Table 2

Characteristics of the sample (%, unless indicated)

Variables
Bielefeld, Germany N = 803
Lublin, Poland N = 591
Sofia, Bulgaria N = 709

Gender



     Female
57.7
71.3
68.3
     Male
42.3
28.7
31.7
Age category



     <20 years
1.8
22.9
55.2
     20–22 years
72.0
74.9
42.5
     >22 years
26.1
2.4
2.3
Having a partner



     Yes
55.6
35.5
42.3
     No
44.4
64.5
57.7
Parental education



     Both university
17.8
14.1
49.9
     Other
82.2
85.9
50.1
Field of study



     Health subjects
7.3
-
-
     Basic science and engineering
27.1
17.3
26.5
     Social science, art, teaching, languages
47.6
51.7
54.1
     Business and law
17.8
19.3
19.4
     Other
0.3
11.7
-
Perceived burdens related to studying





Mean [range] (SD)
Mean [range] (SD)
Mean [range] (SD)

Course work+
4.19 [1–6] (1.12)
4.20 [1–6] (1.19)
3.83 [1–6] (1.24)
Future+
3.16 [1–6] (1.18)
3.25 [1–6] (1.26)
3.26 [1–6] (1.32)
Relationships+
2.06 [1–6] (1.33)
2.06 [1–6] (1.37)
2.28 [1–6] (1.28)
Isolation+
1.90 [1–6] (0.81)
2.07 [1–5.2] (0.86)
1.88 [1–5.4] (0.91)
Perceived stress
1.73 [4–51] (0.57)
1.99 [10–52] (0.57)
1.83 [5–51] (0.56)

+ To what extent do you feel burdened in the following areas: (6 points: 1 = 'Not at all' to 6 = 'Very much'); * ANOVA for comparison between countries

Mikolajczyk et al. Clinical Practice and Epidemiology in Mental Health 2008 4:19   doi:10.1186/1745-0179-4-19