City colleges are doing their best to help stressed students with bang-on online counselling

Ma’am… I need your help. It’s personal. I don’t know what to do. That is why I am writing to you. The problem is I have been having constant headaches for one year but doctors say I am perfectly fine. Can you help?”

It may not sound like an unusual problem to us, but city colleges are donning the role of agony aunts to counsel their students, providing guidance through online and one-on-one counselling. Though they do provide help on different aspects of academics, including exams and presentations, stress, depression, relationship problems, loneliness have become integral issues too.

An engineering college in the city recently launched a website to help students, not just academically, but also on emotional issues and other psychological problems. Says Ruchir Saxena, computer faculty in Shankara Institute of Technology, “The idea came to me when I noticed that many of our students do not ask questions in class. I realised that they were too shy to ask in front of the whole class. I thought of creating a website to help them.”

And when the college received a query recently from a student who wanted emotional help, that’s when the idea of doing up a website cropped up. The college has approached the NGO, Health and Social Development Research Centre, for its experts to counsel students. Says Saxena, “They only need to log in at the website and submit their query along with their email address. Our experts will respond.”

And since websites like these keep identities confidential, it is more comfortable for students to seek online advice. “We have asked some of our alumnii to provide online guidance to students,” says Shashikant Singhi, director Poornima group of colleges. 

The International College for Girls also provides a comprehensive free service to students to help them cope with their problems. “It is more comfortable for the students to seek advice from experts,” says Shaheen Khan, psychological counsellor ICG. “There are times when teenagers need help but do not know whom to approach. We are also planning to begin a telephonic helpline on ICG’s community radio FM 7,” she adds. 

Richa Shukla/ DNA-Daily News & Analysis Source: 3D Syndication