Enhanced wellbeing support

As part of our third step in our wellbeing support model, we provide enhanced counselling on campus with the goal of facilitating the adjustment and success of international degree students during their time at JYU.

Enhanced wellbeing support

It is common for students to need assistance building skills to cope with the stress and challenges of university life and beyond. As part of our third step in our wellbeing support model, we provide enhanced counseling on campus with the goal of facilitating the adjustment and success of international degree students during their time at JYU. Our experienced support team is here to assist you and provide support that focuses on

enhancing your academic skills;
setting meaningful goals and action plans;
helping you gain perspective in times when you might feel ‘stuck’ or when experiencing distress arising from psychological, emotional or interpersonal issues;
assisting in adjusting to change/life transitions;
promoting your skills, self-development and helping you reach your chosen life directions;
working together to help you discover effective and workable ways to cope with academic and everyday life challenges.

Enhanced support counselling is offered when a student has a need for special, intensive guidance. Student Life’s wellbeing team offers free enhanced counselling support to all degree students at JYU. Check below to see for what issues and topics you can reach us.

Enhanced wellbeing counselling (in English) is primarily intended for international Master’s degree students at JYU, as it provides more intensive guidance throughout degree studies. Enhanced support is not available for exchange students. Exchange students are nevertheless encouraged to make use of the university's other wellbeing services as well as external services, which offer appropriate support for their time at JYU.

Please note that enhanced support may not be appropriate or provide adequate support for you if you are currently suffering from a more serious mental health problem (such as major depression or anxiety) or an acute crisis. For mental health issues, please contact the Finnish Student Health Services (FSHS) for a treatment assessment or your local health centre. In the event of an acute crisis, please contact Crisis Center Mobile. In acute life crises, such as breakups, losses or other situations, you can get confidential support from the university chaplain. See further information on the in case of emergency-web page.

Enhanced wellbeing support by referral from supplementary support experts. Students who are in need for enhanced counseling should be able to access our services efficiently, with minimal queues and based on their needs. Therefore, as part of our three-stepped care model, a student is first assessed by our supplementary wellbeing support experts. If they deem it necessary to receive our support, they will refer you to us.

You can access our enhanced support by referral primarily from our Goodie wellbeing advisers. So, it is highly advisable that you first book an appointment with your faculty’s Goodie, who will then assess your situation and will refer you to a service that is most suitable for you. You can also get a referral for our enhanced guidance counseling from Student's Compass program’s coaches or Finnish Student Health Services.

Enhanced support is offered to students face-to-face, for example, at Student Life's wellbeing offices, located in Lähde Library (2nd floor, B214), via digital services (e.g. Teams, Doxy.me) or by telephone. Your counselor will contact you by email with more details.

Studying can evoke various emotions: from excitement and joy to nervousness and uncertainty. Remember, you are not alone. We support you and your study ability at different stages of your academic journey.

Student Life's Team of Experts

Enhanced support is provided by experts specialising in supporting student wellbeing and study ability. Our multi-professional team consists of four experts who specialise in specific issues and problems.

Panajiota Räsänen is an enhanced counselling specialist and licensed psychologist (PsM, PhD researcher) who works as a university teacher in the psychology department. Panajiota specializes in student well-being and brief psychological interventions based on the third wave of Cognitive Behavioural Therapy (FACT; Focused Acceptance and Commitment Therapy).

She provides support in any of the following issues that may impact your ability to study, such as:

Difficulties with stress, anxiety, depression, study fatigue
Study skills support (e.g. planning, scheduling, study habits)
Motivation issues and procrastination
Study anxiety (e.g. tests, writer’s block, public speaking)
Fear of failure issues and perfectionism
Attention and concentration challenges, including those related to neurodiversity (e.g., ADHD)
Social interaction issues (e.g. loneliness, homesickness)
Identity and self-development challenges
Challenges related to life transitions and cultural adjustment (e.g. navigating the Finnish educational system, adapting to different learning and teaching styles)

Hanna Ahola (student well-being specialist, M.H.Sc., C.C.C) is a licensed professional counsellor in education and health. She offers support in any of the following issues that may impact your ability to study:

Academic challenges (e.g. time management and scheduling)
Attention and concentration problems
Social interaction issues (e.g. social isolation and loneliness)
Difficulties with stress and study fatigue
Career counselling
Substance abuse prevention (serves as the university contact person)

Heta Orrain (student wellbeing specialist, M.Ed., M.S.E., C.C.C.)is a specialist in special pedagogy in counselling. Heta is specialised in supporting academic study skills. Heta can also assist in identifying your own skills and abilities. She provides support in:

Reading and writing difficulties
Study skills support (e.g. planning, scheduling, study habits)
Attention and concentration problems
Individual learning arrangements

Riitta-Leena Metsäpelto (student well-being specialist, PhD in psychology) offers counselling to students regarding well-being and various challenges related to ability to study, such as:

Problems with learning motivation
Social challenges (e.g., social anxiety, difficulties in social interaction)
Mental well-being issues, anxiety and depression
Challenges with executive functions
Bullying and harassment (serves as the university contact person)
Issues of unsuitability in SORA fields

Anton Olander (Bachelor of Psychology, Master’s degree student) works as an intern in enhanced wellbeing support, and offers support with challenges related to study ability, well-being, and coping. She provides counseling in:

Mood and anxiety symptoms
Stress and coping
Study-related challenges (e.g. difficulties with academic progress, motivation, time management, scheduling, academic self-esteem)
Challenges with executive functioning and attention
Social interaction difficulties (e.g. loneliness, social anxiety)
Exploring thoughts and emotions that feel difficult

Additional information on enhanced support

If you wish, you can read more about the contents of the guidance, methods, and other additional information regarding enhanced support.

Enhanced support counselling can help identify, clarify, and often even simplify problematic situations and their associated thoughts and feelings. It is often helpful to have an outside perspective or help in developing skills and strategies to cope more effectively with the on and off campus challenges. Sometimes the opportunity to talk openly to an unbiased professional can be life-changing.

If you have already explored other options from our well-being support and you feel you may need additional support, we are here for you!

We offer brief (often 1–5 times), one-to-one sessions in a friendly and relaxed environment.
We are here to listen in a non-judgmental way and keep discussions confidential
Most of the support is based on discussions during which we work together with the student to enable them to understand themselves, gain deeper awareness of their problems, make workable and effective decisions based on their values, and encourage them in their personal path for growth and development.
We often include questionnaires for guidance so that we can best map the student's situation, adapt the guidance to suit the student's needs, and track their progress.
We also use a variety of practical exercises and materials to help students gain a new perspective on their situation.

After your referral from our supplementary support network (Goodie, FSHS, Student Compass coaches etc.), you can book an appointment via email. Remember to include the following information in your email:

who referred you and
a short description of your need for an appointment (a few lines).

We usually respond within 2-3 working days. You will most likely get an appointment within 2–12 days.

We offer assessments to students upon demand. Some examples include assessments on learning difficulties (such as in writing and reading). We also offer brief assessments for individual study arrangements. Information about how to apply for and implement individual study arrangements can be found here.

Kindly note, that we do not offer psychological assessments (e.g. assessing extensively learning difficulties or ADHD) nor diagnose or treat mental health issues. If you feel you require medical assistance or consultation, contact the FSHS or your local health centre.