In accordance with the UGC’s guidelines, NEHUCSSW proposed the institution of Student Counselling Centre (SCC) which will be located at the office of the DSW and function to make available the services free to all the Undergraduate, Post-graduate and Ph. D students of the University.
The main objective of Student Counselling Centre (SCC) is to promote the mental health of all NEHU students, to improve their quality of life and create a learning environment that facilitates their individual development.
The Student Counselling Centre, will function at two levels- at the Departmental and University levels.
At the Departmental level, the University will appoint the Teacher Counsellors who will act as the guardians of the students and remain in touch with the students allotted to them (batch Approved by the 96st Academic Council held on 28th June, 2016 4 of 25 students) throughout the year to cater to their emotional and intellectual needs who will coordinate with the SCC at the University level.
At the University level, the SCC shall oversee the effective redressal of problems and challenges faced by the students. It shall comprise of the following members as per notiification No.28-10/Acad/Misc./2017(B)-361 Dated: 5th March, 2024:
| 1 | Dean Students' Welfare (ex-officio) | Chairman |
| 2 | Proctor | (ex-officio) |
| 3 | Dr. M.C.Das (Warden, H No.2) | Member |
| 4 | Dr. S. Purkayastha (Warden, H No.10 & 11) | Member |
| 5 | Dr. S. Khatua (Warden, H No.19) | Member |
| 6 | Prof. S. Kumar (Warden, H No. 15 & 16) | Member |
| 7 | Dr. C.Mukhim ( Medical Officer) | Member |
| 8 | Prof. S. S. Ray (Medical Officer) | Member |
| 9 | Co-ordinator, Placement Cell | Member |
| 10 | President, NEHUSU | Member |
| 11 | Secretary, NEHUSU | Member |
The SCC at the University level will be assisted by a team of professionally trained and widely experienced female and male Counsellors, psychologist and a psychiatrist, all of whom are accustomed to helping people from many backgrounds and cultures with a wide range of issues.
As specialists working with students, the team can help address whatever it is that may be of concern to students and is affecting their well-being. The team may offer a broad range of services including individual therapy, group therapy, as well as medication, assessment and management.
In addition to these, the team may provide a range of programmes to promote mental health, emotional wellness throughout the campus community. Our counsellors may conduct orientation and interact with students during orientation, conduct sensitization programnes and theme-focused short-term group sessions in consultation with SCC at the University level and with faculties in every academic department of the University
The day to day function will be manned by a regular staff who will be appointed on contractual basis to look after the centre and do the correspondence with the students.
About Counselling Agreement
All students who use the Student Counselling Centre will be required to sign a Counselling Agreement. This Agreement lays out the framework for the services offer in the Centre and helps to find an agreed way of working together. A leaflet will be prepared which gives detailed information of the principles and practices which underpin the Counselling Agreement.
All students who use the Student Counselling Centre will request a Counselling appointment will be offered in the first instance, a brief consultation appointment. The Centre may have a Approved by the 96st Academic Council held on 28th June, 2016 5 brief consultation appointment. The Centre may have a large number of pre-booked appointment available at varied times throughout the week with different counsellors.
About the work of offer
The Centre will always offer the students a choice in the way they wish to work with: 1:1 work, workshops, therapeutic groups, or supported self help programmes.
About our Counsellors
All of our counsellors will have to receive sufficient training and experience to work with clients within the service, and receive clinical supervision on a regular basis. All of our counsellors are accountable to the service for the quality and appropriateness of the work they offer. If students wish to change counsellors the Centre will always endeavour to accommodate them.
If students have any concerns about the counselling they have received they should raise this with their counsellor or group facilitator in the first instance and then, if necessary, with the CSS Committee at the University level which will respond quickly to any complaints made and seek to correct any errors on the part of the Centre.
About record keeping
All the communication with the students and a record of every session will be kept notes of, along with any other relevant correspondence concerning you (such as letters to us from counsellor at the department and University levels etc.) These are kept in a confidential file (either on computer or in paper form) which is kept securely under the guidelines laid down by the university.
About Attendance
If students wish to receive a series of sessions of 1:1 counselling, an approximate number of sessions to work with the students will be agreed upon, based on the students’ present needs and will be offered opportunities to review this work on a regular basis. If students wish to end counselling before the end of this agreement they are free to do so and would be asked to let the counsellors know in good time so that their place can be re-allocated without loss of time. If students choose to take part in group counselling it will ordinarily be expected that students will commit to attend the whole course as a group.
A good time of notice will always be given if for any reason the Centre needs to cancel or change the time of a session that has been arranged. The same will apply for students also to give the Centre as much notice as possible if one has to cancel a session or is unable to attend a group counselling (Ideally 48 hours).
About the Students’ privacy
The Centre wishes to uphold students’ right to privacy and as a result the Centre will always give the students the opportunity to discuss the confidentiality framework with the Counsellors. As a service the Centre is bound by certain university requirements and also by the law so it is not possible to offer complete confidentiality in all circumstances.
About the Students’ Feedback
The Centre is always happy to receive feedback about the services and students will be asked to complete an evaluation at the end of their work with the Centre. Information from the evaluation will be used to inform our practice and may be reproduced in our reporting to the university.
A set of questionnaires within counselling to monitor the students’ psychological state and to gather information about their progress will be made use of. The Centre will also sometimes use this information in anonymous form, to gather statistics about the issues clients bring and the impact of counselling, which the Centre may wish to use in our statistical reporting to the university.
2024, North-Eastern Hill University
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