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0151 522 5800
Call us:
0151 522 580012th January 2026
A phrase you’ve probably heard parents or teachers say over and over is ‘university will be the best time of your life: enjoy it’. For the most part, they’re right!
Over the next few years, you’ll make memories and friendships that you’ll treasure forever. But expectations are certainly high: perfect grades and a packed social calendar, all achieved with a smile, might be the story for some.
For others, it may be about just getting through the day. If you’re wondering why everyone else is thriving while you’re just trying to keep your head above water, it’s time to take a hard look at the data surrounding student well-being.
It’s easy to scroll through social media and think that every other student in Liverpool is enjoying university life. Balancing top grades with a social life seems easy enough – but the data tells a very different, much more real story.
If you’re someone who’s feeling the pressure, you’re not an outlier: you’re actually part of the majority. We looked at the numbers, and they highlighted three massive areas where students are struggling.
The jump in expectations when you head to university is real. In fact, most courses expect students to complete 30–35 hours of independent study a week.
A massive 55% of students say that keeping up with the workload has had a significant negative impact on their personal well-being. So, if you feel like the reading list never ends, don’t worry: that’s not out of the ordinary.
High-pressure environments can have a ripple effect on your mental health. 51% of students cite anxiety or stress as a major struggle that affects their daily life.
The cost of living is impossible to ignore. 49% of students are worried about money for basic needs: it’s incredibly difficult to focus on a lecture or write an essay when you’re worried about keeping up with monthly payments.
The takeaway from this data is obvious: those staring at a deadline or a bank balance with dread shouldn’t feel like they aren’t cut out for university. It’s just a new chapter of life, one that may take a little while to navigate.
When things get tough, it’s natural for your brain to look for an escape route.
Maybe you’ve received some constructive criticism from a lecturer on an essay you worked really hard on, or you’re doing an all-nighter in the library, wondering: ‘Is this actually for me? Should I just pack it in?’
When you’re not loving every second of the experience, it might bring up feelings of guilt. But the stats show that these doubts are far more common than people admit.
According to the data, nearly 1 in 5 students have seriously considered dropping out of university. Specifically, 13% somewhat agreed and 3% completely agreed with that statement.
That’s a lot of people walking around campus right now wondering the same thing. Even more telling is the grey area. A massive 21% of students feel ‘neutral’ about dropping out – not fully ready to quit, but not fully confident they want to stay, either.
The important thing to remember is that having doubts doesn’t mean you don’t belong. Questioning your path is a normal part of growth, and often, the desire to leave isn’t about the course itself, but about the environment or the pressure surrounding it.
It usually means you need a moment to breathe (or just a more stable place to come home to at the end of a long day).
We all hope our university will be our primary safety net. But the reality is, educational institutions are huge, and when you’re already low, it’s easy to feel like just another number.
Our survey highlighted a split in how supported students actually feel. While 52% of students feel their university cares about their wellbeing, 24% feel indifferent or actively unsupported.
When institutional support feels distant, your personal environment (where you study and recharge) becomes even more important for mental health: the data backs this up.
We see that loneliness affects 23% of students to the point of impacting their wellbeing, and the stress of commuting impacts another 11%.
These factors, all directly resulting from your physical surroundings, can make the academic and financial pressures we talked about earlier feel ten times heavier: this is the reality of a support gap.
It goes to show how essential a well-connected living environment is to mental health.
We can’t make 9am lectures any easier, but we can make sure that, when you return home, the stress of university life melts away. At Luxury Student Homes, we’re actively trying to combat the struggles highlighted in our data. Here’s how:
Our survey showed that 47% of families had no involvement in the decision regarding current accommodation. If you’re navigating this solo, the Luxury Student Home’s team offers professional guidance throughout the entire process.
If there’s one thing to take away from this, it’s that feelings are not personal failures. Anxiety about money, workload stress, or loneliness are all shared experiences for students in Liverpool – something that becomes easier with support.
Acknowledging the reality is a massive first step, but the next step is to speak up. Reach out by checking in with your university’s student wellbeing services, text a friend you haven’t seen in a while, or even just pop into the Luxury Student Homes office for a chat.
Your struggle is real, and so is the help available.