Transitioning into the university environment can be both exciting and stressful for new and returning students alike. The pressure to perform well academically in an increasingly competitive environment, coupled with a vast array of lifestyle changes, can contribute to suboptimal wellbeing. Over recent years, uptake to wellbeing services within universities in the United Kingdom has grown given the concurrent rise in mental health difficulties reported. Higher education students now have to contend with a drastically altered learning landscape, owing to the discovery of novel coronavirus, Sars-Cov-2, otherwise referred to as COVID-19. In the United Kingdom, universities have moved to close their campuses to both students and non-essential staff in an effort to protect them from contracting the virus. The repercussions of these decisions have been monumental for the delivery of teaching, relationships and, importantly, the provision of student services. Ambiguity remains as to how teaching will be delivered for the forthcoming academic year. The uncertainty caused by the pandemic has yet to be considered in terms of student wellbeing and the new, mostly online, environments that students will be expected to navigate without their typical support networks. For the purpose of this paper, the concept of student wellbeing, a populationlevel term concerned with positive emotions rather than diagnosed mental health conditions, will be considered in relation to the COVID-19 outbreak. The current paper performs a conceptual analysis on student wellbeing in United Kingdom universities with a specific lens on the psychosocial impact of the global COVID-19 outbreak. Given the unprecedented world that students now learn in, considering the impact of the pandemic on psychosocial outcomes delineates the novel challenges that researchers and practitioners must consider when implementing student wellbeing initiatives moving forward.
Recognising that "health is created and lived by people within the settings of everyday life; where they learn, work, play and love" 1 The underlying principle of settings for health is that investments in health are made within social systems in which health is not necessarily the main remit 2. In order to understand the health needs of its own community, a growing movement of Healthy Universities are interested in applying the approach within the higher education sector. This study examined the student health behaviours of one university so that future initiatives can be tailored to its own student population. Methods Quantitative data were gathered from 3683 students studying at a UK urban university. A 60-question online student questionnaire focusing on seven key topic areas was used to gather data and simple descriptive statistics are used to present key findings. Results The study has identified a need for considering alternatives ways of engaging students with appropriate health services throughout the academic year. A focus for university initiatives around healthy eating options, how to cook healthy food and the importance of keeping hydrated is highlighted as a common need. Risky behaviour involving alcohol, drug and substance use and sexual activity suggest a strong argument for not separating university sexual health and alcohol interventions. Conclusion Underpinned by the Healthy Universities settings concept, this study examined the health and wellbeing behaviours of one universities own student population. It highlights behaviours within the university that are similar to national averages, and some that are not. This understanding can inform the planning of future health promoting university initiatives to meet the distinctive needs of its own students.
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