Psychological Distress Among College Students at Kepler University Program, Rwanda

Background: The high academic and professional expectations from university programs often put
students under pressure and may lead to psychological distress. This project aims to measure
the level of psychological distress among college students at Kepler University program,
Kigali, in order to provide the administration with recommendations for effective
interventions to improve students’ psychological health.

Methods: A cross-sectional study design used the General Health Questionnaire GHQ-12 to measure
the level of psychological distress among college students at Kepler. The ethical approval
was obtained from the Institutional Review Board IRB of the School. Descriptive statistics
were calculated using Excel and associations between variables were analyzed in Stata 13.

Results: Out of 125 students to whom questionnaires were administered, 108 responded and returned
the questionnaire, giving a response rate of 85%. The overall percentage of students with
psychological distress was 42% (n=44), while 58% (n=62) of respondents had no
psychological distress.
The proportion of students at risk of developing psychological distress is high. Enjoying dayto-
day activities, feeling under stress, and feeling unhappy and feeling depressed were the
three most problematic symptoms reported. Unemployed students had a higher risk of
developing psychological distress than their employed peers.

Conclusion: The school management and counselor in collaboration with the careers department should
establish a structured career advisory program to support students have a smooth transition
from academic to professional placement and reduce the psychological distress.