A systematic review of interventions embedded in curriculum to improve university student wellbeing

TY - JOUR

T1 - A systematic review of interventions embedded in curriculum to improve university student wellbeing

AU - Upsher, Rebecca

AU - Nobili, Anna

AU - Hughes, Gareth

AU - Byrom, Nicola

N1 - Funding Information: The Education for Mental Health project is part of the Mental Health Challenge Competition programme, funded by the Office for Students. The Office for Students is the independent regulator for higher education in England. Their aim is to ensure that every student, whatever their background, has a fulfilling experience of higher education that enriches their lives and careers. Additionally, Dr Byrom is partially supported by funding from the ESRC ES/S00324X/1. Publisher Copyright: © 2022

PY - 2022/11

Y1 - 2022/11

N2 - Background: As concerns around student mental health increase, universities are looking at preventative and universal interventions. The aim was to conduct a systematic review of curriculum-embedded interventions that target student mental health and wellbeing at university. Method: This was a systematic review of longitudinal pre-/post-studies of curriculum-embedded interventions to improve the mental health and wellbeing of students. Seven electronic databases were searched from June 2015 to May 2020. The vote counting method was used to synthesise studies. Results: Forty-six studies were included in the review. Studies were heterogeneous, and mostly underpowered and rated ‘poor’ in the risk of bias assessment due to poor and inconsistent reporting. Overall, most curriculum-embedded interventions did not influence stress or anxiety. Discussion: There is no strong evidence to support the impact of curriculum-embedded interventions for improving student mental health or wellbeing. Greater funding opportunities would allow for multi-programme and inter-institutional collaboration to improve the power of studies. Improved quality of reporting would enable high-quality meta-analyses, optimizing conclusions being drawn.

AB - Background: As concerns around student mental health increase, universities are looking at preventative and universal interventions. The aim was to conduct a systematic review of curriculum-embedded interventions that target student mental health and wellbeing at university. Method: This was a systematic review of longitudinal pre-/post-studies of curriculum-embedded interventions to improve the mental health and wellbeing of students. Seven electronic databases were searched from June 2015 to May 2020. The vote counting method was used to synthesise studies. Results: Forty-six studies were included in the review. Studies were heterogeneous, and mostly underpowered and rated ‘poor’ in the risk of bias assessment due to poor and inconsistent reporting. Overall, most curriculum-embedded interventions did not influence stress or anxiety. Discussion: There is no strong evidence to support the impact of curriculum-embedded interventions for improving student mental health or wellbeing. Greater funding opportunities would allow for multi-programme and inter-institutional collaboration to improve the power of studies. Improved quality of reporting would enable high-quality meta-analyses, optimizing conclusions being drawn.

KW - Curriculum

KW - Higher education

KW - Mental health

KW - University

KW - Wellbeing

UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/record.url?scp=85132930650&partnerID=8YFLogxK

U2 - 10.1016/j.edurev.2022.100464

DO - 10.1016/j.edurev.2022.100464

M3 - Article

AN - SCOPUS:85132930650

SN - 1747-938X

VL - 37

JO - Educational Research Review

JF - Educational Research Review

M1 - 100464

ER -