CONSEQUÊNCIAS DO PERÍODO DE ISOLAMENTO DURANTE A COVID-19 PARA UNIVERSITÁRIOS: UMA ANÁLISE DOS DESAFIOS E ADAPTAÇÕES NECESSÁRIAS

The work addresses the impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic on the routine and mental health of Brazilian university students living in Santos/SP. The abrupt transition to remote teaching negatively affected the academic performance of these students and, in the Brazilian context, the lack of equal access to technological resources was an aggravating factor. With the aim of investigating the impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic on the routine and mental health of university students, considering the changes and adaptations made by educational institutions and the growing demand for psychology services, the study involved the participation of 50 university students, mostly from private educational institutions who responded, using an online questionnaire, about changes in their study routines and difficulties faced in remote teaching. Despite access to technological resources, for 31% of students, these resources were not enough to properly follow classes and other activities linked to their undergraduate courses. Among the impacts on mental health, the main result evidenced was in relation to the increase in stress levels in this population, which could mean long-term coping with ongoing challenges related to COVID-19. Keywords: Social isolation; mental health; university students.