Over the past several years, there has been a marked increase in the recruitment of international students to Ontario’s post-secondary institutions. The mental health and well-being of international students are important topics for post-secondary institutions to address. Being far away from their home communities and cultural differences in the understanding of wellness make international students an important population for institutions to consider when developing supportive mental health and well-being services and programming. This toolkit aims to dissect key issues and provide a fulsome understanding of how the unique vulnerability of international students intersects with daily life to mold mental health outcomes.
How Should I Use This Toolkit?
This toolkit is designed for campus staff, faculty, and administrators who wish to gain a deeper understanding of the unique needs of international students. It focuses on various challenges that international students may face in a post-secondary environment and offers actionable recommendations on how to support them.
We encourage you to use this toolkit in the way that best suits your needs. The document is structured to allow you to jump between sections, skip sections, or read the entire toolkit from start to finish. Each section provides practical recommendations on actions you can take to support international students, and a complete list of all recommendations can be found at the end of the toolkit.
You are welcome to print or download the full toolkit or any specific section that is most relevant to you.
If you’re interested in campus spotlights, you’ll find them at the end of the document. Additionally, if you have any questions or notice that a program from your institution is missing and should be featured in one of the spotlights, feel free to contact the project lead, Julie Porrot at jporrot@campusmenathealth.ca or info@campusmentalhealth.ca.
