A scoping review to map the research on the mental health of students and graduates during their university-to-work transitions

Abstract

<p><strong>Objectives</strong> This scoping review maps the extant literature on students’ and graduates’ mental health experiences throughout their university-to-work transitions. The current review investigates the methodological features of the studies, the main findings, and the theories that the studies draw on to conceptualise mental health and transitions.</p><p><strong>Design</strong> This project used a scoping review methodology created and developed by Peters and colleagues and the Joanna Briggs Institute. The review searched academic databases and screened existing studies that met predetermined inclusion criteria.</p><p><strong>Data sources</strong> Seven academic databases and Google Scholar were searched with sets of search terms.</p><p><strong>Eligibility</strong> The included studies examined participants who were final-year university students or those who had graduated from university within a 3-year period. Studies published in English since 2000 and from any country were included. The review included studies examining the negative dimensions of mental health. The review excluded studies focusing on medical students and graduates.</p><p><strong>Data extraction</strong> Basic information about the studies and their findings on mental health and university-to-work transitions was retrieved. The findings are presented in tables and in a qualitative thematic summary.</p><p><strong>Results</strong> The scoping review included 12 studies. Mental health was often not explicitly defined and it’s theoretical foundations were not clearly articulated. The review identified factors, including a lack of social support and economic precarity, as sources of adverse mental health. Other <em>protective</em> factors in these studies—variables that guard against mental health problems—were identified, such as career preparedness and having a good job.</p><p><strong>Conclusions</strong> Despite the methodological focus on the negative aspects of mental health, people’s mental health experiences during university-to-work transitions are not uniformly negative. Clear conceptualisations of mental health in future studies will aid in developing resources to improve well-being.</p>