69

News

Every second Danish university student feels lonely

Christian Wenande
August 24th, 2015


This article is more than 9 years old.

New university students face many hurdles

Almost half of all Danish university students feel lonely to some degree, according to a new survey from the national masters and PhD students association Dansk Magisterforening (DM).

The survey showed that 14 percent of the students said they often felt lonely, 32 percent felt lonely some times and 3 percent said they always felt lonely.

“The transition to university can be chaotic,” Frederik Thordal, DM’s student association head, told Metroxpress newspaper. “Moving to a new city, the pressure to perform and preparing for work life by getting work experience while studying are just some of the challenges students face.”

“Many don’t prioritise their social lives enough, which is a big mistake. The competencies won’t be developed well enough if you don’t communicate with others. It will be more difficult to create networks and get work.”

READ MORE: More students getting private tutoring

Better interaction and activites
The universities and DM are both working to improve at including all students into university life.

Aside from educating tutors to ensure there are also activities for people who don’t engage in drinking and partying, they are also improving the interaction between teachers and students. The University of Copenhagen has set aside 20 million kroner a year to improve the student environment.


Share

Most popular

Subscribe to our newsletter

Sign up to receive The Daily Post

















Latest Podcast

A survey carried out by Megafon for TV2 has found that 71 percent of parents have handed over children to daycare in spite of them being sick.

Moreover, 21 percent of those surveyed admitted to medicating their kids with paracetamol, such as Panodil, before sending them to school.

The FOLA parents’ organisation is shocked by the findings.

“I think it is absolutely crazy. It simply cannot be that a child goes to school sick and plays with lots of other children. Then we are faced with the fact that they will infect the whole institution,” said FOLA chair Signe Nielsen.

Pill pushers
At the Børnehuset daycare institution in Silkeborg a meeting was called where parents were implored not to bring their sick children to school.

At Børnehuset there are fears that parents prefer to pack their kids off with a pill without informing teachers.

“We occasionally have children who that they have had a pill for breakfast,” said headteacher Susanne Bødker. “You might think that it is a Panodil more than a vitamin pill, if it is a child who has just been sick, for example.”

Parents sick and tired
Parents, when confronted, often cite pressure at work as a reason for not being able to stay at home with their children.

Many declare that they simply cannot take another day off, as they are afraid of being fired.

Allan Randrup Thomsen, a professor of virology at KU, has heavily criticised the parents’ actions, describing the current situation as a “vicious circle”.

“It promotes the spread of viruses, and it adds momentum to a cycle where parents are pressured by high levels of sick-leave. If they then choose to send the children to daycare while they are still recovering, they keep the epidemic going in daycares, and this in turn puts a greater burden on the parents.”