UK academics ‘ill-prepared to support student mental health’

Less than a third of UK academics who responded to a survey felt prepared for supporting students with mental health problems, with the majority of scholars having received no training in the area, according to a study.

A survey of 130 academics across the UK found that 96 per cent of respondents had encountered mental health problems among their students, but just 31 per cent said their institution had adequately prepared them for working with and supporting such students.

More than half (56 per cent) of respondents said they had not received training in working with students with mental health problems. Of those, 56 per cent said they would attend training if it was offered and a further 38 per cent said they would maybe attend.

The academics surveyed also disagreed that they had sufficient time to support students with mental health problems and said they had been supporting such students when they should have been doing other work-related activities. The majority of respondents said they had felt distressed during or after contact with a student believed to have mental health problems.

Interviews with 11 academics also highlighted that there was little agreement or guidance on what an academic’s role should be in supporting students with mental health problems. While scholars’ lack of training indicated that concerns about a student’s mental health should be referred to a specialist, it is often academic staff who students will turn to for initial and ongoing support, according to the study.

The paper, published in Higher Education Research & Development, adds that the lower number of “non-traditional” students at Russell Group and other pre-1992 institutions did not correlate with a lower incidence of mental health problems among their students.

Sara Spear, head of the School of Management at Anglia Ruskin University and co-author of the study, said it was “surprising that so many academic staff have not had any training in mental health when there is increasing concern within universities about student mental health problems”.

She recommended that all academic staff should have compulsory basic training in mental health to “make them more confident about their role in identifying and supporting students with mental health problems, and enable them to provide consistent and appropriate support to students”.

“This will be a vital part of developing a university culture that nurtures the mental well-being of both staff and students,” she added.

The paper adds that universities should also ensure that there is access available to mental health support services for academics, given the impact that supporting students can have on scholars’ own health.

ellie.bothwell@timeshighereducation.com