It pays to invest in wellness

Oliver Sussat at The Harding Hub, an IHE Partner, champions cutting-edge VR technology to usher in a new era of affordable, effective solutions for enhancing student wellbeing.

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Colleagues across the sector have spent up to 18 months reaching, meeting, assessing and admitting our latest intake of students. As a next step, retaining those students and helping them to achieve their own personal success is not only part of our sector commitment to them, but vital for our own institutional success, reputation and longevity. 

The transition to university life marks a significant milestone for these arriving learners. We know that their first term of study is often fraught with difficulties; they are at increased risk of performing poorly in assessments and even dropping out of studies completely, particularly around the Christmas period.

Accordingly, education institutions have been doing a lot to try to support students’ wellbeing and keep them engaged with their studies (where this is determined to be the right and appropriate approach), including employing or contracting counsellors, psychotherapists and coaches. However, the truth is that when it comes to providing this kind of clinical expertise to address student-specific issues and deal with moments of crisis, resource is not easy to secure – and neither is it cheap. 

Is an answer in emerging technology?

Today, we are presented with an opportunity to create change in this landscape, bridging the gap between the general activities that institutions are commonly deploying (such as on-site whole-population activities and online wellbeing resources) and the more targeted, person-centred interventions provided on a student-by-student basis. Doing so provides a new level of support for learners in need, whilst safeguarding the person-centred counselling, therapy and coaching resource for those that most require it.

Mindfulness-Based Cognitive Therapy (MBCT) has long been recognised as an effective method for managing stress and anxiety. Recent studies have explored the potential of VR (Virtual Reality) as an effective way of delivering MBCT-based courses, to not only help people who are experiencing low mood and anxiety, but proactively provide them with the kinds of tools that were previously only possible when delivered by counsellors and coaches.

Imagine what this kind of VR technology could do when delivered to students. In a recent initiative led by St George’s University London, 100 students trialled a course of hypnosis-based relaxation techniques ahead of their exams. Half of the students participated in the trial using VR technology, whilst the other half used standard 2D screens. Before and after every session, students were asked to report how calm, stressed and anxious they felt. Amongst the students using the VR technology, their levels of perceived stress and anxiety fell, whilst their perceived readiness for their exams rose. Those using the traditional 2D screens did not experience the same benefits.

Spurred on by such studies, I have recently been working with my colleagues at The Harding Hub and our partner Tend VR to bring this technology into use by more higher education providers. Tend’s combined hardware and software offering (or software-only for those institutions who already have compatible headsets) provides two distinct kinds of activity, both based on MBCT. The first is a series of relaxation sessions that can be undertaken by anybody at any time, and the second is a 40-part course that delivers learning and resilience to those who require specific support with their wellbeing. The technology can be used on-campus or deployed to students for use at their own locations, with Tend’s operational teams available to support institutions throughout the process.

For the equivalent cost of five counselling sessions, a Tend headset could help up to 40 students improve their wellbeing.

In Tend’s wider feasibility studies with UCL, the technology achieved a 48% reduction in GAD-7 (generalised anxiety) scores and a 49% reduction in the PHQ-9 (depression) scores for the participants involved. With this in mind, we are now working with Tend and with the sector to create similar effect with student populations specifically. Together, we offer something that is:

  1. Scalable for all sizes of student populations and accessible to all sizes of institution: Our VR offering can work as well for 2,000 students as it can for 20. This technology quickly pays for itself: for the equivalent cost of giving one student five sessions with a counsellor or coach, a tend headset could help up to 40 students improve their wellbeing.
  2. Supporting both the academic and commercial performance of the institution as a whole, as well as the wellbeing of students: Improved student wellbeing has a direct impact on academic performance and retention rates. By reducing the incidence of stress and burnout, Tend’s VR technology can help students stay focused on their studies, leading to better academic outcomes. For universities, this translates into improved student satisfaction scores, higher retention rates, and ultimately, better commercial performance.
  3. Providing early support: The sector is reporting that the propensity for learners reaching out and asking for help, especially among younger student populations, is very low. Tend’s team can deploy an initial temperature check of your student community at key times, such as induction or pre-examination. 
  4. Helping more students receive more support: Using the results of temperature checks, you can deliver scalable and affordable technology to entire cohorts of students, providing them with the content and tools to proactively improve their wellbeing in a way that works, or serving as additional support for the specific students who most need it.
  5. Promoting a mentally healthy workplace: By making Tend’s VR technology available to staff too, you will be solidifying your commitment to their wellbeing, improving your employee value proposition and enhancing your ability to recruit and retain staff.

In increasingly difficult circumstances for learners, staff and institutions alike, emerging technologies like Tend VR can make life that little bit easier. Investing in wellbeing can protect your institution’s revenue, safeguard individuals, and improve performance indicators across the board. With a new academic year starting, and with that the requirement to switch from recruitment to retention mode, there are plenty of reasons for you to act sooner rather than later. 

Oliver Sussat

The Harding Hub

Photograph of Oli Sussat, Chief Technology and Information Officer at The Harding Hub, standing against a background of greenery.

Oliver has worked within and with the UK higher education sector for over 20 years. He is currently working with his colleagues at The Harding Hub to bring their expertise to education institutions across the country.

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