Ready, Set, University

by Heartscape Psychology intern, Valeree Soh

The summer is winding down, and the new academic year approaches for university students. As a seasoned university student myself, I can safely say that university is a transformative experience. Not to be cliche or anything, but I found myself being challenged both intellectually and relationally. Personally, university pushed me out of my comfort zones and fostered growth. I had a multitude of opportunities to develop skills beyond the classroom, learn from individuals with varying perspectives (professors and students alike), and build lasting friendships. However, this is not to say that university was not demanding, because it is! Yet all these experiences come together to shape who you become, and I’m grateful that I’ve had this chance. 

Transitions are always scary. The jump from pre-university institutions to university has been found to require significant social and emotional adjustments (Young et al., 2020), and the demanding nature of this may potentially affect individuals’ mental health (Ran et al., 2016). The Freshman Orientation Programme is possibly one of the biggest university events. There’s faculty orientation camp, hall camp, student union camp, etc. The herculean task of making new friends can feel overwhelming. However, these activities are meant to provide opportunities for you to meet others and find community, easing your transition into university life. This could even alleviate some of the anxieties you may feel!

Here are 5 tips for you to take care of your mental health during university.

1. Maintain a healthy sleep schedule

I can’t stress how important this is. Sleep is causally related to mental health difficulties (Scott et al., 2021), and it makes sense that improving sleep quality may improve your mental health as well! Without sufficient and quality sleep, research has shown that our cognitive (how we think) and emotional (how we feel) abilities will be negatively impacted (Krause et al., 2017). So, sleep well! (Last minute cramming for tests doesn't work anyway. Tried and tested.)

1. Balance studying and having a social life

When I entered university, I heard about the “S triangle”: Sleep, study, social. Rarely do people find the balance between all three. Some may prioritise their social lives and sleep more than studying, others studying and having a social life more than sleep. Remember how sleep is important, and almost a non-negotiable? That means you have to strike a balance between studying and having a social life! Of course, both are important and should not be neglected. Studying too much leaves little room for relaxation, and having too much fun causes you to shirk the responsibility to your studies. 

1. Find your community

Find your people! Whether they’re from orientation camps, hall, school, extracurriculars, community is important in university! Humans are social, and we typically don’t do too well in isolation. Wickramaratne et al. (2022) showed that social connectedness serves as a protective factor against depressive symptoms and disorders. Having a group of people you can turn to during university allows you to feel less alone, and feel more supported! 

1. Keep active

Rodríguez-Romo et al. (2022) found a positive relationship between physical activity and the mental health of undergraduate students. The higher the total physical activity, the better the mental health. In university, it’s easy to join groups that exercise together! This can take the form of hall sports, or you can even join school clubs! Every university has a wide variety of sports available. Keeping active thus not only boosts your physical health, but also your mental health!

1. Set realistic goals for yourself

Set SMART academic goals for yourself: Specific, Measurable, Achievable, Relevant, Time-Bound. Say you want to improve your GPA. You can go about that using SMART! How much do you want to increase it by? How well must you do in each of your tests? How many hours a week will you study for this module? Remember, you have to be realistic! Your course load might look like 5 different modules, and you have to sleep and have a social life as well, so how will you divide the remaining time so you study sufficiently for all your classes? One of my professors used to quote Benjamin Franklin, “If you fail to plan, you are planning to fail.” Well, not fail in the literal sense, but perhaps fail to achieve your goals! Plan well, and do well!

According to WHO (n.d.), “Health is a state of complete physical, mental and social well-being and not merely the absence of disease or infirmity.” To flourish and succeed in university (and life), you need to prioritise your health, both mental and physical! Should you find yourself needing more help than you can handle on your own, it is important to seek professional help. We want to emphasise here that it is completely okay and normal to struggle, and there is no shame in seeking help. Click on the links below for the professional and peer mental health support available in each of the universities:

• National University of Singapore

• Nanyang Technological University

• Singapore Management University

• Singapore Institute of Technology

• Singapore University of Social Sciences

• Singapore University of Technology and Design

Freshmen, if you’re reading this, entering university can be anxiety inducing and you may be filled with uncertainty about how life will pan out. But keep an open mind! Be open to new experiences, and new friendships. Be excited to be challenged, and to gain more in-depth knowledge about your chosen field of study. You may find this stage of your life surprising you in more ways than one. For those of you heading back to university for yet another semester, stay positive and cherish the experiences you’ll have. It is often difficult to be thankful for trying group mates or difficult coursework in the moment, but one day you might realise that these experiences teach you a lot more than you expect!

Wishing everyone a pleasant semester ahead!

References

Krause, A. J., Simon, E. B., Mander, B. A., Greer, S. M., Saletin, J. M., Goldstein-Piekarski, A. N., & Walker, M. P. (2017). The sleep-deprived human brain. Nature Reviews Neuroscience, 18(7), 404–418. https://doi.org/10.1038/nrn.2017.55

Ran, M., Mendez, A. J., Leng, L., Bansil, B., Reyes, N., Cordero, G., Carreon, C., Fausto, M., Maminta, L., & Tang, M. (2016). Predictors of Mental Health Among College Students in Guam: Implications for Counseling. Journal of Counseling & Development, 94(3), 344–355. https://doi.org/10.1002/jcad.12091

Rodríguez-Romo, G., Acebes-Sánchez, J., García-Merino, S., Garrido-Muñoz, M., Blanco-García, C., & Diez-Vega, I. (2022). Physical Activity and Mental Health in Undergraduate Students. International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health, 20(1), 195. https://doi.org/10.3390/ijerph20010195

Scott, A. J., Webb, T. L., Martyn-St James, M., Rowse, G., & Weich, S. (2021). Improving sleep quality leads to better mental health: A meta-analysis of randomised controlled trials. Sleep Medicine Reviews, 60, 101556. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.smrv.2021.101556

WHO. (n.d.). Constitution of the World Health Organization. World Health Organization. https://www.who.int/about/governance/constitution 

Wickramaratne, P. J., Yangchen, T., Lepow, L., Patra, B. G., Glicksburg, B., Talati, A., Adekkanattu, P., Ryu, E., Biernacka, J. M., Charney, A., Mann, J. J., Pathak, J., Olfson, M., & Weissman, M. M. (2022). Social connectedness as a determinant of mental health: A scoping review. PLOS ONE, 17(10), e0275004. https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0275004

Young, E., Thompson, R., Sharp, J., & Bosmans, D. (2020). Emotional transitions? Exploring the student experience of entering higher education in a widening-participation HE-in-FE setting. Journal of Further and Higher Education, 44(10), 1349–1363. https://doi.org/10.1080/0309877X.2019.1688264