Are students growing more honest, or more desperate?

I’ve noticed something strange with this year’s freshmen. They’re brutally honest about drowning in work. They don’t pretend everything’s fine the way upperclassmen used to. And woven into those conversations is this sudden openness about essay services, almost as if they’re talking about tutoring or office-hour help. I can’t tell if this is refreshing honesty or a warning sign about how rough college has become.