Mental health and well-being

Advice on effective mental health support for students and staff to create a happier, healthier campus. Find out how universities and academics can promote well-being, protect their campus community from spiralling stress, minimise the risk of burnout and build resilience - from institutional practices that create a culture of care to personal self-care tips and healthy habits for overworked academics and students.

An academic listens attentively to a student

University students need emotional support as well as intellectual challenge

Empathetic teaching is about more than lectures and grades – it’s about helping the whole student grow. Find out how

M. Devendran Manogaran , Nor Adilla Rashidi

Universiti Teknologi Petronas (UTP)

What can university lecturers do to ease students’ exam anxiety?

Exam stress in all its forms will be familiar to most university lecturers. What is less discussed is how educators’ awareness can ease students’ nerves and lead to better outcomes

Melinda Cserép

Semmelweis University

A smiling woman holds a red, heart-shaped helium balloon

Higher education needs to hold students' hearts, not hands

During times of financial constraint, don’t rush to define kindness to students as an unaffordable luxury. Instead, let’s change the way we think

Rachelle McKay

Dalhousie University

A group of students discussing something on an iPad

Stop asking students to be the lesson and focus on choice and consent

When students are asked to share personal stories to illustrate lessons, the emotional cost can outweigh the educational gain. Aasiya Satia explores how consent-based pedagogy can create safer, more equitable classrooms for all students

Aasiya Satia

McMaster University

A student talks intently to an out-of-focus lecturer

Empower LBGTQ+ people to be their authentic selves on campus with Rainbow Office Hours

A simple, low-cost idea helped one university campus become a more welcoming space for members of the LGBTQ+ community. Here’s how it worked

Rafael Henry-Venson, Emily Nordmann

University of Glasgow

One student comforts another with a hand on the shoulder

Support students’ mental health with bespoke workshops

With mental health concerns and student suicide rates increasing, a partnership with St John Ambulance offered a practical way to support students to ask for help when they need it. Here’s how it worked

Lisa Simmons

Manchester Metropolitan University

How to help autistic students adjust to life on campus

With autistic students’ drop-out rate spiking, here’s how to help them ease into their university career, allow for neurodiversity-friendly socialising and reduce their anxiety with a furry friend

Tabitha Biller

De Montfort University

Campus webinar: The secrets of international student success

Four academics based in the UK and France discuss how universities can ensure international students fulfil their potential throughout and after their studies

Allan Atlee, Joanna Daaboul, Helen Galbraith, Felipe Koch

University of the Arts London, Université de Technologie de Compiègne, University of Chester, Université Paris-Est Créteil

An illustrated image depicting two groups of people arguing with each other headed by a leader holding a megaphone

Dealing with division: the polarised university

How can universities encourage respectful disagreement, empathy and compassion while handling sensitive topics with care and protecting academic freedom – keeping higher education open, inclusive and intellectually rigorous?

Campus contributors, Laura Duckett

Campus

Five tips for debating sensitive issues in the classroom – without losing control

Find out how to create a learning environment where controversial topics can be debated fairly and constructively, with these five tips

Hélène Thibault

Nazarbayev University

Compassion cuts through polarisation

Compassion, not empathy, is the emotion that will cut through group polarisation and motivate constructive intergroup dialogue in higher education. Training in mindfulness-based compassion meditation can be scaled at a relatively low barrier to entry

Rayne Bozeman

Georgia Tech’s Center for 21st Century Universities

A student takes notes during a group Zoom call

How students really feel about collaborative tasks in online learning

Online learning often includes paired or group work, but research has found this can often provoke anxiety in students. Here’s how to listen to what they want and build the skill of collaboration

Poppy Gibson, Sagun Shrestha, Helena Staszkiewicz

The Open University

A teacher helping students with their work in class

From discomfort to dialogue: how to teach controversial topics with confidence

Teaching sensitive topics can be challenging, but with structure and openness, they can become powerful opportunities for learning

Craig Harper, Rebecca Lievesley

Show, not just say, that your institution is a place for everyone

Put belonging at the heart of your diversity and inclusion strategy. Here’s how a fund for inclusive projects put money and strategy behind words

Moni Akinsanya

Liverpool John Moores University

Embrace mistakes in your teaching and help your students learn from them

Incorporating mistakes into your teaching can be transformative. Here’s how to introduce the idea of failing to your students in a controlled environment

Özen Çatal

Near East University

How to motivate students and staff in higher education

Advice for faculty to find and maintain the motivation that they, and their students, need to progress in their work and learning

