Oakland University

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(248) 370-2100

Featured Resources

Academic Success Center
Transcript

So our main role is to serve students with a variety of ways in academic support. That can be by way of tutoring, supplemental instruction, study groups that we help form. We have workshops. We have also academic support appointments where individual students can meet with professionals to talk about some issues that they're having or different areas that they want to improve upon. We really do enjoy and focus on promoting health and well-being for our students. One of the ways that we do that is try to prepare them for their time here at OU. So that can be math workshops prior to their first year with us, encouraging them to attend those that they're ready to attend, know how to take notes, what exams look like. Throughout the semester, we're encouraging them to get tutoring or come in to see a professional for an academic support meeting to address individual challenges, to help kind of reduce that stress level and maybe get them in contact with other free campus resources. We are in Wilson Hall, suite 1100. You can always go to our website, oakland.edu slash ASC, and that will give you all of the contact information, including our email address and phone number, our social media, so any way that really works for you.

Graham Health Center
Transcript

At the Graham Health Center, we're here to take care of the Oakland University campus community. So our primary focus is the students of Oakland University. We really want to help make sure that people stay healthy or get healthy if they're not feeling well so they can do well in school. And so we also take care of the employees of the campus if there's injuries, workplace injuries or illness or also some preventative healthcare. We can help students who are not feeling well. It could be a minor cold or allergies or it could be something more severe like influenza or COVID or any other illness that might affect their ability to do well in school. And so as we're being here to help support the students, we try to also do a lot of health education and that could be in our visits with students or any patients that we see as well as doing outreach work, helping to educate individuals, not just on how to take care of themselves but how to access healthcare, which is really a skill that they'll need for the rest of their future and their life. The Graham Health Center is located at 408 Meadowbrook Road. We really encourage people to embrace and start using the patient portal. Everyone at OU, as long as you have an access ID, has a patient portal available to them and so we encourage people to use that. Even if you've never been seen at Graham Health Center, you still have a patient portal. And so you can log into that, ask questions, send a secure message. It is secured just between the health center staff and that individual. And so you can ask a personal health question, anything that might be on their mind, no matter what time of day or night. That's available 24 hours a day. People can also call us at 248-370-2341 and leave a voicemail or if during business hours, we'll be able to take your call. And then also our health center email. So health at Oakland.edu is another way.

Dean of Students
Transcript

Primarily, the Dean of Students Office supports students through any policy that impacts students in any way. Obviously, what people think about a lot is disciplinary things like student code of conduct or academic misconduct policy. But we do a lot more than that. We have policies such as a bereavement policy where we're seen. We guide students through any potential difficulty they might be having on campus, whether it's something that we personally oversee in our office or connecting them to the right resource. As Director of Diversity, Equity and Inclusion, my job very much like the Dean of Students Office is connected to everyone, primarily making sure that everyone regardless of their role is seen and respected on campus. If a student is struggling with their mental health or with their physical health or academically or not feeling like they belong, they're not gonna be able to be successful in the classroom, certainly not being able to achieve whatever academic or professional goals they have. I'm very excited to share where we're designing our website so that our students can find their student support services links and any information that you might want or that you are wondering what else we do, that I'm not mentioning today. We're located in the Oakland Center, Suite 150. The Dean of Students at oakland.edu is a way to contact us, also calling our phone number, 248-370-3352.

OU Counseling Center
Transcript

The purpose of the OU Counseling Center is we're the main mental health place for students on campus. We like to say we're the community mental health for the community of Oakland University. Services that we provide that positively impact the health and wellbeing on OU's campus is pretty much all of them. We do obviously counseling and therapy as our main service, which has a very direct impact on the mental health and wellbeing of our students. We also do crisis management, crisis sessions, consultations.(...) We do lots of outreach as well, where we do lots of workshops, trainings, and then we also have a full-fledged group program, which we started last year. So every week there's upwards of six groups running at any given day during the week on a variety of topics. And those obviously have a very positive and direct impact on students as well. So we're located in the Graham Health Center building. We're on the east wing of it. The best way to contact us is actually several different ways. People can come walk right in and contact us as well. We take walk-ins, we have emergency hours every day of the week where people are available for a crisis.(...) So people can just come in to set up an appointment. They can also call our main line at 248-370-3465. They could also email any of the staff directly. I often, as the director and then my assistant director, Dr. Sanders, we often get emails from professors or students. And that's another way you can contact. So coming in, calling, or emailing.

