The daily casualty count from COVID-19 is updated and reported daily and sometimes hourly. No other impact from this scorched earth killer virus can be compared to the health crisis it has caused. However, we can’t forget how devastating its impact has been and continues to be on America’s future, personified by the students that enrolled at our colleges and universities, as well as the institutions themselves. And that’s what makes the results of a recent survey conducted by a division of The Lending Tree alarming – especially for Hispanic and Black students.

According to a new report from the student debt resource platform Student Loan Hero, more than four out of five of full-time college and university students (81%) are facing financial difficulties due to the current coronavirus pandemic, with more than a quarter having trouble paying bills or feeding themselves. And this survey was taken March 25 and 26 of 2020, as the virus infection and death rates were just beginning to ramp up in the United States.

Hispanics Bear The Brunt

And the news gets worse for Hispanic students. Some of the most alarming data in the report suggests that the current coronavirus pandemic may be disproportionately affecting college students of color.

“Black and Hispanic students reported a much higher level of food and housing insecurity due to the COVID-19 pandemic than their white peers. Specifically, 33% of black students were having trouble covering food costs, and 22% struggled with housing expenses,” said Rebecca Safier, the report’s lead researcher. “In those same categories, the figures were 36% and 18% respectively, for Hispanic students. By comparison, 21% of white students reported suffering from food insecurity, and 14% faced housing issues.”

To cope with some of the unique challenges facing full-time college students during this global health crisis, more than one-third of students (36%) are taking on additional debt. Over 17% reported amassing credit card debt, and 16% said they had to borrow additional student loans.

Student loan borrowers (47%) were more likely to take on additional debt than those without student loans (19%). And students who identified as either Black or Hispanic were much more likely to be taking on debt (48%) than White students (29%).

More Survey Results

A look at the survey’s other results paints a picture of a student body under stress and dissatisfied with their financial and institutional options and expectations:

• Higher levels of food and housing insecurity due to the global health pandemic are affecting Black (33% and 22% respectively) and Hispanic students (36% and 18% respectively), compared to their White counterparts.

• About one in four students lost their job due to the COVID-19 outbreak.

• More than one-third of students are taking on debt to cope with losses caused by the pandemic. Over 17% reported amassing credit card debt, and 16% said they had to borrow additional student loans.

• Black and Hispanic students were much more likely to be taking on debt (48%) to deal with the crisis than their white peers (29%).

• Almost half (49%) of graduating seniors think the pandemic will impact their chances of finding a job after graduation. And nearly 51% of all students said they felt less prepared to enter the workforce because of COVID-19.

• Most students (77%) want at least partial student loan forgiveness from the government. This number was higher among women than men (81% versus 74%) and highest among student loan borrowers (84%).

Student Anger Evident In New Survey

Student discontent over what they see as being victimized by an invisible killer that is not their fault and that they can’t control has morphed into lawsuits, complaints about inadequate learning tools and experiences, and a growing reluctance to continue their education. According to a survey conducted of more than 3,000 current higher education students by Top Hat, a higher education learning platform, many students developed a poor impression of the educational value they received and 25% are re-evaluating their intentions to return to school in the fall. As the survey summary explains, “The sudden transition to remote teaching in the past couple months due to the COVID-19 crisis pushed educators to quickly piece together multiple solutions to deliver their courses online. In many instances, the result was a disjointed experience that required professors to navigate various technologies that were not designed to work well together.”

Survey responses were collected by Top Hat from 3,089 college and university students from across North America between April 15 and 20, 2020. Forty (40) percent of respondents were first-year students, 27% were in their second year, 19% were in their third year, and 14% were in their fourth year.

Nick Stein, CMO, Top Hat explains, “In the past couple of months, we have seen higher ed faculty and institutions around the world scramble to ensure students are able to continue their learning and finish the semester remotely, and it has been nothing less than a herculean effort. One of the biggest learnings has been just how difficult it is to do online teaching well. As the fall 2020 semester looms on the horizon, colleges and universities are facing an unprecedented level of pressure to provide students with a significant return on investment in their education. Based on the results from this survey, students are expecting a more engaging, interactive, and human experience. Getting this right will be critical to the future of higher education.”

