7A - Testing the Hypothesis

Opportunity: More support for students on college campuses.

The Who: College students
The What: Students coming to college and leaving home for the first time may need extra support as they adjust to being on their own.
The Why: Students coming to college may feel lonely or not know how to be on their own which leaves many students depressed and feeling alone.

Interview 1:

For my first interview, I interviewed my cousin Lily who is a Junior and asked her about her experience being on her own for the first time. In summary, Lily and I discussed that she would feel overwhelmed with adjusting to college classes and she felt alone at times without her family. I asked her if she felt like she could go somewhere on campus to receive help and she said no. Therefore, she felt that extra support for college students would be very beneficial.

Given your interviews, what do you know about the opportunity that you didn't know before?
- I learned that there could be an opportunity with this based on the interview.

Interview 2:

For my second interview, I asked my best friend about her feelings when she first came to college. She had a similar experience as my cousin in the first interview, but she opened up to me about how she was depressed for part of the spring semester. She said that she felt lonely a lot and wished she had somewhere to go to discuss her feelings since she didn't want to put the burden on her friends. Therefore, she loved the opportunity of more support for college students.

Given your interviews, what do you know about the opportunity that you didn't know before?
- Based on my interviews so far, I am realizing more the major need for this opportunity.

Interview 3:

For my third interview, I interviewed one of my sorority sisters about her transition into college. She is from St. Augustine, so she said that she was lonely at times, but she was able to go home and see her family whenever she wanted so she had an easier time transitioning to college. However, she told me that one of her close friends struggled with mental health issues in college, so she still sees the opportunity.

Given your interviews, what do you know about the opportunity that you didn't know before?
-Seeing family more could have a major impact on college students and their mental health.

Interview 4:

For my fourth interview, I interviewed one of my friends in a fraternity on campus. He expressed to me that during fall he was fine because he was busy, however in Spring he started to feel depressed and he struggled with it throughout the summer and to this day. He said that he looked up resources for students to help, and there was one option, but it was booked for over a month. He also expressed that he knows some of his friends were experiencing this as well. Therefore, he said that this opportunity would be very useful and helpful for college students.

Given your interviews, what do you know about the opportunity that you didn't know before?
-More people experience depression and struggles than I thought.

Interview 5:

For my final interview, I interviewed a family friends mom about her daughter that struggled with depression. She expressed to me that she was nervous to leave her daughter at college and that she wished there were more resources for students to get support since their families may live far.

Given your interviews, what do you know about the opportunity that you didn't know before?
-I have never thought about the effect of mental illness on the families before so that could be an entirely different opportunity.