Financial Services
Transcript

So the main purpose of our department is to help students with all of their financial aid questions, we help with scholarships and grants, loans, even student employment. We also help answer any FAFSA questions, help them with understanding their award offer and options for paying for college. We also help them when the bill comes, work out what other financial options they may have and how payment plans work. We help with the wellbeing because we know that paying for college can be a stressful time and we try to make it the less stressful that it can be for them. We're here to help the students and their families with any questions they may have so that they're very comfortable knowing what college is going to cost and what they're going to need to pay so that when they start school, they can have a clear idea and not have anything to worry about and just be able to focus on school. We also have events throughout the year that they can attend for FAFSA workshops and other things like that. They're all on our website just so that they can be ahead of the game before classes start. We are located at 120 North Foundation Hall. The best way to contact us would be you can come in in person, we're always happy to see your face, you can call us, you can email us, we do virtual appointments, we will answer your questions. However you feel comfortable asking them, we really are just here to help.

Dimensions of Well-Being

Physical Wellness

Exercise

  • Aim to get at least 150 minutes of moderate activity or 75 minutes of vigorous activity per week
  • Add strength training activities at least 2 days per week
  • Try to spend less time sitting if possible
  • Participate in group fitness classes at the OU Rec. Center (students are FREE)
  • Make exercise fun by doing activities that you enjoy ... maybe try something new like participating in a sport that is offered at the OU Rec Center

Sleep

  • Aim to sleep 7-9 hours per night
  • Naps should be between 15-30 minutes
  • Create a sleep-friendly environment (dark, quiet & cooler in temperature)
  • Avoid visual stimuli 20-30 minutes before sleep (bright lights, TV, cell phones, computers)
  • Try to maintain a regular wake & sleep schedule whenever possible
  • Nutrition
  • Aim to eat a variety of foods daily (eat the rainbow as often as possible)
  • Try to eat more produce opposed to processed foods
  • Diets that are lower in sugars and carbs are typically healthier for the body
  • Aim to drink half your body weight in ounces of water each day
  • Consider going to the Golden Grizzlies Pantry if you are low on food or simply want a quick snack to go during the day

Overall Prevention

  • Consider limiting your caffeine and/or alcohol consumption
  • Aim to see a healthcare doctor at least once per year for an overall preventative wellness check
  • Go to the OU Graham Health Center for your basic physical health needs
  • Plan on going to the dentist every 6 months for a dental check-up and cleaning
  • Plan on going to the eye doctor once per year for a check-in on your vision
Social Wellness

Community

Social Time

  • Be sure to schedule time in your week to be social with friends/family

Meet New People

  • Are you open to meeting new people and expanding your network? If so, look online or within your community to attend opportunities to meet new people.
  • If you like art, go to an art gallery. If you enjoy history, visit historic sites. If you enjoy exercise, go to the gym. Try to connect with people in the places you enjoy being.
Mental/Intellectual/
Spiritual Wellness

Education

  • Prioritize your education by making time to study, complete assignments/projects for classes
  • Expand what you are learning and challenge your mind by learning new things
  • Go to the OU Academic Success Center to join a study group, work with a tutor and receive
    additional academic support
  • Needing addition support? Contact the OU Disability Support Services office to find out how they can help you during your time at OU
  • Check out what the Dean of Students office has to offer so that students can be as successful as possible at OU

Personal Interests

  • Reflect on what you enjoy and consider new things you'd like to try
  • Join a student organization at OU to not only meet new people but to embrace your interests