Campus contributors, Eliza Compton

Campus

Campus Talks: Why ‘grit’ and knowing when to say ‘no’ are vital skills in academia today

In this week’s podcast, two professors discuss the skills and characteristics needed to achieve long-term academic career success and fulfilment

Jeffrey McDonnell, Sarah Robinson

University of Saskatchewan, IÉSEG School of Management

Ease student climate anxiety through nature and community

As climate anxiety grows among students, connecting with nature and building supportive communities nurture resilience, purpose and well-being, say Mireia Bes and Vivienne Kuh

Mireia Bes, Vivienne Kuh

The University of Bristol

Students raise their hands in a lecture hall

Seven strategies to fuel students’ motivation

Keep your students motivated – not just for one class, but across a whole term. Find out seven ways to build sustainable motivation in the classroom

Hanife Bensen Bostanci

Near East University

A life ring flotation device being thrown in the air against a backdrop of column-flanked neoclassical building

An academic’s survival guide

Academia offers rich rewards but these sit alongside job insecurity, spiralling workloads and repeated rejection. This survival guide explores how scholars can navigate key challenges in order to find fulfilment in their academic careers

Laura Duckett, Campus contributors

Campus

Ozzy Osbourne star on Hollywood Walk of Fame

Ozzy Osbourne taught me how to survive academia

The Prince of Darkness helped me to build a university career, writes Brittany Anne Carlson. Here, she offers five tips to help fellow educators and researchers stay aboard their own academic ‘crazy train’

Brittany Anne Carlson

Westminster College

A warm welcome for new students

Advice on how to roll out the welcome mat for the new intake, on campus and in the classroom

Kiera O’Brien, Campus contributors

Campus

Lessons for academics in resilience, persistence and coping with failure

Rejection is part of every academic journey, but that doesn’t make it easier to bear. Drawing from personal experiences, Bhawana Shrestha reflects on how shifting mindsets, embracing support and practising ‘gentle ambition’ helped her build resilience

Bhawana Shrestha

Xi’an Jiaotong-Liverpool University

An unseen woman doing sums with a calculator

How university financial support teams can bolster student mental health

Universities must treat financial support as central to student well-being. By fostering open conversations and offering proactive, tailored guidance, institutions can ease financial stress, build resilience and improve the student experience

Ian Ashley

University of Chester

Multiracial group of three university students

How student feedback and planning shape a high-impact orientation programme

Orientation week should not be about institutional formality but about human connection, writes Anusha Nataru. An engaging, effective programme requires careful pacing, warmth and inbuilt capacity to respond to student feedback

Anusha Nataru

Aditya University

How to build unbreakable self-confidence: an academic’s guide

A strong foundation of professional self-confidence is crucial when treading the academic career path. Follow these five tips to cement yours

Ayten Erçoban Evren

Near East University

A person selling baked goods at a fundraising event

How community events can improve staff and student well-being

Regular, inclusive community events can play a vital role in improving mental health and well-being for both students and staff in higher education. Read about how simple, low-cost activities can foster connection, ease pressure and build a stronger university culture

Janine Wilkinson, Jean-Charles de Coriolis

The University of East Anglia

A man sits in darkness, illuminated by a smartphone that blocks his face from view

Four questions to ask to detect false news online

Even those working in higher education can fall for misinformation. Ask these four questions to get better at zeroing in on false news

Peter Cunliffe-Jones

University of Westminster

The evolution of student onboarding

On-demand, just-in-time digital onboarding can help students filter the vast array of information they receive when they start university, and set them up for success

Cory Elfrink

University of Canterbury | Te Whare Wānanga o Waitaha

Students raise their hands in a lecture hall

Make interdisciplinary research accessible to everyone

Short courses can give members of the public insight into cutting-edge interdisciplinary research, focusing on issues related to their daily lives. Here’s how to put them into place

Qingyan Chen

The Hong Kong Polytechnic University

International students laugh together on campus

Tips to help international students feel at home from day one

Tim Hewes-Belton offers advice on designing bespoke welcome activities for international students to help them settle into UK university life

Tim Hewes-Belton

Loughborough University

A woman looking relaxed sitting at her desk

The Chinese framework that can build student resilience

The HeXie framework can help students solve problems and build a sense of unity with their environment – an essential skill in uncertain times. Discover the theory behind it and how to nurture it to support student resilience

