Introduction Burnout is a health problem that not only occurs in the work context, but also in the academic field. Assessments for early identification of this problem would benefit from short measures. Although there are several such proposals in the work context, there are no equivalents known for the academic environment. This study evaluates the content validity of a new single-item burnout measurement in the student academic context. Methods The study included a voluntary sample of 10 university teachers of clinical psychology and 32 psychology students. The single-item of burnout in students was adapted from an existing one in the employment context. This adaptation was evaluated in the context of content validity by 2 aspects: the perceived order of the intensity options of the answer, and clarity of the item. Results The ordering of response options was verified, although a slight overlap occurred in the 2 options of greater intensity. There were some discrepancies between the perception of teachers and students. The clarity of the content was satisfactory. Conclusions The content of this new proposal for a short student burnout measurement is satisfactory as regards the clarity of the content and the perceived order of the intensities of response.