Do University Students Experience Psychological Distress During the Covid-19 Pandemic?

University students are in the period of emerging adulthood that are vulnerable to experience psychological distress compared to other populations. They receive various pressures from social contexts such as academic demands, relationship issues, or career problems. Understanding student psychological distress is important as its impact is debilitating student academic life and well-being. The focus of this study is to identify the prevalence of student psychological distress of University “X” in Jakarta. A total of 514 students was involved in this survey using a convenience sampling. The Hopskin Symptom Checklist-25 was used as a screening tools to assess depression and anxiety. The result showed the prevalence of students who experienced depression and anxiety based on the demographic characteristics such as gender, year entry, and household status. More than 80% students were indicated as a high-risk group either in depression or anxiety. This study implies that the university should promote more prevention and intervention programs to help students in dealing with psychological distress.Keywords: anxiety; depression; psychological distress; university student