Dan Wang, Yuchen Wu

Xi’an Jiaotong-Liverpool University

Tap into game dynamics in nurse training

Learn lessons from the gaming world to structure nursing courses, strengthening student engagement and improving pass rates

Caroline Barau, Magali Vergnes

Université Paris-Est Créteil

Why parents and carers networks matter to university staff

Advocacy, activities, peer support and safe spaces are among the reasons to institute a network for university faculty and staff with caring responsibilities

Claire Partridge

University of Southampton

The tough lessons that build resilience in forensic science students

To avoid causing students unnecessary harm when teaching sensitive topics, consider a trauma-informed approach. Carrie Mullen outlines how

Carrie Mullen

University of the West of Scotland

Three reasons why university libraries are key to belonging

The university library occupies a unique place in the campus community. Find out the three reasons it’s integral to the creation of an inclusive learning environment in higher education

Bethany Wilkes

Hong Kong Baptist University

What trauma-informed practice can learn from EDI in higher education

Equity, diversity and inclusion work reminds us that trauma doesn’t occur in a vacuum. Here are insights from EDI that can enrich trauma-informed practice

Maree Martinussen, Sarah O’Shea

Charles Sturt University

Equality on campus starts in the toilets

With diversity, equity and inclusion policies under threat, there’s a simple and cost-effective change universities can make for a trans-inclusionary, accessible campus

Deanna Grant-Smith , Anne Hewitt , Loki Maelorin, Chisom Ihekwaba

Adelaide University, University of the Sunshine Coast

Forget climate anxiety – let’s foster climate confidence

Combine research and administrative duties to tap into how students are feeling about climate change – and use your findings to help them gain the skills, and confidence, to tackle it head-on

Léa Chambaudet

Université Paris-Est Créteil

A student wears headphones while on a Zoom call

Why mattering matters in practice education and leadership placements

Make students feel they matter in non-clinical facing placements to create the authentic and compassionate leaders the healthcare sector of the future needs. Here’s how

Helen Carr

Canterbury Christ Church University

Build better doctors with programmatic assessment

Programmatic assessment offers a better way to train doctors, making them more resilient and giving them the tools to manage their own professional development. Gozie Offiah explains how it works

Gozie Offiah

RCSI University of Medicine and Health Sciences

Students respectfully debate an issue in the classroom

Don’t fear conflict in the classroom: foster respectful discussion instead

How do we have meaningful conversations about divisive topics, while dealing with the emotions these debates may spark? Lea Sitkin outlines several strategies to give students the space to explore issues they care about

Lea Sitkin

University of Westminster

Use coaching to help students juggle the pressures of academic life

Academic expectations and personal responsibilities are crushing students’ mental health. Could coaching offer them a way to take control of their own learning?

Bavani Divo, May Lim

Singapore Institute of Technology

Three ways to address students’ climate anxiety

While higher education has made progress with greener campuses and remote working, providing students with an education that can respond to the climate crisis will be more challenging. Here’s how educators can tackle climate anxiety

Rob Amos

Birkbeck, University of London

The economics of belonging: a new way of thinking about student success

Rising costs of living and tuition mean that US university students may prioritise career and economic factors rather than self-actualisation as a reason to remain at a university

Richard Tomczak

Stony Brook University

Build belonging, with or without a centralised campus

How can young universities foster a sense of belonging in their students, given they may be operating across several different campuses? Here are some of the ways you can create community

Asmidah Ong, Darren Tan, Duane Ong

Singapore Institute of Technology

Campus Talks: The complex factors that drive students’ sense of belonging

An expert in student belonging and engagement in the digital environment explains the nuances of belonging, mattering and inclusion as well as how to foster well-being in higher education

Karen Gravett

University of Surrey

A student with a guitar surrounded by others smiling

Make your Freshers’ Week activities sing

Songwriting sessions, treasure hunts and biscuit decorating are among the creative Freshers’ Week activities that help students build self-confidence, connect with others and ease the transition to university life

Helen Eadon-Sinkinson

University of Chester

A woman holds her head in her hands over a laptop screen

Be aware of the invisible baggage of poverty your students carry

We need to acknowledge the realities of poverty and inequality, and the trauma it leaves our students with. Here are six principles to make higher education more inclusive

Jordan Donnelly

University of the West of Scotland

Are we overlooking the power of autonomy when it comes to motivating students?

Educators fear giving students too much choice in their learning will see them making the wrong decisions. But structuring choice without dictating the answers could be the way forward

Danny Oppenheimer

Carnegie Mellon University

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