COIL in Psychology and Marketing
South Africa- Slovakia Collaborative Online International Learning (COIL)
As academics and community engagement practitioners, you are not only teaching content; you are supporting whole people. Students today need more than excellent lectures. They need practical, accessible, and credible wellbeing support.
Over the past semester, University of the Free State Psychology (Applied Master’s Clinical and Counselling Psychology and Honours) students, in collaboration with Economics and Marketing students from Matej Bel University (Slovakia), co-developed six evidence-informed, student-led wellbeing interventions designed for real-world application and cross-cultural relevance.
This initiative forms part of the “Connecting Minds, Enhancing Lives: South Africa–Slovakia Collaborative Online International Learning (COIL) initiative”.
You know the signs!
A student who once spoke confidently now sits quietly at the back.
A once consistent student begins missing deadlines and falling behind.
A quiet burnout that never appears on any syllabus.
Read the full details of the COIL collaboration here.
What has been developed: six student-created wellbeing toolkits
(Click on images to open)
|
Group
|
Intervention
|
Focus Area
|
Evidence
|
|
Group 1
|
Small Habits Today, Less Stress Tomorrow
|
Awareness, boundaries, and accountability partners
|
 |
Group 2
(See also the evidence that the peer-review process was completed.). |
The GEMS Method
|
Gratitude, experience with others, music, sleep
|
 
  |
|
Group 3
|
Think Well Hub – “Rest is part of progress”
|
Exam-time wellbeing and academic pressure support
|
|
|
Group 4
|
Social & Institutional Connections
|
Belonging and campus connection (includes printable poster designs)
|
|
|
Group 5
|
“How are you? No, really.”
|
Genuine connection and belonging
|
|
|
Group 6
|
Managing Anxiety, Time, and Burnout
|
Practical tools such as Pomodoro, box breathing, and grounding techniques
|
|
These materials are:
- Ready to use – suitable for tutorials, workshops, orientation programmes, or campus wellbeing campaigns.
- Culturally adaptable – co-created through South Africa–Slovakia collaboration.
- Evidence-informed – grounded in the biopsychosocial model and positive psychology.
- Student-led – designed in the language of students, addressing real challenges such as anxiety, procrastination, loneliness, and burnout.
Explore the student platforms:
As community engagement practitioners, we know that the most effective interventions are those that are actually used.
These resources are designed for easy sharing – please print them, post them, display them on noticeboards, or circulate them on social media.
Because when we connect minds, we enhance lives.