Student counselling is biographical work

Dr Christine Hummel and the work of the ZSB (Central Student Guidance and Counselling Services)

"The mission of the central student guidance and counselling services is to provide information about study opportunities at the University of Wuppertal and to provide initial information for pupils in the region," explains Dr Christine Hummel, who has been in charge of the university service facility for nine years. The various offers of preparatory study orientation for pupils include decision training, informative lectures and the Uni Live programme for small groups or year groups with lectures, talks, library visits and campus tours. The day-to-day work of the team of 32 full-time and student employees also includes counselling for students on all questions and doubts relating to studying as well as matters relating to changing subject and location. In psychological counselling, four psychologists offer training and one-to-one sessions to provide help with personal crises, learning, examination or other difficulties during the course of studies. "Students come to us with all the problems that life throws at them and find a protected space at the university in the ZSB where they can discuss everything." Hummel attaches great importance to the community in her institution and says: "What unites us student advisors is the fact that we all offer guidance counselling. Each of us can advise both pupils and students on study options. That is the common basis we have, and the individual areas of work then build on this."

In order to demonstrate the attractiveness of the degree programmes, which the ZSB is also responsible for presenting to the public, the German studies graduate has intensified her work with the faculties and maintains close contact with the student advisors. For example, the ZSB now produces 105 study programme flyers every year with a print run of 65,000 copies, in which the range of courses on offer is written down. "We have the combined Bachelor's degree with more than thirty subjects that can be combined with each other," she explains, "we have almost twenty single Bachelor's degree programmes, we have more than 30 Master's degree programmes and the comprehensive Master of Education."

She has not only promoted strong networking in the subjects, but has also extended it to the schools. The ZSB has also developed an external network in the area of career and study guidance with the employment agency and the Chamber of Industry and Commerce, among others.

Talent scouting

The ZSB was able to acquire third-party funding from the Ministry for the Talent Scouting project to expand its contacts with schools. The talent scouting programme was launched in March 2017 in close cooperation with Heinrich Heine University Düsseldorf. Since then, a total of ten talent scouts from both universities have been visiting schools every month to offer consultation hours for pupils, who generally come from a non-academic background and can develop their skills through individual support. Solutions and plans for the future are worked out together in a protected atmosphere.

School contacts are relationship work

She describes the collaboration with the secondary schools in the Bergisch city-triangle as "relationship work". "You have to convey to the teachers that it is very important for the pupils to make contact with the university at an early stage," she explains. Hummel counters teachers' concerns about additional work by providing information that the ZSB counsellors can also offer on site. "My wish would be for us to be able to inform pupils across the board, ideally a year and a half in advance, in such a way that they remember it well," because she repeatedly finds that pupils with A-levels come to the counselling service who have had no previous contact with the university.

Decision training

"Often, the main help provided by the student counsellors lies in the thoughts of those seeking advice," says Hummel and mentions the decision training courses on offer in this context. "Anyone who is not clear about their study decision can take part in decision training. There can be various reasons for this. Either you have a lot of options in your head, or you don't have any ideas for the time after graduation." The decision training programme offers help for both target groups. Prospective students then work together with others who are in the same situation. The ZSB offers these training sessions on a monthly basis. "It really gives you the time to work in a group on setting goals," emphasises the researcher, "and to imagine the future with the guidance of professionals." The training sessions also take away the fear of making a big decision. Options are presented, and if the actual wish does not seem achievable, the counsellors provide assistance and support for the necessary 'Plan B'. "Every person sitting here wants to be seen as an individual," Hummel points out, as those seeking advice are often subject to both professional clichés and family constraints that need to be discussed during counselling.

In contrast to previous generations, parents play an important role in the decision-making phase of today's prospective students. The ZSB is responding to this with a further counselling service. This year's "Long Afternoon of Study Orientation" offered parents and students the opportunity to ask questions about subjects and combinations of subjects as well as clarify options for applying and financing their studies in lecture halls or in the exhibition area of the foyer in Hall K. From autumn onwards, additional parent workshops and consultation hours will be offered, and in spring there will be another "Parents' Info Evening".

In addition to this wealth of offers, the ZSB also takes part in regional and national education fairs. "The fairs are good for making a first impression," says Hummel, criticising these major events, where hardly any discussions are possible and flyers are handed out en masse. She sees a welcome countermovement in the Bergisch cities' commitment to promoting the region more strongly. She cites the Solingen education fair Forum: Studium and the Primanertag in Wuppertal as examples of this.

Studying in Wuppertal

Students who decide in favour of Wuppertal should definitely bring curiosity and a love of discovery with them, states Hummel, "Curiosity about the subject you are studying and a love of discovery to get to the bottom of things. And then, of course, motivation, the driving force behind everything." The University of Wuppertal is the university of short distances, she says, "if you like studying in small groups, then this is the university for you. It is a manageable university in the very best sense of the word. Contact with the teaching staff is easy to establish. The university is surrounded by greenery, the campus is beautiful and the support is excellent."

Prospective and current students can take advantage of a wide range of preparatory services offered by the central student guidance and counselling services. "Then," Christine Hummel is certain, "at some point the path will become clear, like a red thread."

Uwe Blass (interview from 21/06/2018)

Christine Hummel studied German language and literature, philosophy and political science at the University of Wuppertal and completed her doctorate in linguistics and literature in 2001 with a study on "Intertextuality in the work of Heinrich Böll". In 2009, she took over the management of the central student guidance and counselling services.