Auburn is ranked among the most stressed-out college towns in US. See complete top 15

Auburn is ranked among the most stressed-out college towns in the United States, while Tuscaloosa, home to rival University of Alabama, is among the least stressed-out college towns, according to a new study.

Auburn is home to Auburn University.

Preply, a language learning app and e-learning platform headquartered in Brookline, Massachusetts, conducted this study by using stress and relaxation magnitutde detector TensiStength to analyze tweets posted on Twitter in 150 U.S. cities from Aug 1 to Oct. 1.

“Between exams, heavy course loads, and other responsibilities, being a college student is no cakewalk,” Matt Zajechowski wrote in the article announcing the study. “And, with some schools slashing acceptance rates in the wake of the pandemic, it’s no wonder why students feel the pressure to perform.”

Among the study’s highlights:

• Auburn is ranked 12^th on the list of most stress-related tweets, with 28%.
• The other Southern college towns ranked in the top 15 are College Park, Maryland and Charlottesville, Virginia.
• Berkeley, California is ranked No. 1, at 42.7%.

Here’s the complete top 15:

1. Berkeley, California 42.7%

2. Cambridge, Massachusetts, 34.5%

3. Iowa City, Iowa, 30.9%

4. College Park, Maryland, 30.9%

5. East Lansing, Michigan, 30.4%

6. Stanford, California, 30.3%

7. Ann Arbor, Michigan, 29.7%

8. Charlottesville, Virginia, 29.4%

9. Notre Dame, Indiana, 29.2%

10. Ithaca, New York, 29.1%

11. Provo, Utah, 28.7%

12. Auburn, Alabama, 28.2%

13. Davis, California, 28.1%

14. Boulder, Colorado, 27.2%

15. Newark, Delaware, 27.1%

Preply also determined the least stressed-out college towns by using the same metrics. Among the highlights:

• Tuscaloosa is 10^th on the least stressed-out list, with 23.5% of its tweets showing signs of stress.
• The other college towns in the South among the top 15 least stressed-out are Starkville and Oxford, Mississippi, and Blacksburg, Va.
• West Lafayette, Indiana, home to Purdue University, is ranked No. 1 among the least stressed-out college towns.

Here’s the complete top 15:

1. West Lafayette, Indiana, 15.0%

2. Lawrence, Kansas, 18.3%

3. Normal, Illinois, 20.3%

4. Starkville, Mississippi, 21.0%

5. Bozeman, Montana, 21.4%

6. Manhattan, Kansas, 22.1%

7. Oxford, Ohio, 22.2%

8. Amherst, Massachusetts, 22.3%

9. Oxford, Mississippi, 23.2%

10. Tuscaloosa, Alabama, 23.5%

11. Ames, Iowa, 23.8%

12. Pullman, Washington, 24.2%

13. Bloomington, Indiana, 24.6%

14. Blacksburg, Virginia, 24.8%

15. State College, Pennsylvania, 25.1%

Mark Rice

Columbus Ledger-Enquirer

706-576-6272

Mark Rice is the Ledger-Enquirer’s editor. He has been covering Columbus and the Chattahoochee Valley for more than 30 years. He welcomes your local news tips, feature story ideas, investigation suggestions and compelling questions.