Academic performance, stress levels and physical activity of students of the Marat Ospanov West Kazakhstan Medical University

Abstract

The article discusses the results of a study conducted to identify the level of stress and its impact on the academic performance of second and third year students who are engaged and not engaged in sports. Significant differences appeared at the end of the autumn term (December 2023), when the second survey was conducted. The examination session had an impact on the stress level of students who are not involved in sports sections of the university. Their results on the scale of perceived stress went from moderate to high, while the student-athletes' index remained at a moderate level. Academic performance turned out to be independent of the studied indicators. The average score in both groups remained at the same level, on the basis of which it cannot be argued that student-athletes cope with their studies better than non-athletes. Our research revealed the positive effect of physical activity on the ability to deal with stressful loads during study and examination sessions, but academic performance depends on completely different factors.