College students are divided on whether or not they trust university officials to keep them safe amid a global pandemic, and many are dealing with the financial burden of campuses closing mid-semester.
A new college survey of 1,500 undergraduates finds that about half (55%) say they trust their universities to protect students and faculty from the coronavirus, compared to 45% who do not. By comparison, 48% of students said they trusted their universities to protect them from the virus in a July survey.
Although a slight majority of students have faith in their colleges, fewer students have confidence in the safety of on-campus housing and campus quarantine plans. Roughly one-third (37%) of students say they would feel comfortable living in a dorm right now, while 63% would not. The results show little change from July, when 34% of students said they would feel comfortable living in a dorm. Similarly, 37% of students today rate their school’s plan for supporting students who contract COVID-19 as good or excellent. Another 43% rate their school’s plan as poor or fair, while 20% are not sure.
About 6 in 10 (58%) students say their school provides a dedicated quarantine space for students who test positive for COVID-19, while 31% are not sure. Of the students who say their school does have a quarantine space, two-thirds (67%) would worry about having plenty of necessities (such as food) provided if they had to quarantine there for two weeks. Even more students (85%) would worry about feeling isolated and lonely if they had to quarantine on campus, with 53% being very worried.
Female Students are More Likely to Worry About Campus Parties
How worried are you that campus parties breaking social distancing guidelines could shut down your campus?
The disruption to students’ academic and social lives this year is unprecedented, and many students worry that a few rulebreakers could make matters worse. Three-quarters (74%) of students overall say they worry that campus parties breaking social distancing guidelines could shut down their campuses, compared to one-quarter (26%) who don’t. However, female students are more likely than male students to worry about this (77% vs. 65%).
Just 1 in 10 (10%) students say they have attended a college party since the Fall semester started. But male students are almost twice as likely as female students to say so (13% vs. 7%). Even if they aren’t going to parties themselves, students are split on whether they would report a party that violated their school’s social distancing rules. While a slight majority (53%) say they would report a party, female students are more likely than male students to say they would report one (57% vs. 42%).
Students of Color are More Likely to Experience Housing Disruptions When Campuses Close
Did you have to do any of the following because your campus shut down?
One-quarter (25%) of students say their college started the Fall semester with both online and in-person classes, but transitioned to online-only due to increasing COVID-19 cases. One in 6 (17%) students had to move out of on-campus housing because their campus shut down and 7% had to move out of off-campus housing. But students of color experienced housing disruptions at a disproportionate rate. Black students are almost twice as likely as white students to say they had to move out of on-campus housing (27% vs. 14%). And Hispanic (12%) and Asian (11%) students are twice as likely as white (5%) students to say they had to move out of off-campus housing.
Moving mid-semester is more than a nuisance — it comes with financial consequences, as well. Just 17% of students who had to move out of on-campus housing say they got a full refund, while 13% got no refund at all. Students who had to move out of off-campus housing are even less likely to have gotten a full refund (10%), and far more likely to have received no money back (43%).
As many colleges move to end in-person courses at Thanksgiving and finish the semester remotely, students face additional changes. Students’ biggest concern about returning home if colleges shut down is resuming 100% remote coursework (40%), followed by a diminished social life (38%). Nearly one-third (31%) worry about potentially bringing COVID-19 to their hometown and one-quarter (24%) worry about the financial burden of moving.
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Methodology: This survey was designed and conducted by College Pulse. Interviews were conducted from September 24 – October 9 among a sample of 1,500 full-time and part-time students attending four-year colleges or universities in the U.S. who are part of College Pulse’s American College Student Panel.
