Academic stress level by oral and written evaluation in medical students of a University of the Sucre Department

Abstract

Introduction: All people, regardless of race, sex or any other difference, may experience stress, since we are daily exposed to stressors, and the educational environment is no stranger to this phenomenon. The objective of this paper is to compare the level of stress in medical students of the Faculty of Health Sciences undergoing oral and written evaluation. Methodology: The stress profile was evaluated in the students at least one week before presenting an oral or written test. Subsequently, the test was applied to assess academic stress in students undergoing oral and written tests using the Sisco inventory. Results: Medical students have academic stress when they are subject to written or oral evaluation. In addition to the evaluation, the stressors with the greatest impact are homework and school work overload, not understanding the topics addressed in class and the limited time to do the work. The most frequent symptoms that demonstrate academic stress were drowsiness or increased need for sleep, anxiety, anguish or despair, increased or reduced food consumption and as a coping strategy a great tendency to practice religiosity was found. Conclusions: Evaluations are an important source of academic stress in students, so it is recommended to implement an action plan to reduce levels of academic stress.