GSA survey indicates support for graduate peer support program
"I am very confident that we will be able to launch this," GSA President says.
Macy WongOn October 10, the University of Alberta Graduate Students’ Association (GSA) published a mental health report. The report, titled “Under Pressure: Mental Health Realities for Graduate Students at U of A,” analyzed survey data from 824 U of A graduate students. According to the survey data, 58 per cent of participants support the development of a graduate peer support program.
According to GSA President Haseeb Arshad, graduate students often “don’t feel comfortable opening up about their issues with undergraduate volunteers” at the Peer Support Centre. Arshad added that 43 per cent of graduate students are international students. These students often have unique needs and may face barriers to mental health services, Arshad said.
“We need a peer support program where we have volunteers who understand the cultural sensitivities around our constituent members,” he said.
“We need something where volunteers have proficiency in multiple languages. International students are more comfortable speaking in their own language when they are talking about their personal issues.”
Services are needed to address the unique concerns of graduate students, GSA president says
The survey data also indicates that 26.5 per cent of participants have received a clinical mental health diagnosis. Of these students, 66 per cent received their diagnosis after starting their graduate studies.
“These numbers are very telling,” Arshad said.
A graduate peer support program could potentially be a branch of the current Peer Support Centre, Arshad said. He emphasized the importance of ensuring that whatever program is developed is sustainable. The biggest hurdle in developing a graduate peer support program is receiving funding from the university, he said.
“At the end of the day, the GSA is a very small association. We don’t have funds to support this sort of a program on our own,” Arshad said.
“Fortunately, this year I’ve been working with the Dean of Students (DoS) office to explore the funding framework for this. I am very confident that we will be able to launch this.”
