Welcome to Mental Health Awareness in Earth Science & Engineering
Mental health during your studies and in the workplace
Your mental wellbeing should be important to you - whether you are an undergraduate student working hard towards your degree, a postgraduate student, or a member of staff - and it is important to the department. Healthy individuals have a better quality of life, perform better, and are more engaged in the Earth Science and Engineering community.
Everyone can at some point experience mental health challenges, either mild (stress, fatigue, insomnia) or more severe. According to the mental health charity Mind, at least 1 in 6 people are experiencing mental health problems in the workplace right now, including anxiety and depression.
Mental Health Within ESE: breaking the taboo
The department takes its duty of care very seriously, and strives to implement best practices when it comes to mental health by creating an environment conducive to discussion and positive support.
The mental health awareness team: Who we are and what we do
We have created a "Mental Health Awareness Team" as a step towards better mental well-being within the Department of Earth Science and Engineering. The group consists of individuals from within the department who have an interest in mental health, and who are supported by the head of department to implement best practice regarding mental health issues. The team's core mission is to coordinate mental health awareness practices within the department and aims to promote a supportive culture when it comes to mental health within ESE.
Members of the group are not counsellors, but are trained in mental health first aid; this means that they are able to talk to you about your mental health in a supportive way, and to signpost you to the relevant College services should you wish to make use of them.
Where to go from here: internal and external resources about mental health
You can access the following resources of direct use to members of ESE:
- A description of how we support mental health in ESE, including a list of persons to contact
- Get to know your local team: the ESE Mental Health Awareness Team
- See a list of mental health first aiders within ESE
- Read through Dr. Cedric John's presentation on Fieldwork and Mental Health: MH_Presentation_John [PDF, 8MB]
In addition, Imperial College has collected a range of resources to support students and members of staff:
- A list of resources about mental health in general, and at Imperial College, which includes a list of external resources in the left banner
- Student counselling and mental health at Imperial College
- Student support zone at Imperial College
- A list of College Support and external support for College members
- The College website also points to the well-written, informative NHS booklet on mental health. These include a range of common problems, and are a great resource to access
ESE Health and Safety
Due to the complex mix of risks within the department, finding out what procedures to follow and how to apply them can be a little daunting.
Visit the ESE Health and Safety guidance pages.
ESE Fieldwork Information
- Visit ESE’s Fieldwork Requirements page to plan your offsite activity with our step-by-step guide
- Visit ESE’s Fieldwork Safety page to access information on health and safety policies and responsibilities for fieldwork