Social Science and Human Research Bulletin

Final-year undergraduate students face a psychologically demanding period as they prepare to leave university and enter an uncertain labour market, yet evidence from Tanzanian private universities on this transition remains scarce. This study examined psychological adjustment among final-year undergraduate students transitioning from university to the labour market at the University of Iringa, Tanzania, guided by Schlossberg's Transition Theory and the Transactional Theory of Stress and Coping. The design used was a quantitative cross-sectional correlational design. A stratified random sample of 100 final-year undergraduate students completed a structured questionnaire comprising the Depression Anxiety Stress Scale, an adapted Perceived Employability Scale and the Brief Coping Orientation to Problems Experienced Inventory. Descriptive statistics and Pearson product-moment correlation were used to analyse data. Findings showed that psychological adjustment was predominantly poor to moderate, with anxiety the most pronounced difficulty; nearly half of respondents scored in the severe to extremely severe anxiety range and over half reported at least moderate depression. Perceived readiness for the labour market was generally moderate, with few students reporting high readiness. Higher perceived readiness was significantly associated with lower depression, anxiety and overall distress, while emotion-focused coping was significantly associated with lower distress; problem-focused and avoidance coping showed non-significant trends. The study concludes that the university-to-labour-market transition is a psychologically demanding period for many final-year students and recommends strengthening counselling services, expanding career development support and promoting adaptive coping skills to improve transition experiences.

psychological adjustment; university-to-work transition; perceived employability; coping strategies; final-year students; Tanzania

1. Arnett, J. J. (2000). Emerging adulthood: A theory of development from the late teens through the twenties. American Psychologist, 55(5), 469-480.
2. Atitsogbe, K. A., Mama, N. P., Sovet, L., Pari, P., & Rossier, J. (2019). Perceived employability and entrepreneurial intentions across university students and job seekers in Togo: The effect of career adaptability and self-efficacy. Frontiers in Psychology, 10, 180. https://doi.org/10.3389/fpsyg.2019.00180
3. Babbie, E. (2021). The practice of social research (15th ed.). Cengage Learning.
4. Baluku, M. M., Mugabi, E. N., Nansamba, J., Matagi, L., Onderi, P., & Otto, K. (2021). Psychological capital and career outcomes among final year university students: The mediating role of career engagement and perceived employability. International Journal of Applied Positive Psychology, 6(1), 55-80. https://doi.org/10.1007/s41042-020-00040-w
5. Botha, D. (2021). Self-perceived employability among undergraduate students at a South African university. SA Journal of Human Resource Management, 19, 11. https://doi.org/10.4102/sajhrm.v19i0.1685
6. Carver, C. S. (1997). You want to measure coping but your protocol's too long: Consider the brief COPE. International Journal of Behavioral Medicine, 4(1), 92-100. https://doi.org/10.1207/s15327558ijbm0401_6
7. Creswell, J. W., & Creswell, J. D. (2018). Research design: Qualitative, quantitative, and mixed methods approaches (5th ed.). Sage Publications.
8. Edmonds, D. M., Zayts-Spence, O., Fortune, Z., Chan, A., & Chou, J. S. G. (2024). A scoping review to map the research on the mental health of students and graduates during their university-to-work transitions. BMJ Open,14(3), e076729. https://doi.org/10.1136/bmjopen-2023-076729
9. Holmes, L. (2013). Competing perspectives on graduate employability: Possession, position or process? Studies in Higher Education, 38(4), 538-554. https://doi.org/10.1080/03075079.2011.587140
10. International Labour Organization. (2024). Global employment trends for youth 2024: Decent work, brighter futures. International Labour Organization.
11. Julius, B., Putteeraj, M., & Somanah, J. (2024). A systematic review of university students' mental health in Sub-Saharan Africa. Transformation in Higher Education, 9, 316. https://doi.org/10.4102/the.v9i0.316
12. Lazarus, R. S., & Folkman, S. (1984). Stress, appraisal, and coping. Springer Publishing.
13. Lovibond, S. H., & Lovibond, P. F. (1995). Manual for the Depression Anxiety Stress Scales (2nd ed.). Psychology Foundation of Australia.
14. Magier, M. J., Law, M., Pennisi, S., Martini, T., Duncan, M. J., Chattha, H., & Patte, K. A. (2023). Final-year university students' mental health and access to support as they prepared to graduate. Cogent Mental Health, 2(1), 1-38. https://doi.org/10.1080/28324765.2023.2252918
15. Mugenda, O. M., & Mugenda, A. G. (2019). Research methods: Quantitative and qualitative approaches (Rev. ed.). Africa Centre for Technology Studies Press.
16. Mwita, S., Ouma, M., Edwin, W., Katabalo, D., & Marwa, K. (2025). Prevalence, symptoms, and associated risk factors for depressive symptoms among undergraduate students of non-medical universities in Mwanza, Tanzania. Diseases, 13(8), 268. https://doi.org/10.3390/diseases13080268
17. National Bureau of Statistics [Tanzania]. (2022). Tanzania integrated labour force survey 2020/21. NBS.
18. Rothwell, A., & Arnold, J. (2007). Self-perceived employability: Development and validation of a scale. Personnel Review, 36(1), 23-41. https://doi.org/10.1108/00483480710716704
19. Rweyemamu, L. P., Mbotwa, C. H., Massawe, J. I., & Mramba, R. P. (2024). Mental distress and associated factors among undergraduate students: Evidence from a cross-sectional study at the University of Dodoma, Tanzania. Discover Mental Health, 4(1), 44. https://doi.org/10.1007/s44192-024-00098-x
20. Schlossberg, N. K. (1981). A model for analyzing human adaptation to transition. The Counseling Psychologist, 9(2), 2-18. https://doi.org/10.1177/001100008100900202
21. Tanzania Commission for Universities. (2025). VITALSTATS on university education in Tanzania 2024. TCU.
22. Tavakol, M., & Dennick, R. (2011). Making sense of Cronbach's alpha. International Journal of Medical Education, 2, 53-55. https://doi.org/10.5116/ijme.4dfb.8dfd
23. UNESCO. (2025). Higher education: Figures at a glance. https://unesdoc.unesco.org/ark:/48223/pf0000394112