Door Denise Overkleeft
By Denise Overkleeft
Andrea (22) knew that studying would be hard work for her, since she was suffering from depression. Even before she started studying psychology, she went to her study adviser: ‘I knew I would get behind in my studies, so I felt it was better to just be honest about it straight away.’
Her schedule was changed to a single class per block, and her bsa was lowered. When she was admitted to the psychiatric ward at the UMCG, her study adviser was there for her. ‘She arranged for me to watch all my lectures online, so I could watch my classes from the hospital. That prevent me from getting even further behind.’
Andrea isn’t the only student by far to get behind on their studies because of mental health issues. But not many of them know much about all the ways they can get help, says student dean Nathalie Lotz-Jager. ‘The study adviser is the first person you talk to’, she says. Since the study adviser has substantive knowledge of your study programme, they can help you adjust your schedule and get an extension or a deferral of the bsa.
‘It’s very important to alert your study adviser the moment special circumstances are causing a delay in your studies’, she emphasises. Special circumstances are anything that prevents you from studying that isn’t your fault. These range from mental health issues to pregnancy, temporary or permanent handicaps, informal care of a family member, or other family issues.
More than 15 ECTS
‘The second person you can talk to is the student dean. You’ll end up with them once you’re 15 ECTS behind’, says Lotz-Jager. They will then assess how far behind you are and whether you qualify for financial aid. DUO has several special arrangements, but there’s also the Graduation Fund: some money the university has set aside for students who fall behind on their studies.
I could watch my classes from the hospital
It also allows you to unburden yourself, and the student dean can help you apply for special provisions for exams or classes. And when studying become impossible, the dean can also advise you to unenroll and pick your studies back up later.
Andrea meets with her study adviser once a month. ‘I’m so grateful for her. I wouldn’t have been able to study at all without her help.’ She’s now in her second year and went to her first on-campus class in a year back in February. ‘It was really scary.’
Because Andrea took almost all her courses online, she hardly knows any of her fellow students. ‘I was surrounded by all these first-years. It turned my mentor was also in my class…’
Psychologists
Roosmarijn (25), now a sixth-year medical student, also had to turn to the UG for help. The first three years went fine, but she suffered a burn-out after her medical internship. ‘At first I told myself to get over it, but I soon I realised I just couldn’t keep going.’
It wasn’t just her studies causing her to burn out. ‘They expect all these extracurricular activities from you. The combination of committee and board work, as well as holding down a regular job while also studying simply did me in.’
She decided to contact the study adviser. ‘She was really understanding and helped me unenroll.’
The study adviser also pointed Roosmarijn in the director of the university’s in-house psychologists, who provide short-term therapy tracks of no more than five sessions. ‘It’s very accessible’, says student psychologist Sjoukje van Warners. Often, the waiting period is less than a month. Also important to note: it’s free.
And just because a psychologist is part of the university, doesn’t mean you can only talk to them about study-related issues. ‘We offer trauma counselling, mindfulness, cognitive behavioural therapy, and much more. We also have several types of group training.’ They can teach you the best way to plan things or how to study effectively, among other things.
Depression
Once it becomes clear that you might benefit from longer or more intense therapy, a student psychologist can recommend external practices. All you need is a referral from your GP. ‘However, a lot of students are helped by those short therapy tracks’, Van Warners explains.
It would be nice if students were better informed of financial aid options
In Roosmarijn’s case, it was clear from the get-go that she would need more help. ‘With a minor case of burn-out you can wait for months before the regular health service can see you. But my case was so severe that I didn’t have to wait at all’, she says.
Her burn-out became a depression. ‘I was so far gone that I had to be admitted to the psychiatric ward at the UMCG.’ After talking to her study adviser, she decided to unenroll for now.
She also saw her savings dwindle. ‘That really sucked. I’d worked a long time to save all that money.’ In the end, she applied for government assistance. It was a big step for her. ‘I was ashamed, but I had no choice: I needed money just to stay alive.’
Graduation Fund
What Roosmarijn didn’t know was that the university also had grants for students who fall behind on their studies because of special circumstances such as illness. ‘Until this interview, I had no idea there was such a thing as the Graduation Fund. It would be nice if students were better informed of financial aid options. It could save a lot of heartache.’
Currently, Roosmarijn attends three therapy sessions a week. ‘So that’s taking up most of my time.’ She’s also been going through her study materials from the past few years. After quitting eighteen months ago, she went back to university this month.
She sometimes struggles with having been away for so long, she says. ‘I see all these other students who’ve become doctors and found jobs and I’m still here.’ But she’d like to tell other students that they should never be ashamed of mental health issues. ‘It’s just one of those things that happen to you. Hit the brakes on your shame and ask for help. Talk about it.’
Bureaucracy
Nevertheless, the process of mental health aid at the university doesn’t always go smoothly. Daphne, a recent media studies graduate, was also hoping for financial aid through the Graduation Fund, but she got tangled up in the UG’s bureaucratic system. ‘It was such a hassle. So I was like, never mind.’
It just happens to you. Hit the brakes on your shame and ask for help
During her master, Daphne fell behind on her studies because of psychological issues. She went to her study adviser to sound the alarm. ‘I had fallen pretty far behind and I thought it would be a good idea to tell the university what had happened. I wanted to get it off my chest.’
The study adviser didn’t tell Daphne about the Graduation Fund until later. In order to apply, she had to talk to the student dean, since they decide whether or not someone qualifies for financial aid. ‘That was an unpleasant conversation’, she says. ‘I figured a referral to a psychologist would be enough, but the dean kept asking questions about my personal situation.’
Deadline
The conversation was only the first step in actually getting the money. Daphne was given a deadline to provide several pieces of evidence to prove that she deserved the money.
‘That’s kind odd, isn’t it?’ she says. ‘I was already struggling and they expected me to do all this administrative stuff. I really dreaded having to do all that.’ She kept putting it off, until she suddenly no longer had access to her UG email account because she’d graduated too long ago.
‘That deadline just about killed me’, she says. ‘It’s just so much trouble: really complicated and a lot of work. That’s why I didn’t do it.’
Nevertheless, Daphne would advise students to take action. ‘The most important thing is to stay in touch with your study adviser. They’ve seen it all. Even if you’re ashamed, if you do nothing, you’re only hurting yourself.’