One major aspect of graduate school that has previously been overlooked, and still isn't talked about enough, is the toll it can take on your mental health. In 2019, the American College Health Association surveyed ~11,000 graduate students across the US and found that, in the previous 12 months,
62.9% felt overwhelming anxiety
40.5% felt so depressed it was difficult to function
48.6% felt things were hopeless
58.3% felt very lonely
86.0% felt overwhelmed by all they had to do
We're not sharing this to scare you off, or make you second guess your decision to pursue a graduate education, but instead to make sure you know that (1) if you do experience any of these feelings, you are not alone and should never feel like you have to handle it alone; and (2) it's important to check-in with your own mental health from time to time and if you can identify any negative feelings you should reach out to someone or try to implement some strategies to help.
If you're ever not sure how to handle something like this, please reach out to us and we can help connect you to the resources or people you need.
Below are a few resources we've found specific to coping during grad school, and we'll continue to add to it as we find more. And don't forget to look into the Counseling Center here at UTD! We've listed some of the services they offer here