Here are the main takeaways from this survey:

Missing The Human Connection

More than eight out of 10 (85%) students miss face-to-face interactions with faculty and more than half (53%) no longer have regular access to them. Most students (86%) also miss socializing with other students, and almost seven out of 10 (69%) students said they no longer have regular access to them.

Overall, more than half (52%) of students are generally feeling anxious. The abrupt move from a predictable routine and class experience has spurred concern amongst many students regarding their ability to finish the semester (40%) and pass the semester (50%).

Adding to the sense of dislocation and disconnection is the loss of predictable access to support resources on which many students rely, such as: study spaces (76%), fitness and sports facilities (58%), student housing (28%), student counseling (28%), food services (28%), and technology, such as Internet and computers (27%).

Low Grades For Online Learning

Almost seven out of 10 (68%) feel the emergency online instruction they have received is worse than the in-person instruction they’re used to. Many students experienced difficulty using online learning tools (28%) and accessing online learning materials (22%). And it’s affecting their study habits – half (50%) of students are spending less time on coursework.

Missing Classroom Engagement

Engagement plays a major role in ensuring students feel they are deriving value from their education. Almost eight out of 10 (78%) of students say the online class experience they’ve had so far is unengaging. Of these students, more than half (53%) are spending less time on coursework, 39% don’t enjoy or see the value in real-time online learning, and 75% think the online instruction they’ve received is worse than in-person instruction.

Spending time with faculty and fellow students is important to them as well. Three out of four (75%) students miss the face-to-face interactions, and of these students, 52% are spending less time on coursework, 38% don’t enjoy or see the value in real-time online learning, and 76% think the online instruction they’ve received is worse than in-person instruction.

Empathy For Colleges/Professors

Students recognize the incredible challenges their institutions and faculty have been facing, and appreciate their hard work in responding to the epidemic. Seven out of 10 (70%) rated their schools’ response to the COVID-19 crisis as good or excellent, and 66% rated their professors’ responses as good or excellent.

However, they felt that the emergency remote instruction they’ve received has left much to be desired, and there is room for improvement: one in four (25%) of students say their opinion of their school has gotten worse during the crisis.

Since colleges and universities will have the next few months to prepare for the fall, students will have higher expectations for thoughtful course design and quality of instruction.

Students May Not Come Back

With more than a quarter of students questioning a return to their current college or university in the Fall due to the uncertainty of how their school plans to re-open, institutions must move quickly to ensure they are ready to deliver engaging learning experiences that drive student success in any teaching scenario.

With colleges and students at odds in court over demands for tuition cuts and/or refunds because of the change to online learning, cash poor higher education institutions have genuine concern that they might not be fiscally stable for years – if ever.

What Can Schools Do?

Despite their recent experience with online learning, most students (75%) are planning to return to their current school for the Fall term. And while students miss the in-person interactions of on-campus life, many see value in online instruction due to the flexibility it affords. In fact, more than one in three (36%) students said they prefer a blended learning model consisting of in-person and online instruction, 48% prefer independent asynchronous online learning, and 41% prefer real-time synchronous online learning.

Understanding what’s important to students will set the stage for success in the Fall. Based on student feedback in the survey, Top Hat says, this is what students want:

• Improved online learning experiences

• Face-to-face interaction with faculty

• Social experiences with other students

• More learning materials

• Better coordination between administration and faculty

• Improved connections with and support from faculty and administration 

Students Seek More Bang For Their Buck

As frustrations boil over, schools are defending their financial and learning decisions in courts across the country from class actions and individual suits demanding everything from tuition refunds to improvements to learning environments and access to campus facilities such as libraries, gyms and labs.

Here is a current list of schools that have been or are facing this type of litigation over coronavirus shutdowns:

1.  Arizona State University

2.  Brown University

3.  Cal State University

4.  Columbia University

5.  Cornell University

6.  Drexel University

7.  East Carolina University

8.  Grand Canyon University

9.  Michigan State University

10. Northern Arizona University

11. Northeastern University

12. Liberty University

13. Long Island University

14. Pace University

15. Penn State University

16. Purdue University

17. University of Arizona

18. University of California

19. University of Colorado, Boulder

20. University of Florida

21.University of Miami

22. University of North Carolina, Asheville

23. University of North Carolina, Charlotte

24. University of North Carolina, Wilmington 

25. University of Pennsylvania

26. University of Vermont