Mind Exercises

  • Keep your mind sharp by playing brain games like sudoku, word searches, or crossword puzzles
  • Participate in the word of the day to challenge your learning and knowledge
  • Engage in stimulating conversations with others and be willing to expand your vocabulary

Spiritual

  • Beliefs
    • Take time to focus on the things you believe and value.
    • Consider sharing your beliefs, values and principles with others as a means of deepening relationships and expanding your worldview
  • Involvement
    • Learn about different student organizations in the OU community and decide which one(s) are the best fit for you to get involved in

Self-Care

  • Practicing self-care daily can enhance our ability to live fully and effectively
  • Activities to consider enjoying daily can include exercise, spending time in nature, listen to music, dance, read a book, practice deep breathing, meditate, spend intentional time with others, clean or organize your space, write down what you are grateful for, etc.

Feelings

  • Reflect each day on your emotions - try to label your feelings, identify what they mean to you and how you can express them in a healthy way
  • Consider using a journal to record how you are feeling and your thoughts

Stress

  • Practice deep breathing when in stressful situations (ex: 5-9 breathing is when you inhale through your nose for 5 seconds and exhale out your mouth for 9 seconds). Repeat that pattern of 5-9 breathing for a few cycles and notice how you feel
  • Don't have a stress ball handy when you could use it most? That's okay. Simply bring your attention to any muscle group and purposefully contract (squeeze) those muscles for 5 seconds, the purposefully relax those muscles to experience a deep sense of relaxation.

Gratitude

  • When we think about what we appreciate and are grateful for, the calming part of our nervous system is triggered and helps us feel less stressed

Be Kind

  • Showing kindness (especially when you are stressed) can increase your sense of happiness and self-esteem while reducing feelings of stress
  • Join a free support group through the OU Counseling Center to talk about what you are going
    through while receiving professional support in a small group setting
Environmental Wellness

Green Living

  • Get involved with the Sustaining Our Planet Earth group on-campus
  • Volunteer at the Campus Student Organic Farm and get involved with other students, faculty and staff to help grow plants, fruits and vegetables for others to benefit from
  • Recycle items as often as possible and try to buy recycled products when applicable
  • Try limiting how much water you may be wasting daily (turn the water off when brushing your teeth, take quick showers, only turn the water on when you actually need it)
  • Reflect on your power use every day. Are you leaving the lights on even when you aren't in the room? Could you be doing a full load of laundry opposed to smaller loads that use more energy and water?

Scenery

  • Find outdoor activities that you enjoy that help you appreciate your surroundings
  • When walking around campus, be mindful of what you are seeing, hearing, smelling and touching regarding the natural environment (plants, trees, wildlife, etc.)

Personal Environments

  • Keep your spaces clean, tidy and organized
  • Make a weekly schedule for yourself (ex: clean the bathroom on Sundays, dusting and sweeping every Wednesday, laundry on Fridays, etc.)
Occupational/Financial Wellness

Employment

  • Go to the OU Career & Life Design Center to get support with your resume, navigating Handshake, searching for on-campus jobs, setting up a LinkedIn profile, interviewing skill building, create a cover letter and get a professional headshot taken for FREE

Work Relations

  • Having healthy relations with those you work with is important. Consider getting involved in your job to connect with others and begin developing strong relationships with your colleagues

Balance

  • Take time to reflect often to ensure you have a healthy balance between your work life and your personal life. If you find yourself not feeling well balanced, consider taking steps to improve your balance at work and at home

Work

  • Search for employment on & off campus to support your finances through Handshake
  • Have your resume updated so you can promptly submit it when you see an opportunity you're interested in

Bank Accounts

  • Talk to the OU Credit Union in the Oakland Center about different types of accounts and how to manage them

Understanding Debt

  • Debt can be accumulated in various ways; through credit cards, loans, medical bills, taxes and other living expenses
  • Contact the OU Student Financial Services office to discuss loans, education related bills, and applying for aid