Perceived stress levels among undergraduate pharmacy students in the UK

Abstract

To measure perceived stress levels among the students on a professional pharmacy degree in the UK, and to compare these to US-based students. The Perceived Stress Scale (PSS) was employed to measure stress levels among a sample taken from each of the four years of an MPharm program. ANOVA and the independent pairs t-test were applied to compare demographic groups from within each sample. The questionnaire was completed by 216 (38.6%) pharmacy students at the University of Hertfordshire. Only the sex of the participant had a significant effect on perceived stress. Stress levels for students in their third year of study were in good agreement with those reported by an earlier study in relation to third year PharmD students at an American university. This pilot study demonstrates that the stress perceived by students on a UK-based undergraduate pharmacy program is comparable to that of US students the same progression point on a graduate professional degree.