Department of Public Health and Recreation, San José State University, San Jose, CA, United States.
Front Public Health. 2024 Aug 13;12:1394034. doi: 10.3389/fpubh.2024.1394034. eCollection 2024.
The COVID-19 pandemic impacted college student learning both globally and nationally. Current literature points to decreases in social connectedness, adverse mental health outcomes, and decreased overall learning outcomes; however, there are limited findings from higher education institutions within the Bay Area, California. There are also limited studies that examine the COVID-19 impact among public health graduate students, especially to understand how the pandemic renewed their interest in the field. The purpose of this study was to investigate the effects of COVID-19 on graduate student learning experiences, social connectedness and mental health within the Master of Public Health program at San José State University in San Jose, California.
We employed a convergent mixed-methods design using a survey that quantitatively assessed student learning experiences through a retrospective pre-and post-design, and a semi-structured interview guide that qualitatively assessed student learning experiences and its relationship with mental health and social connectedness using a phenomenological design. Data were collected between September 2022 and June 2023 and analysis was performed using descriptive statistics and thematic analysis.
A total of 22 students completed the survey and four participated in follow-up semi-structured interviews. Of the 22, 12(54%) were among the 18-29-year age group, 9(41%) identified as Asian, 21(95%) identified as female, and 9(41%) identified as a first-generation college student. When comparing survey responses, the median change in learning experiences pre and during-pandemic were statistically significant across several areas such as student ability to stay organized ( < 0.0001), participate actively in class ( < 0.001), retain course material ( < 0.0001), collaborate with peers ( < 0.0001), and maintain a sense of connection with their cohort ( = 0.0001) and broader campus community ( < 0.0001). Semi-structured interviews further revealed the following six themes: (1) Consistent faculty support; (2) Sense of community; (3) Reduced social connectedness; (4) Impact on mental health; (5) Deeper public health understanding; and (6) Facilitators and barriers.
Educational practitioners are encouraged to offer hybrid academic programs and establish resource infrastructures that provide students with social and mental wellness support when transitioning to different learning modalities.
新冠疫情大流行对全球和各国的大学生学习都产生了影响。目前的文献指出，社交联系减少、心理健康状况恶化以及整体学习成果下降；然而，加利福尼亚州湾区的高等教育机构的研究结果有限。此外，很少有研究调查公共卫生研究生的新冠疫情影响，特别是为了了解疫情如何重新激发他们对该领域的兴趣。本研究旨在调查新冠疫情对加利福尼亚州圣何塞州立大学公共卫生硕士课程研究生学习经历、社交联系和心理健康的影响。
我们采用了收敛混合方法设计，使用问卷调查通过回顾性前-后设计定量评估学生的学习经历，以及使用现象学设计的半结构化访谈指南定性评估学生的学习经历及其与心理健康和社交联系的关系。数据收集于 2022 年 9 月至 2023 年 6 月之间进行，分析采用描述性统计和主题分析。
共有 22 名学生完成了问卷调查，其中 4 名学生参加了后续的半结构化访谈。在这 22 名学生中，12 名（54%）年龄在 18-29 岁之间，9 名（41%）为亚洲人，21 名（95%）为女性，9 名（41%）为第一代大学生。在比较调查结果时，在几个方面，如学生保持组织能力（ < 0.0001）、积极参与课堂（ < 0.001）、保留课程材料（ < 0.0001）、与同龄人合作（ < 0.0001）以及与同学和更广泛的校园社区保持联系感（ = 0.0001），学习经历在疫情前和疫情期间的中位数变化具有统计学意义。半结构化访谈进一步揭示了以下六个主题：（1）一致的教师支持；（2）社区意识；（3）社交联系减少；（4）对心理健康的影响；（5）对公共卫生的深入理解；以及（6）促进因素和障碍。
教育从业者应鼓励提供混合式学术课程，并建立资源基础设施，在向不同学习模式过渡时为学生提供社交和心理健康支持。
