Wellbeing activities

Our wellbeing activities give you the opportunity to take a small break from busy university life to focus on your own physical and mental wellbeing. Whether you want to meet other students, or find techniques to overcome any stress or anxiety – we offer a wide range of activities and workshops.

Registration for activities closes 24 hours before the session starts. For activities held on a Monday, registration closes on the Friday before the session.

Wellbeing activities timetable

2022-23 Student Wellbeing Activities Semester 2
Week Date and Time Activity Location and
Sign Up Link
Welcome Tuesday 10 January
12.00-13.00
Time out tea Student Wellbeing Centre
 

Friday 13 January, 14.00 - 13.00

Wellbeing walk

Sign up

1

Thursday 19 January  12.00 - 13.00

Time out tea Student Wellbeing Centre
2 Tuesday 24 January, 11.00 - 12.00 Looking after yourself at uni

Online
Sign Up

  Tuesday 24 January, 12.00 - 13.00 Mature students' mixer

Liberty's
Sign up

  Wednesday 25 January,
13.00-14.00
Postgraduate research students: have a break, tea and cake Student Wellbeing Centre
 


Wednesday 25 January,
14.00-15.00

Wellbeing crafts Student Wellbeing Centre
Sign up
 
  Thursday 26 January
15.30-16.30
Getting started with your dissertation Online
Sign up
3 Wednesday 1 February 12.00-13.00 How to be a good student by a bad one David Brewster 1.15 
Sign up
  Thursday 2 February 11.00-12.00 Planning for success Online
Sign up
  Thursday 2 February 16.00-17.00 Mindfulness Online
Sign up
  Friday 3 February 13.00-14.00 Wellbeing walk Sign up
4 Monday 6 February 14.00-15.00 How to manage your dissertation Online
Sign up
 
5 Monday 13 February 14.00-15.00 How to get a good night's sleep Student Union Meeting Room 1
Sign up
  Wednesday 15 February 15.00-16.00 Time out tea Student Wellbeing Centre
  Thursday 16 February 16.00-17.00 Mindfulness Online
Sign up
6 Tuesday 21 February 12.00-13.00 Coping with presentation nerves Online
Sign up
  Wednesday 22 February 13.00-14.00 Postgraduate research students: have a break, tea and cake Student Wellbeing Centre
  Wednesday 22 February 14.00-15.00 Wellbeing crafts Student Wellbeing Centre
Sign up
7 Monday 27 February 15.00-16.00 Relationships and friendships Online
Sign up
  Tuesday 28 February 14.00-15.00 How to manage stress and anxiety Online
Sign up
  Thursday 2 March 16.00-17.00 Mindfulness Online
Sign up
  Friday 3 March 12.00-13.00 Wellbeing walk Sign up
8 Tuesday 7 March 11.30-13.00 Done is better than perfect Online
Sign up
  Wednesday 8 March 9.30-10.00 Morning meditation Online
Sign up
9 Wednesday 15 March 9.30-10.00 Morning meditation Online
Sign up
  Thursday 16 March 12.00-13.00 Time out tea Student Wellbeing Centre
  Thursday 16 March 16.00-17.00 Mindfulness Online
Sign up
10 Wednesday 22 March 13.00-14.00 Postgraduate research students: have a break, tea and cake Student Wellbeing Centre
  Wednesday 22 March 14.00-15.00 Wellbeing crafts Student Wellbeing Centre
Sign up
11 Wednesday 29 March 12.00-13.00 How to manage exam stress Online
Sign up
  Friday 31 March 12.00-13.00 Wellbeing walk Sign up
12 Monday to Friday 15.00-16.00 Exam stress and wellbeing drop-ins Student Wellbeing Centre

Self care and your studies

Time at university can be very enjoyable but also quite stressful. Academic life makes many demands on students and sometimes it might be easy to forget to look after yourself. This informal presentation will look at ways of taking care of ourselves, both physically and emotionally, including making time to calm down, take breaks, re-energise and feel good about yourself, with the goal of supporting good health and having the best chance for success. 
 

Perfectionism and resilience

During the session we will look at perfectionism and how it can sneak into daily life, what we can do when things go wrong, what we mean by resilience and how to develop more of it.
 

Coping with presentation nerves

Strategies to help make presenting less of an ordeal. It is common for people to get nervous at the thought of giving a presentation. Standing up and speaking in front of a group can cause anxiety and mind blanks. This session will equip you with some strategies to manage nerves and help you overcome the fears associated with speaking in public.
 

How to manage exam stress

Stressed out because exams are looming? Using cognitive behavioural principles this workshop will show you some useful methods to remain calm, feel good and manage both your revision and exams by exploring: how to avoid behaviours that can make stress worse; how stress can affect you - identifying your own exam stress 'triggers'; how to use breathing techniques to help manage anxiety.
 

Planning for success

This workshop will provide an opportunity to reflect on your University experience so far.  You will learn about the full range of support available at Heriot-Watt and we will help you to create an action plan of the steps you can take to help ensure a successful Semester.
 

Managing anxiety

Do you often feel anxious or stressed, or do certain situations sometimes feel overwhelming or too much? Learn helpful techniques to manage anxiety using a cognitive behavioural approach.
 

How to get started with your dissertation

Run by student success advisors, this workshop will help you make a successful start on your dissertation.  As recent HWU graduates, student success advisors have experience of completing a dissertation or project from different subject areas, so can provide you with some tips on taking those first steps.  This session will address planning and structuring, how to approach primary research, creating personal deadlines, managing stress, and staying motivated.

Time-out tea

This is an informal opportunity to meet other students online and enjoy some afternoon tea from the comfort of your own home.

Mindfulness

Do you find that you often feel stressed, anxious or on edge? Do you tend to find yourself preoccupied, thinking about the future or going over past events in your mind? Would you like to try a difference approach to managing worry, stress or runaway thoughts? Then you might find the mindfulness group helpful. This is a small, friendly group which aims to help you manage and overcome some of these issues by looking at how to be more mindful in our lives. If you would like more information please email studentwellbeing@hw.ac.uk

Exam stress and wellbeing advice appointments with the student success advisors

Our student success advisors are all recent Heriot-Watt graduates, so have successfully been through what current students are experiencing and can help with:

  • All aspects of coping with the stresses and challenges of preparing for assessments
  • Hints and tips for successful study
  • Advice on managing time and commitments
  • Signposting useful resources and support
  • Advice on all elements of student life.

Key information

Student Wellbeing Services