Department management wants external survey of well-being and study environment

Major well-being and student life surveys such as the national "Danish Study Environment Survey" and Aarhus University's own "Teaching Environment Assessment" have not indicated that the study environment at the Department of Dentistry and Oral Health is harsh.

Nevertheless, there have been several stories in the media about poor well-being and harsh study environments in the dental programmes - cases of students who have been dissatisfied with the social and economic conditions of student life or have felt unfairly treated during exams or classes. Now the well-being and study environment will be scrutinised from the outside.

"When we have cases or complaints, we handle it directly with the parties involved. We have dealt with issues of well-being and study environments in the relevant internal student-involving forums at the department, and we have prepared action plans and initiatives for the areas that the major surveys or individual course evaluations have indicated could be improved," says Head of Department Siri Beier Jensen and continues:

"Now we want to examine the well-being and study environment at the department in a different way and see if there is a need for us to act differently and with different initiatives than the ones we are currently taking. In the department management team, we believe that the best way to do this initially is in the form of an external study."

Customised survey to involve both students and employees

Siri Beier Jensen says that the department wants to launch the study as soon as possible. The department management is currently clarifying who will be in charge of the study and when exactly it will be launched.

"It will be a tailor-made study for the department and our dental education programmes, which are characterised by the special relationship between students, patients and teachers in a clinical learning situation around patient treatments. It has also been decided that the survey will be about well-being and the study environment and that it will involve both employees and students, so that everyone is heard," says Siri Beier Jensen.

The hope is that the survey can provide a more nuanced picture of well-being and the study environment, which apparently isn't captured by course evaluations and major well-being surveys.

"It is very important to me and the department management that we have a good study environment and that everyone working, studying and generally frequent the department thrives and is safe," Siri Beier Jensen emphasises.

Contact

Department Head Siri Beier Jensen
Aarhus University, Department of Dentistry and Oral Health
Telephone: 93 50 85 25
Email: siri@dent.au.dk