A Comparative Study on Sources of Stress and Coping Styles between Graduation and Post-Graduation Students

College students are prone to stress due to the transitional nature of college life and academic pressure. They must adjust to being away from home for the first time, maintain a high level of academic achievement, and adjust to a new social environment. Coping deals with the way people manage those situations or conditions that are perceived as stressful. In the literature of coping, coping responses have been conceived of as structural or personality characteristics based on psychoanalytic ego-psychology. The study aimed to compare the main sources of stress and coping styles between graduation and post-graduation students. The study was taken in the Don Bosco Academy, Degree and P.G College, Nalgonda. Students enrolled for graduation and post-graduation courses (n=120) were recruited for the study. The researcher administered socio-demographic interview schedule, student stress survey to the students (40 items) and the brief cope inventory (28 items). Ethical issues have been followed while conducting the study. It was found that overall daily hassles were reported more often than major life events, with intrapersonal sources of stress being the most frequently reported source. The top five sources of stress were; change in sleeping habits, vacations/breaks, change in eating habits, increased work load, and new responsibilities. The results have generally shown that problem-focused coping, e.g., planning, is associated with positive academic and personal adjustment, and that emotion-focused coping, e.g., aggressive coping, is associated with emotional and behavioral problems. The findings from this study may be further used to examine which sources of stress and poor coping styles cause the highest levels of stress among college students, and it may be helpful in creating effective stress management programs for the student population.