My Wellbeing Planner

A coaching process enabling students to improve wellbeing and performance.

Project overview

This project aimed at developing a personalised wellbeing and performance plan for international students. The ‘My Wellbeing Planner’ project draws on a range of current research based including personalised approaches in education and health; the relationship between wellbeing and academic performance; wellbeing programs and good education practice; coaching; goal striving; and self-determination. The ‘My Wellbeing Planner’ project serves as the foundational project for future, longer-term research and intervention in a variety of areas.

In this program students are sent a ‘Pre-departure Pack’ in their own country (many of Trinity College’s students come from China) and are asked to think about what the term ‘wellbeing’ means to them. In this way they start their wellbeing journey with a personalised conception and definition of wellbeing.Once they arrive at Trinity college, they receive an ‘Arrival Pack’ where they take their concept of wellbeing and build upon it by learning about setting performance goals for wellbeing and academic achievement, all with the support of a mentor. Additionally, they are provided with information on maintaining their wellbeing goals, such as barriers and coping strategies, and specific wellbeing skills they can plan to use – such as strengths and gratitude. Over their stay at Trinity each student meets 4 times with their mentor to talk about their ‘My Wellbeing Plan’ and the progress they are making. The My Wellbeing Planner was in development, refinement, and testing throughout 2019, and due to its success is will be rolled out on scale to all 2,000+ Trinity students in 2020, with an ambitious goal of taking the program online and also offering it with wider cohorts.

Staff

• Professor Lindsay Oades
• Associate Professor Aaron Jarden
• Dr Corina Ozturk
• Ms Becky Black

Funding

Trinity College Pathways School, University of Melbourne