student, employee). These role assumptions during the COVID-19 pandemic were magnified by limited access to employment benefits as graduate students (e.g., lower wages, less paid sick leave, and less childcare leave), and increased risk of infection due to having others assist in caregiving (i.e., day cares, adult care centers, and extended family; Heyward, 2020).
It is important to note the factors inside and outside of STEM that might contribute to mental health challenges for graduate women. Additionally, it is important to understand how these stressors are further amplified for WoC in STEM. Click here for more information about how intersecting identities might amplify barriers for WoC in the STEM environment.
Mental health challenges derived from barriers inside and outside of STEM can negatively impact the graduate school experience. Not only do these factors affect your overall well-being but they also negatively impact academic and career success in STEM. It is impossible to perform at your best when your mental and/or physical health is suffering.
Decreased Motivation and Energy
If mental health challenges are left unaddressed, the simple task of getting out of bed every day might be much harder, which can in turn lead to a lack of attention to personal and academic responsibilities. Being constantly stressed and worried about academic or personal factors has been shown to negatively impact students’ interest in graduate studies and other activities (Turner & Berry, 2000).
Decreased Academic Success and Research Productivity
We do not do our best when we are not feeling our best, which may be reflected in decreased attendance at classes/meetings, late submissions of assignments, difficulty focusing on writing, or simply not having the headspace to concentrate on academic and research tasks.
Decreased Intentions to Persist
It can be incredibly difficult to succeed in an unsupportive environment. In some cases it may be necessary to step away from this environment to improve well-being. For example, one graduate woman in STEM reported that she decided to leave her doctoral program after realizing the considerable toll the STEM climate had taken on her mental health. For her, leaving was the ultimate act of self-care (Schuyler et al., 2020).
Let’s look at the ways we can help alleviate mental health challenges that graduate women in STEM experience, and, specifically, what steps you can take to overcome mental health challenges during your academic journey.
Across the United States, a number of prominent scholars and organizations have sounded the clarion call to implement structural and systemic-level strategies to address the mental health crisis in STEM (Arnold et al., 2020). For example, the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine (NASEM, 2018) have suggested specific ways institutions and STEM departments can prioritize and support graduate student mental health and wellness. In addition, the Council of Graduate Schools (CGS, 2019) created an initiative to document evidence-based policies and resources to prevent and address psychological distress in graduate students.
Strategies that you can use to attend to your own mental health:
Mental Health Strategies for Women in STEM
Put your mental health and wellness first. Due to cultural messages that encourage us to de-prioritize our mental health, women and WoC are often told, ‘put others’ needs first’, ‘keep pushing through’ and ‘don’t talk to strangers about the problem.’
If you notice that the academic and personal challenges are taking a significant psychological toll, pause, take a break, and focus on restoring your mental and emotional health. Prioritize yourself and focus on self-care by doing something you enjoy, such as yoga, dancing, painting, or cooking.
Talk to someone about your challenges. Sharing our struggles with others can be an extremely effective way of identifying the issue at hand and understanding ourselves better.
Speak up about stress and mental health issues with friends, colleagues, or family members. It might be helpful to find a trusted colleague or person in your program with whom you can vent.
Seek mental health services. It can be incredibly helpful to have an outside perspective on personal and academic challenges. In fact, counseling has been shown to validate students’ lived experiences, increase self-awareness, provide skill building, and facilitate decision- making among graduate women in STEM (Arnold et al., 2020).
Engage in counseling services through the college counseling center or by other means (private practice, community counseling, counseling through primary care). Find culturally based mental health support, such as spiritual leaders, elders, and other services that might fit your unique needs.
- If you are having a mental health crisis and need to speak to someone immediately, you can always call the National Suicide Prevention Hotline which is available 24/7 and provides confidential support : 800-273-8255
Self-Test:
What is the best course of action to take when you are experiencing psychological distress, such as feeling anxious, overwhelmed, or burnt out, as a result of your graduate program environment or responsibilities?
- A. Keep your feelings to yourself and get over them. Your advisor and colleagues have enough on their plates and will not be able to help you.
- B. Spend more time on school related work and less time sleeping, eating, and doing activities you enjoy.
- C. Talk openly and honestly with your advisor, mentor, and/or a trusted colleague about the challenges you are facing.
