Study Aid: 5 Key Contacts and Counseling Resources Available
In Austria, students facing challenges while studying due to various personal circumstances can find a wealth of psychological support services designed to aid them in navigating their academic journey.
The working group Uniability advocates for the equal treatment of people with disabilities and chronic illnesses at Austrian universities. They are there to help students facing challenges while studying, offering specific information and guides on course selection & planning, study-related service facilities, financial support, scholarships, living situation, and mobility programs for students with disabilities or chronic illnesses.
Uniability also offers the services of trained psychologists, who provide free, anonymous counseling upon request. This service is a valuable resource for students seeking help with personal issues that may impact their studies.
Mindfulness Training for Students: Navigating Your Academic Journey is another resource available to students. This program offers a unique approach to mental health support, helping students to manage stress, improve focus, and enhance their overall well-being.
Beyond Uniability, Austrian students can access a range of psychological counseling services. For instance, Regional child and adolescent psychiatric services (Kinder- und Jugendpsychiatrie) provide comprehensive mental health treatment through a multidisciplinary team of child psychologists, psychiatrists, and mental health professionals. They often collaborate with schools, youth welfare offices, and social services to provide support for children and teens with emotional, behavioral, or developmental challenges.
Confidential free mental health support line "Rat auf Draht" (phone: 147) is another resource available for immediate psychological support and counseling. Mobile psychological counseling teams, such as the Caritas MIT Team, FEM Süd NEDA, and others, also provide clinical psychological counseling focused on relief, psychoeducation, resource activation, and referring to professional services if necessary. These teams offer culturally sensitive and gender-specific support, especially for vulnerable groups including refugees and asylum seekers.
University-level services, including professional advisory services mandated by law for students at higher education institutions, also provide information and counseling regarding study courses and support throughout their studies, cooperating with career counseling bodies.
Clinical Art Therapy educational programs, such as those at Sigmund Freud Private University Vienna, train professionals to work therapeutically with creative methods, potentially offering an alternative modality of psychological support in educational or social settings.
In addition, the typical procedure to access mental health support for children and students often begins with a family doctor referral to relevant specialists or clinics, although direct contact with a child psychologist or therapist is also possible, sometimes with better insurance reimbursement when a referral is provided.
However, there may be some waiting time for public mental healthcare (about 90 days as of 2024), but private health insurance might offer more rapid access to these services.
Community Feel at STUWO: Living in a Student Dormitory is another service offered, providing students with a supportive living environment. Psychological student counseling is available in multiple cities across Austria, including Vienna, Graz, Salzburg, Innsbruck, Klagenfurt, and Linz, for students in all situations, including study choice, studying problems, private life issues, and crisis situations like the Corona pandemic or the war in Ukraine.
Thus, Austrian students can utilize a range of psychological counseling services depending on their needs and circumstances, ensuring diverse access points to mental health support during their academic journey.
Education and self-development are essential components of a student's academic journey, and learning how to manage personal issues is an integral part of this process. Uniability, a working group advocating for people with disabilities and chronic illnesses, provides free, anonymous counseling for students, addressing personal issues that could impact their studies.
