University-sponsored wellness apps make health information and education more accessible to students.
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When it comes to being online, students are one of the most connected groups, with Research on the bench it is estimated that 96% of 18 to 29 year olds own a smartphone.
Some colleges encourage students unplug from their devices for their mental health (Common Sense Media found that teenagers were checking their phones more than 100 times a day on average), but others leverage the nature of digital natives by using health and wellness apps.
While some of these applications are commercially available for individual students or entire campuses to adoptothers are developed internally by administrators, staff and students.
All universities in the University of Texas System have a Thrive at UT app, first developed at UT Austin with advisors, students and faculty.
Thrive at UT covers eight areas: community, gratitude, self-compassion, mindfulness, mindset, thoughts, moods, and purpose. Each topic area includes an inspirational quote, a short testimonial video from a UT student, helpful information and an interactive activity, according to the app’s website.
The app is designed to develop healthy habits and behavior changes to promote well-being, such as expressing gratitude or taking a break to be mindful when busy.
Stay in the Blue is an app for students who drink alcohol to assess their consumption and make safe choices while at the University of Michigan.
The app has an estimated BAC calculator that uses a student’s gender and weight, measured against the number and type of drinks consumed, to display the estimated BAC displayed in a color-coded glass. Students’ goal is to “stay in the blue,” meaning between a blood alcohol level between 0.00 and 0.6, and the app will alert them when they record additional drinks .
This fall, Florida Gulf Coast University adopted a project created by a student health and wellness app that helps students identify their feelings and then connect them to campus resources.
Jack Hellmer, an interdisciplinary entrepreneurship major, experienced personal challenges in college that led to anxiety and other health issues.
Hellmer built the application with the university’s counseling and psychology services in mind. Each day, the app asks students a series of questions about their day and offers personalized suggestions based on their answers. Students can choose to meet with CAPS staff, who submit all data that students have provided to the application to allow advising staff to gain insight into student needs.
After launching the app campus-wide, Hellmer plans to bring it to other institutions.
KU researchers are Developing Healthy Eating and Self-Esteem Together for College Students (BEST-U) to support students living with an eating disorder who have difficulty accessing care.
BEST-U includes videos, interactive quizzes, short questions, and surveys to track student progress each week. Students also meet with a BEST-U coach for 25-30 minutes per week for one-on-one coaching in person or via telehealth.
The app is still in development as researchers evaluate the impact of the interventions, testing with a group of KU students.
During distance learning due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the University of Alabama at Birmingham launched UABWell, which offers, among other services, a crisis line, appointment scheduler, self-care plan, daily habit tracking, and mindfulness video content.
Unlike other apps, UABWell has separate interfaces for students and employees, with different schedules and resources depending on the person’s university affiliation.
Many of UABWell’s features were imagined by students but developed by staff, according to the university’s website. The app has been downloaded about 6,000 times, according to Angela M. Stowe, director of student counseling services, said Inside higher education.
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