The peculiarities of Adaptation of First-Year Students to the University during COVID-19 Pandemic in Russia

The speed and efficiency of student adaptation largely determines the success of the educational process. This is especially true for university freshmen, as the older adolescent organism, with its specific neurophysiological characteristics, is very sensitive to changes in the environment. The situation with SARS-CoV-2 virus (COVID-19) pandemic has added to the problem of adaptation. The present study aims to examine the influence of the COVID-19 pandemic on the first-year students’ adaptation to university studies in Russia. The study involves 692 freshmen with an average age of 18.7, majority of women (80.6%), from three Russian universities: Kazan National Research Technological University, Kazan Federal University and Kazan Aviation University. The results show that during the COVID-19 period statistically significant changes occurred in almost all the adaptation components: physiological adaptation (p < .0001), socio-psychological adaptation (p < .05), academic adaptation (p < .05). There was a decrease in the level of physiological adaptation, while socio-psychological adaptation and academic adaptation increased. Comparison by gender during the COVID-19 period shows differences between adaptation processes of men and women. Comparison of foreign students with Russian citizens during the COVID-19 period demonstrates that foreign students stand out in socio-cultural adaptation (4.94 - foreigners, 4.64 - citizens of Russia, p < .05), physiological adaptation (5.36 - foreigners, 4.36 - citizens of Russia, p < .00001) and academic adaptation (5.28 - foreigners, 4.99 - citizens of Russia, p < .05)