Supporting students to get back on track following some form of disruption

Supporting students to get back on track following some form of disruption toolkit

This toolkit is intended to support staff to guide and advise students who have experienced a disruption to their studies. The disruption may have been due to personal change in circumstances, physical or mental ill-health, or another reason. The impact of the disruption may be that the student has not engaged in their studies, has missed assessments, or is displaying signs of no longer performing as they would otherwise be expected to. 

This toolkit will cover: 

  • Key processes and policies you may need to follow 
  • What might a student need 
  • Practical things you can do 
  • University services that may help the student. 

Key processes and policy 

Common reasons that a student may need help getting back on track may include having experienced a period of ill health, endured significant financial hardship, or taken a leave of absence for parenting or caring responsibilities.  

Other students may not have taken any time away from their studies but may nonetheless have experienced significant set-backs including failing assessments. Please see the below list for a number of relevant policy links and resources. 

What might a student need? 

What might a student most typically need help with: 

  • Knowing what to prioritise 
  • Help with decision making process relating to courses and assessments (e.g. discuss whether any courses might have very heavy or complex assessment requirements which might be challenging to balance) 
  • Refreshing their academic skills 
  • Reintegration into their academic community, e.g. joining Academic Societies, getting involved with PALS / Peer Support activities as relevant in your own School / Deanery 
  • Rebuilding their confidence and being encouraged 
  • Supporting their ongoing wellbeing. 

Practical things you can do 

  • Set up a meeting with the student – remember, you may need to allow for more frequent (but not necessarily very long) meetings whilst the student re-establishes themselves
  • Be an active listener and be guided by what the student shares with you. Avoid making assumptions about what might be best for them before you have had an initial discussion with them. There will be a variety of reasons why a student might have struggled to adjust to university, you don’t need to analyse these, you need to help guide them forwards
  • Work with them to identify practical priorities: 
    • Do they need to resit any assessments and if so, what do they need to do now to make that happen? You’ll see this on their EUCLID record. 
    • Do they need to make any adjustments to course choices and if so, what is the timeframe for doing this? Typically, these choices need to be confirmed within the first two weeks of Semester. 
    • Is anything particularly time critical (e.g. assignment deadlines)? 
    • Is there anything that a student can de-prioritise or say ‘no’ to (in the short to medium term) such as an extra-curricular activity? (Do remember that many students also work part time or have caring responsibilities, and it is unlikely they will be able to make changes to these obligations). 
    • Ensure the student takes ownership of what they need to do next and how they will plan and organise their time. Further resources are available on MyDevelopmentHub below, however here are some ‘Top Tips for Getting Organised’ (The Online Development Toolkit | Top Tips for Getting Organised (goodpractice.net)). 
  • Remember it is OK to ask the student if they need other support beyond getting back on track with their studies and to remind them of the Wellbeing Services which are available to them. Health and wellbeing | The University of Edinburgh. However, it may be that a helpful, structured, encouraging, planning discussion is all they need in order to regain a more positive outlook on their studies. 
  • Agree when you will next meet, what you will discuss, and where and how you will meet, before you end your discussion. 

University Services 

If the student is returning after a period of ill-health, they can access support from the Student Disability Service (Students | The University of Edinburgh) for example requesting a Schedule of Adjustments. 

There is a wide range of skills development support and events through: 

If a student might benefit from more specialist wellbeing support, the Student Counselling Service, Student Disability Service and the Chaplaincy may be able to support them, as well as a range of online self-help resources: 

The Students’ Association Advice Place (Edinburgh University Students' Association) provides students with free, non-judgemental, impartial advice on a wide range of issues, and you can direct a student to this service for further support. 

Related resources 

You may also want to review the following toolkits in order to best support your students and structure your conversations: 

Supporting Students to Succeed | The University of Edinburgh 

Resources to Support Student Learning and Personal Effectiveness | The University of Edinburgh 

Anomalous Progression | The University of Edinburgh 

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