- D. Seek mental health treatment at the counseling center on campus.
- E. Either C or D.
undefined is the correct answer,
E. While strategies A and B might distract us from our mental health challenges in the moment, over time they could contribute to increased difficulties. Whenever you face a challenge, talk about it with someone you feel comfortable with and trust to help reduce your psychological distress.
By understanding the systemic factors both within and outside of STEM departments that may lead to mental health challenges for graduate women and WoC in STEM, you can identify and address specific contributors to your own mental health and persistence intentions.
Use the information about strategies to address mental health issues among graduate women and WoC in STEM and start important conversations within your department. Apply the recommendations for graduate students presented here to attend to your own mental health and well-being.
Arnold, A. C., Wilkins-Yel, K. G., Bekki, J. M., Bernstein, B. L., Natarajan, M., Randall, A. K., & Okwu, C. W. (2020, January). Examining the effects of STEM climate on the mental health of graduate women from diverse racial/ethnic backgrounds. In Proceedings of the Annual Meeting of the American Society of Engineering Education. https://doi.org/10.18260/1-2–34617
Briseño, J., Moseley, A., Schuyler, S., Hocker, L., Randall, A. K., Wilkins-Yel, K. G., Bekki, J., & Bernstein, B. (August, 2021) Challenges Faced by Black and Latinx Graduate Women in STEM During COVID-19: A Content Analysis. American Psychological Association Annual Conference (Virtual).
Chirikov, I., Soria, K. M, Horgos, B., & Jones-White, D. (2020). Undergraduate and graduate students’ mental health during the COVID-19 pandemic. UC Berkeley: Center for Studies in Higher Education. https://escholarship.org/uc/item/80k5d5hw
Council of Graduate Schools, & The Jed Foundation. (2021). Supporting graduate student mental health and well-being: Evidence-informed recommendations for the graduate community. The Authors.
Espinosa, L. L. (2011). Pipelines and pathways: WoC in undergraduate STEM majors and the college experiences that contribute to persistence. Harvard Educational Review, 81(2), 209–240. https://doi.org/10.17763/haer.81.2.92315ww157656k3u
Evans, T, M., Bira, L., Gastelum, J. B., Weiss, L T., & Vanderford, N. L. (2018). Evidence for a mental health crisis in graduate education. Nature Biotechnology, 36, 282–284. https://doi.org/10.1038/nbt.4089
Garcia-Williams, A. G., Moffitt, L., & Kaslow, N. J. (2014). Mental health and suicidal behavior among graduate students. Academic Psychiatry, 38(5), 554-560. https://doi.org/10.1007/s40596-014-0041-y
Hyun, J.K., Quinn, B.C., Madon, T., & Lustig, S. (2006). Graduate student mental health: Needs assessment and utilization of counseling services. Journal of College Student Development, 47(3), 247-266. https://doi.org/10.1353/csd.2006.0030
Mackie, S. A., & Bates, G.W. (2019). Contribution of the doctoral education environment to PhD Candidates’ mental health problems: A scoping review. Higher Education Research & Development, 38 (3), 565–578. https://doi.org/10.1080/07294360.2018.1556620
Mousavi, M. P. S., Sohrabpour, Z., Anderson, E. L., Stemig-Vindedahl, A., Golden, D., Christenson, G., Bühlmann, P. (2018). Stress and mental health in graduate school: How student empowerment creates lasting change. Journal of Chemical Education, 95(11), 1939–1946. https://doi.org/10.1021/acs.jchemed.8b00188
Ong, M., Wright, C., Espinosa, L. L., & Orfield, G. (2011). Inside the double bind: A synthesis of empirical research on undergraduate and graduate women of color in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics. Harvard Educational Review, 81(2), 172–208. https://doi.org/10.17763/haer.81.2.t022245n7x4752v2
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UC Berkeley Graduate Assembly. (2014). Graduate student happiness and well-being report. http://ga.berkeley.edu/wellbeingreport
Wilkins-Yel, K. G., Bekki, K., Arnold, A., Bernstein, B., Okwu, C., Natarajan, M., & Randall A. K. (2021). Understanding the impact of personal challenges and advisor support on stem persistence among graduate women of color. Journal of Diversity in Higher Education. Advance online publication. https://doi.org/10.1037/dhe0000236