A Study on Psychological Health of First Year University Students in Iran

Objective: Psychological status of university students has an important role in their academic performance. The present study was planned to evaluate the psychological view of new entrance students of Shaheed Sadoughi University of Medical Sciences. Methods: General Health Questionnaire (GHQ-28) was used to collect data from 1689 students who visited the Advisory and Guidance Center of the University. Results: Subjects consisted of 512 (30.3%) males and 1174 (69.7%) females. Overall, 35.7% of students showed a GHQ score of >= 23, of those 8.1% had GHQ>40. More female students showed a GHQ score above the cutoff point of 23 (p=0.003). The highest and lowest GHQ scores were seen in nursing students (40.8%) and students of health faculties (32.2%) (p=0.03). Conclusion: More than one- third of freshmen had GHQ score of >= 23. Female students and students of nursing and midwifery faculty were particularly at higher risk of developing mental health problems.