Revealing New Student Study Offers Important Insights for Canada's Future Recovery

VANCOUVER, BC, July 7, 2021 /CNW/ - A just-released, new Canadian research survey commissioned by Studiosity, a leading online study platform for universities, has revealed an urgent need for student support following one of the most challenging academic years in Canadian history.

According to the survey, which canvassed over 1,000 post-secondary students across the country during the pandemic:

• 86 per cent of respondents felt stressed out by their course workloads at least weekly.
• 54 per cent said they felt this stress every day.
• 35 per cent were seriously considering dropping out of college or university altogether. This jumped to 53 per cent among part-time students.
• 74 per cent said the pandemic had a negative impact on their post-secondary experience owing to courses being moved online, significantly less face-to-face contact with professors, classmates, and other support structures, as well the inability to make new friends. This has caused student anxiety to soar with just 34 per cent of students saying they were comfortable studying by themselves.

Studiosity, which has already partnered with 120 institutions to provide free on-demand live support to 1.6 million post-secondary students worldwide, conducted the survey in advance of its fall 2021 launch across Canada.

"Many leaders in the higher education sector are thinking about how to move forward post-pandemic," said Dr. Alan Shaver, a member of Studiosity's Academic Advisory Board and former President of Thompson Rivers University. "Educators recognise that this is a turning point in the sector, and that while the student experience changed out of necessity in 2020, it is now being improved proactively, with hybrid delivery revealing new value for students in the form of all-hours support, personalisation, and flexible accessibility."

Yorkville University, including Toronto Film School, became the first Canadian institution to ensure all students had access to live after-hours digital support after adopting Studiosity in 2020.
"Our students' experience is a priority, and we offer Studiosity to help them study on their own terms, to bridge gaps when they may be studying alone, and ultimately to build confidence and perseverance, even when our on-campus support isn't open or available," said Dr. Deirdre Pickerell, Dean of Student Success at Yorkville, and the Toronto Film School. "After-hours study support with the Studiosity service extends our local support services to a 24/7, anytime, anywhere resource. Our students are able to get help whenever they need to, and they can be on or off campus and still have the same level of support."

Studiosity's service connects students with Subject Specialists to chat, work through questions, and chart the way to understanding. Subject Specialists are geographically and culturally diverse, and Studiosity's focus is to nurture a culture of inclusion and wellbeing. Studiosity only hires graduates of universities ranked in the top five per cent globally, with 60 per cent of its team being graduates from the top 500 universities overall.

"Flexible and accessible support is crucial to a student's academic success, which is why we partner with educators and staff to ensure learners always feel supported during times of critical need, anxiety, or simply to fit into their study schedule, caregiving, commute, or work commitments," said Chris Helsby, Vice-President and General Manager of Studiosity Canada.

About the Studiosity Canadian Student Research Survey

This study was conducted among a nationally representative sample of 1,004 current post-secondary students who are members of the online Angus Reid Forum, including a mix of full-time and part-time students as well as students in undergraduate, graduate and diploma/certificate programs. The sample was balanced and weighted to census on gender and region. For comparison purposes only, a sample of this size would yield a margin of error of +/- 3.1 percentage points, 19 times out of 20. The survey was conducted in English and French.

For more information on the Canadian study, on Studiosity, or for interviews, please contact:
Jane Panasiuk
Switchboard Public Relations
T: 289-795-3313
E: [email protected]

SOURCE Studiosity