Study environment and wellbeing
Your study environment, how you’re feeling and how you’re treated by others are all important factors that affect your experience when you’re studying. There is always somewhere to turn if you want to know more or if you need support.
Creating a good study environment together
Your study environment includes anything that affects your studies and that is within the University’s responsibility. Examples can be how you’re experiencing your studies, having appropriate facilities to study in and having access to the tools that you need.
You may come across different terms such as study environment, students' working environment and study and working environment. These terms mean the same thing. On this page, we mostly use study environment.
The study environment at the University of Gothenburg should be accessible to everyone and free from all forms of discrimination and harassment. You should feel safe when you are studying with us and you have the right to be treated with respect by fellow students and staff. Everyone who works at the University, students and staff alike, together influence how the environment is perceived and have a shared responsibility to safeguard our own and others' health and safety.
Contribute to a good study environment!
- Contact the course coordinator if you have any comments.
- Be a good fellow student and know your rights and responsibilities at the University. Rights and responsibilities
- Respond to the course evaluation at the end of each course. Quality work and course evaluation
- Contact the student work environment representative (SAMO) for your department if you want to raise something connected to your study environment.
- Get involved in the student union or as a student representative.
How you’re feeling impacts your studies
A lot of things can affect your wellbeing when you’re studying with us. Your study environment and how you’re treated by others is one aspect. It’s also important that you feel that you can keep up with your studies and that you have a healthy balance between studies and free time. Things in your personal life can also affect your studies.
Student healthcare
You can always turn to Student healthcare if you need support because of something that is caused by or is affecting your studies. You can schedule an in-person appointment or have a meeting online or by phone. Student healthcare also works proactively and provides self-guided resources that you can use on your own, when you feel that you need it. It may be material like films and self-help guides about for example stress management and procrastination. Read more on the page Student healthcare.
Service and support at the University
Service and support is a section of the Student Portal guiding you to service and support that the University offers. For example, you can get help developing your academic language and writing or read about strategies for planning your studying.
Study environment and life as a student
The environment you’re in, how you treat others and how they treat you, and your social life all matter for your overall wellbeing.
- The section Rights and responsibilities contains information about things like how we’re expected to behave toward each other at the University and where to turn if you want to leave feedback on something or if you’ve been treated badly by someone else.
- The section Student life contains information about things related to life as a student, like activities and organisations you can get involved in to affect change and meet new people.
The University’s responsibility: study environment, student healthcare and equal opportunities
Study environment
As a student, you are largely equal to the employed staff in matters concerning study environment. The University shall prevent risks of ill health and accidents and promote a satisfactory study environment.
It’s usually the Head of Department where you’re studying who is responsible for your study environment, but the division of responsibilities may vary slightly throughout the University. If you have thoughts concerning your study environment you can turn to your Head of Department as a first point of contact, and they can then refer you elsewhere if necessary.
Equal opportunities
As with study environment, the Head of Department is responsible for work surrounding equal opportunities at the department. The Dean and ultimately the Vice-Chancellor are responsible for the University’s overall work.
The University complies with the Work Environment Act and the Discrimination Act, and these laws form the basis of the work concerning equal opportunities.
Student healthcare
According to the Higher Education Ordinance (högskoleförordningen), the University is responsible for ensuring students’ access to healthcare, in particular preventative healthcare promoting students’ mental and physical wellbeing.