Please help me review this Discussion section of a research paper and what can be fixed within the section.

Discussion: Depression is a common disorder that negatively impacts many individuals lives. A study indicates that when depression is found at an adolescent age, it could also be used to predict other mental illnesses that may develop in their adult life such as anxiety, substance dependence disorders, and disruptive behavior.(Weissman, 1999). Since untreated depression could correlate to other mental illnesses it is essential college students are screened for depression. The overall purpose of this study was to determine if there was a relation between depression levels and the number of years a person has been in college. Specifically, we sought to determine whether college freshman would have higher levels of depression than any other college student of an upper-level year. The results from this study are similar to other studies that have been completed. In an investigation that involved undergraduate students, (N=2495), it was established that 44.3% of the subjects in the study reported experiencing emotional difficulties that directly impaired their academic progress. Similar results were also obtained from a survey conducted by National College Health Assessment in 2005 (Einsenberg, Gollust, Golberstein, & Hefner, 2007). Analysis of this data revealed that 46.1% of College students reported feeling depressed. The depression made it difficult for them to function during their past academic year (Association, National College Health Assessment: Reference Group Report, 2004). With regards to freshmen, a study was carried out that intended to point out the factors that are most predictive of depressive symptoms. Among the 138 students we observed, the prevalence of depression was found to be 47.1%. This was comparable to a study conducted by Yale University that included 576 participants, where 19.2% of its students were found to have some level of depression (Whissman, Perez, & Ramel, 2000). The most common type of depression in our study was of moderate (26.1%) followed by mild (15.2%) and borderline clinical depression (10.1%). Moderate depression was again the most common type of depression at Emory University in a study that affected 30.6% of the 709 students in the study. Followed by 29.6% of students have a mild depression, and the 3rd most frequent being 16.5% of students having normal levels of depression. The prevalence of depression was at 53.8% which is slightly higher than the depression rate of our study. (Garlow et al, 2008) Considering the high frequency of students who reported having some level of depression, it should be mandatory for student counseling services to offer mental health assistance. Students should be educated about depression diagnosis and how to improve recognition of depression. They should also be taught that depression is a very normal thing to experience and that they shouldn't be afraid to admit they are depressed due to any stigmas associated with depression caused by lack of knowledge on the subject. With more education on depression individuals who have symptoms of depression can reach out to a health facility that could determine the best solution for them individually. If a person is feeling moderately depressed they may would benefit from going to a psychiatrist, while those who have severe depression would most likely benefit from a combination of psychiatric therapy and antidepressants.

Implications: In regard to our study which sought out to determine if the depression levels in freshman students were higher than the depression levels of other college year students, we used the role strain theory to explain the reason for why freshman were more prone to depression as compared to other students who have been enrolled for a longer period. This seemed fitting because it contained various notions such as 'roles' and 'positions' which made it appropriate for our study since we were examining students who were transitioning to the 'role' of a college student after leaving the 'role' of a high school student. There is a social system aspect that interferes with the individual aspect which is used as a potential reason for the individual developing depression. The results of this study indicate that there are a very good amount of depressive symptoms exhibited by college students with almost half of the participants satisfying the minimal threshold for moderate depression. However, college freshman did not show a significant difference in depression compared to upper-level students. Therefore, there should not be a program that targets and focuses on a specific year, however only 37.7% of the college students who participated in the survey reported a "normal" level of depression which leaves 72.3% varying from mild mood disturbance to extreme depression which indicates a great need for all college students to be helped with their depression. California State University, Fullerton provides counseling & psychological services already included in the tuition for students to utilize. However, this service needs to be more heavily advertised and offered to the students attending California State University, Fullerton. Furthermore, the counseling and psychological services program needs to be expanded as the size of the program does not meet the needs of the population of the university. It was reported in the Fullerton California State University fact sheet that 39,343 students were enrolled in the spring semester. In comparison, the California State University Fullerton counseling and psychological services website reports that the university has only employed 20 psychologists to help with the mental needs of Cal State Fullerton students. Since there are 20 psychologists and 39,343 students, this creates a 1: 1,967 psychologists to student ratio. This ratio does not meet the actual needs of the students going to California State University, Fullerton. Due to limited resources, most students would not be able to receive an appointment; and for those who are able to make an appointment, only students with short term issues would benefit since the program established a 4-6 session limit. This service needs to be expanded to employ more psychologists, as well as provide different alternatives for students not comfortable going to a psychologist. Results from previous research also reaffirm this problem, pointing out the reality of college students suffering from depression which leads to absenteeism and poor class attendance. Poor class attendance culminates in a drop in the grades of affected students compared to the academic progress of students that tested negative to depressive symptoms. Another point to note is the fact that there exists a relationship between student attitudes and suicide and depressive symptoms. According to the American College Health Association (2006), there is a greater risk of suicide among college students that have a greater number and intensity of depressive symptoms. It is therefore advisable that outreach interventions are developed to target depression assessments for all college students. Furthermore, there is a need to invest in online screening devices to help identify depression or other mental disorders in college students, which could lead to more students seeking for help if thought to be in danger of having or developing depression. Moreover, faculty members that are involved in direct contact with college students are advised to take part in educational trainings focused on learning of the methods that could point out depressive symptoms in their students. Parents of college freshmen are also advised to attend the workshops and the visiting days to be able to gain the necessary information to promptly detect changes in their child that could indicate depression and how they can help their child. (Hysebegasi, Hass, & Rowland, 2005). There are various methods to identify if a student may have depression or other mental disorders, the tools to aid these students just need to be implemented and expanded.