Open call - Share your experiences

Depression, anxiety and other mental health issues are common among students, but they're often a hidden part of university life. Share your experiences to show other students that they are not alone.

In collaboration with the Flemish Ministry of Education and Training, the Support Centre for Inclusive Higher Education (SIHO), is developing a central platform on mental health on behalf of Vice Minister-President Ben Weyts.

The goal of this platform is to instill a boost for every student by providing information, awareness, tips & tools on mental health. The central platform will include e-health tools and a toolbox with interesting resources and student testimonials. The platform will be launched in December 2021.

We are now looking for students to share their experience in videos and /or podcasts: What was it like to manage your studies and your mental health? How did your higher education institution support you? How did your friends and family help you? What are your tips and tricks? We are specifically looking for input on stress, anxiety, depression, loneliness, eating disorders, suicidal behaviour, resilience, connectedness, etc.

Both, the 2 minutes videos and the podcasts, will be produced by a professional movie maker in a corona proof setting during the period July 2021 - September 2021. The videos and podcasts will be shared with a broad audience and posted on the platform. Student unions and higher education institutions will be encouraged to promote the platform to their students through a variety of channels. So this is your unique chance to show other students that they are not alone.

Due to COVID and the travel limitations connected to it, however, we are looking for students (or former students) who are currently located in Belgium only. Our video team can travel to meet them and record, following COVID regulations, but not outside of Belgium unfortunately.

Interested? Please contact Valérie Van Hees to express your interest and motivation. valerie.vanhees@siho.be - Coordinator SIHO - 0474 39 18 38