College Students Wearing Masks Even After Mandatory Removal: "Because We Care Less About Our Faces"

7 out of 10 People Say "I Will Keep Wearing Masks"
The Biggest Reason Is "It Has Become a Habit"

Although the indoor mask mandate has been lifted, it was found that 7 out of 10 university students plan to continue wearing masks.

According to a survey conducted on June 2 by AlbaCheonguk, a job portal specializing in recruitment, targeting 1,110 university students, despite high expectations for a "no mask" environment, 70.8% of students responded that they "plan to continue wearing masks on campus."

Among the respondents, 50.0% said they "will try to maintain mask-wearing indoors," and 20.8% said they "will continue wearing masks regardless of being indoors or outdoors."

"It feels awkward to be seen without a mask," "I don't want to worry about my appearance"

A group of graduates is taking a commemorative photo. The photo is not directly related to the article content. / Photo by Yonhap News

The biggest reason for continuing to wear masks on campus even after the mandate was lifted was that "mask-wearing has become a daily habit (48.7%)." This was followed by "concerns about COVID-19 infection (45.0%)."

Other reasons included ▲feeling unfamiliar and awkward without a mask (34.1%) ▲not wanting to pay attention to appearance (22.9%) ▲avoiding illnesses such as flu and allergies (22.0%).

Regarding when they would completely stop wearing masks, a high percentage of respondents said they would "follow the surrounding atmosphere or quarantine guidelines."

34.5% of respondents said they would remove their masks "when they feel that most people are not wearing masks."

Next, 17.6% chose "when the mask mandate is lifted everywhere without exception." Some specified particular times, such as "final exam season or the height of summer (15.1%)."

Photo by Alba Cheonguk

On the other hand, only 27.1% of university students expressed concerns about not wearing masks on campus.

They mentioned opinions such as "campus activities without masks feel unfamiliar and awkward (26.9%)" and "concerns about COVID-19 infection (23.9%)."

Additionally, they worried about a significant reduction in online classes, the burden of managing appearance, and an increase in unnecessary face-to-face campus events and appointments.

However, 72.9% responded that they "look forward to a mask-free campus life that has come after about four years," showing a welcoming attitude toward the lifting of the mask mandate.

The most anticipated campus activities were "activation of face-to-face campus activities such as OT, MT, festivals, and clubs (65.4%, multiple responses allowed)."

This was followed by opinions such as ▲expecting increased socializing and communication with university peers and seniors/juniors (47.6%) ▲expecting a significant increase in face-to-face classes and improvement in class quality (36.0%) ▲expecting an increase in school-supported external activities such as exchange programs and overseas volunteer work (25.7%).

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.