Abstract:
Decisions to drop out of college typically develop over a longer period of time and are often accompanied by psychological stress. Against this backdrop, the question of how to reach students at an early stage when they are beginning to have doubts about their studies becomes increasingly important. University counseling services play a central role in the support process. To ensure that these services are utilized in a timely manner, it is important that those who are in regular contact with students in their day-to-day academic lives recognize the early signs of doubts about their studies and psychological distress, and develop the confidence to address students appropriately and refer them to suitable counseling services.
This article explores the potential of these early points of contact and highlights the extent to which university faculty can play a supportive role in helping students experiencing doubts about their studies or thoughts of dropping out find their way to professional counseling and support services. Using the example of the Kompass M-V Transfer network project, the article illustrates how faculty members can be specifically integrated into existing support and networking structures. The goal is to increase university faculty members’ awareness of doubts about continuing their studies and situations of mental stress, to promote their confidence in handling such situations, and thereby to facilitate students’ access to professional support.
Finally, this article describes the development of a cross-university series of events for university faculty and illustrates its implementation using a practical example. It highlights the contribution that involving university faculty can make to the further development of preventive support structures and to strengthening university-wide networking efforts.
Über den Autor:
- Kristin Henke,
M.A., Projektkoordinatorin Kompass M-V Transfer
