How to Improve Mental Health for Disadvantaged Students
Poor mental health in UK higher education has been described as a ‘crisis’, with rising numbers of students reporting concerns. And, as a report by the Institute of Public Policy found, while mental illness can affect people from all walks of life, they are more common among those from more deprived socioeconomic backgrounds.
The reasons behind these statistics are manifest and multiple. Students from widening participation backgrounds may be vulnerable to poor mental health due to any of the following factors or, indeed, a combination of two or more.
Finance and budgeting concerns around living costs, but also differential access to social and extra-curricular activities.
Housing concerns, which may include precarious housing or deciding to live at home due to financial concerns, contributing to feelings of isolation.
‘Imposter syndrome’ when comparing experience to more advantaged students, who may have arrived at university with more resources, experience and knowledge.
Not only are mental health issues more likely to be a concern for students from underrepresented groups, but they have been proven to widen the gap between advantaged and disadvantaged students. Students who suffer from mental health conditions are more likely to drop out and less likely to achieve academically and go on to skilled employment or further study.
This blog outlines 3 actionable areas widening participation practitioners can consider to tailor mental health service provision to the needs of disadvantaged students.
Supporting Students Before and on Arrival
Students from disadvantaged groups may arrive at university with little to no knowledge of what to expect. It might be that they are a first-generation student with no family knowledge or advice to rely on, or that is it unusual for people to pursue higher education in their community.
There are preventive strategies you can employ to support students through this time and provide them with resources and networks to ensure they don’t fall through the gaps. This could include:
Conducting a pre-arrival survey that discerns the resources and skills student have available to them. By doing this, you will be able to identify students who might be lacking in resources and skills and supplement this with support in the form of IT equipment or additional training opportunities.
Providing resources and information prior to arrival to help better prepare students. The University of Glasgow offers a range of online resources accessible to incoming students.
Providing support to students who might be lacking in resources or skills. This could include IT equipment and software or additional academic support, such as extra lab hours for STEM students.
Sharing an information pack ahead of arrival that details how students can approach novel situations, such as navigating relationships with housemates or managing their workload. This should also include information on where students can go if they do face mental health issues triggered by these scenarios.
Embedding social activities into course inductions to encourage students to build their own communities and support networks.
Integrating resilience-building activities into the academic calendar, such as mindfulness courses or delivering modules on managing workload.
Always keep in mind the specific challenges for students from disadvantaged groups when designing interventions. For example, estranged students or care leavers might encounter difficulties handling accommodation and living situations, whereas students from low socioeconomic backgrounds might experience stress and anxiety induced by financial hardship.
Using Student Data
Siloed working across university departments can act as a barrier to an institution-wide mental wellbeing agenda. Stagnated referral systems can lead to students facing long waiting times and falling through the gaps.
While it is not always possible given resources to design a perfectly integrated system, using your data more effectively can help you to identify and deal with concerns with greater efficiency.
Northumbria University has been a trailblazer in this area. In partnership with 3 other HEIs and Civitas Learning, JISC and UUK, they spearheaded a project that used advanced student data capture to develop an Early Alert Tool that identifies warning signs for poor mental health.
This project was directed at the whole student body, but its findings presented informative insights on disadvantaged students. By blending qualitative and quantitative approaches to data collection, they identified varying levels of risk among students according to contextual predictors, such as LGBTQ+ status or financial status. This information was then fed into a dashboard used by student services, which indicated when practitioners needed monitor these students more closely.
While this project is advanced, there are simple takeaways that can be implemented in other higher education contexts.
You might consider storing data on student mental wellbeing in a centralised database with individual profiles for students, for example. These profiles could include relevant information, such as:
Waiting time
Budget
Previous interactions with mental health service
Any identified red flags
A list of individuals who have been notified about mental health concerns, such as academic advisors or parents/guardians
Data sharing across departments may also help to identify at risk students. For example, you might ask academic staff to report back when students are not attending classes or accessing resources, or to share information about falling academic performance. You may also consider using learning analytics using software such as StrEAM, with its algorithm that tracks engagement to predict performance.
A convenient way to do this is by embarking on collaborative projects that bring together academics, professional services staff and students. The University of York have integrated their mental health data collection into their research output as part of their ongoing Student Psychological Wellbeing project. This project will provide data to those working on the university’s mental wellbeing agenda, whilst also signalling to students the importance of their mental health and furthering the institution’s research output.
To find out more about how HEIs across the sector are using data, you might consider joining Jisc’s mental health and wellbeing technology and analytics community.
Targeted Interventions for Transitions
Mental health support should be attuned to the distinct challenges individuals might face at different stages of the student lifecycle.
Challenging transitions in the student lifecycle might include:
Between year groups
To/from work placements or apprenticeships
From undergraduate to postgraduate study
Between courses
To graduate life and employment
These stages may present particular challenges for disadvantaged students, so you'll need to identify the risks affecting these groups to inform your strategies.
One of the most effective ways to support students during these transitions is to ensure that they aware of and have access to networks or individuals who can provide them with guidance. There are great examples of this happening already across the sector:
The University of South Wales produced a suite of guides which were shared with students prior to taking on placements. This not only helped students to feel more prepared for the experience, but also included a wellbeing guide that specifically addressed potential mental health concerns when undertaking placements.
SITUATE at the University of Sussex is a mental health peer education training programme delivered by older students to their younger peers at stages of transition, developed in partnership with The Mental Health Foundation.
Enhancement Theme have developed a toolkit of resources for supporting belonging and inclusion for distance learners.
The University of St Mary’s Effective Learning Service offer a range of practical modules and workshops aimed at enhancing academic achievement.
While disadvantaged students are particularly susceptible to poor mental health in transition periods, they can be affected at any point in the lifecycle, so seek to provide guidance and resources all year round.
The Open University host a range of resources that tackle questions such as when and how to seek mental health support and understanding anxiety and depression. To target underrepresented or disadvantaged students, you might dedicate a page on your widening participation page explaining what support is available to them, as the University of Exeter has done.
