Student Counselling Centre (Office of Dean, Student Welfare)

Dr. Ruby Gupta, Counsellor

As per the guidelines of University Grants Commission (UGC), Student Counselling Centre was set-up at Punjabi University, Patiala in the premises of Dean, Students’ Welfare Office in January, 2019.

It strives to establish Mental Health as a co-existent with Physical, Emotional, Social, Academic & Spiritual Health and thus a predictor of holistic well-being.

Aim & Objectives

Student Counselling Centre focuses on addressing the challenges and dilemmas faced by the students ranging from Anxiety, Stress, Homesickness, Interpersonal Conflicts, Depressive Thoughts and Academic Concerns affecting mental health and day-to-day life. The efforts are made to fulfil the aim through the following objectives:

• To bring about a voluntary change in the students through one-to-one counselling.
• To address the emotional, social and behavioral needs of the students in a non-judgmental and empathetic manner.
• To improve the person’s ability to establish & maintain healthy social relationships.
• To empower the students be able to imbibe self-awareness, acceptance & self-compassion.
• To assist in modifying self-defeating thoughts, behaviour and habits.
• To equip the person with the skills and strategies to self-regulate.
• To enhance the person’s ability to cope and adjust and thus enhancing the decision-making process.
• To provide a platform for Personal Development and understanding the importance of a Purpose.
• To raise awareness regarding mental health.
• To provide Career Counselling to the university students or as per the need.

A brief account of ACTIVITIES OF STUDENTS’ COUNSELLING CENTRE

Personal Counselling & Mentoring:

Personal Counselling & Mentoring has been imparted to the University students for diverse issues. The Counselling Services are available to all the university students on working days without any honorarium. The distressed cases due to various reasons in the hostels are addressed at the administrative level at Punjabi University, and are provided with Counselling as well.

Soft Skills Development: Various workshops have been conducted for the university students on the themes of:

• Stress Management
• Emotional Regulation
• Life Skills
• Assertiveness Training
• Interview Skills
• Handling Exam Stress
• Building Excellence Mindset
• Meditation
• Mindfulness: Key to Focus, Concentration & Energy Investment
• Cyber Safety: Threats & its Redressal
• Time Management

In the wake of Covid-19 & subsequent Lockdown, various Webinars were conducted for the university students with the objective of spreading Awareness and equipping the university students with the management and adjustment with the unprecedented times.

• A Webinar was organised on 27th May, 2020 on the theme of Covid-19 & Mental Health, where the following concerns were emphasised upon by the various experts:
• Post Covid Landscape: Educational & Social Perspective
• Implications of Mental Health Challenges in the context of Covid-19
• Immunity in Mental Health
• Modification in the context of Covid-19 & Mental Health
• Another Webinar was organised on 5th June, 2020 on World Environment Day, where Environmental & Ecological Implications with Covid-19 in relation to students were discussed.
• Webinar on World Mental Health Day was organised on 10th October, 2020 on the theme of “Mental Health for All”, where the following discourses were brought into light:
• Decoding Mental Health
• Mind-Body Relationship
• Psychological Immunity & Mental Health
• Developing Psychological Immunity
• Building Resilience
• COVID-19 Helpline, Punjabi University, Patiala: A Covid-19 Helpline was launched on 21st April, 2020 at Punjabi University, Patiala. Keeping in mind the concerns like Anxiety, Stress, Depression, Inter-personal Crisis, Stress Management, Thought Modification of the students & employees of Punjabi University in the context of pandemic, the Helpline comprised of 26 experts/counsellors from different areas. The activity was continued till Dec. 2021, about which the university students were regularly and continuously updated.
• During Covid, a taskforce of students was created in each hostel by the hostel administration. This task force was given Orientation lectures on Covid Appropriate Behaviour, Managing Stress, following a healthy routine, Inculcating congenial interpersonal relations with each other.
• Video Discourses: In order to reach the maximum number of university students and taking cognizance of the requirement of knowledge and information dissemination of various mental health strategies to deal with various life situations, Student Counselling Centre regularly creates various video discourses in association with Dept of Public Relations, which are published on university social media i.e., the official university Facebook page and Twitter handles. It covers topics spanning Global Health in relation to Mental Health, Circadian Rhythms, Empathy, Mind Skills, Subconscious Mind, Suicide Prevention, Trauma Healing etc.
• Hostel Visits: Regular & Scheduled hostel visits are conducted in the afternoon and the schedule is put up on the notice-boards of the hostels.
• Counselling the Employees: The university employees are also provided with Counselling Services.
• National Seminar was co-ordinated by Student Counselling Centre for university students (offline) on 10th October, 2019, which was organised by Dept of Psychology, Punjabi University, Patiala, commemorating 550th Birth Anniversary of Sri Guru Nanak Dev Ji amalgamating Guru Nanak’s Teachings with Psychological Insights & Perspectives and Mental Health. The seminar was convened by Dr. Nalini Malhotra, Associate Prof., Dept. of Psychology, Punjabi University, Patiala. It was held on the occasion of World Mental Health Day.