Book an appointment to University Social Worker
At this page you can find information about university social work, how to book an appointment and answers for some common questions about our services.
What kind of issues can I contact University Social Worker?
You can contact University Social Worker at any stage of your studies if you have any concerns about your life situation, studies, well-being or coping.
You can turn to a social worker in the following matters, for example:
- if your studies are stuck
- returning to studies after a long break
- study skills, time management and everyday management
- problems related to study self-esteem, performance stress or anxiety
- coping and stress
- studying while coping with illness or other challenging life circumstances
- student financial and social benefits
I would like to make an appointment with University Social Worker. How can I book it?
We use an electric booking system called AJAS. You can book an appointment for university social worker (both Lapland UAS and University of Lapland) from our webpage: Booking
1) Choose a suitable time for the initial assessment with any university social worker (in Finish: Korkeakoulukuraattori) at any location. The first appointment is always a phone call. Please, make sure you are able to answer at the scheduled time and that you can talk in a quiet environment.
2) Fill in your contact details and, if you wish, additional information about your situation. For the booking, we also ask for your social security number so that we can verify your identity in future appointments. If you don’t have Finnish social security number, please contact us by e-mail kuraattorit@luc.fi and leave a callback request. You can find more information about how your data is processed in our Data Protection Policy (Lapland UAS / University of Lapland, link opens in a new window)
3) If you wish, you can receive a confirmation and reminder of your appointment by both text message and email.
The social worker who conducts the initial assessment will direct you to a follow‑up appointment primarily with the employee of your own university. If needed, we can also guide you to other services (for example, a study psychologist, FSHS, or other guidance services).
What is an initial assessment?
The initial assessment (30 minutes) is held as a phone conversation. During the call, we will briefly review your overall situation, such as your studies, wellbeing and coping, as well as how your everyday life is going. Together, we will assess what kind of support you may need, consider possible solutions to improve your situation, and make a preliminary plan for the next steps.
What happens during meetings with a university social worker?
At the first meeting, we will map out your situation (e.g. study situation, well-being and coping, social networks, what everyday life involves…) and make a plan for cooperation with social worker.
Cooperation with the social worker is always built on the student’s needs. Sometimes your life situation may seem “spread out” and it can be difficult to determine what kind of things and what kind of help you might need. We will think about this together, but it is also good if you think about your own wishes before the first meeting; what kind of things would you like to receive support for from social work services.
Often the meetings we discuss your life situation, the progress of studies and everyday life, well-being, relationships or other matters that concern you.
With the social worker, you can also go through concrete means and tools to support the progress of your studies and “train”, for example. calendar deployment.
The task of university social work is to support students’ ability to study, which is why the work focuses primarily on supporting studies and coping with studies.
We also guide students to the right services, such as health care, when necessary, and, if necessary, we are involved in considering their ability to study together with health care.
The duration of the meeting is approx. 45 minutes. At the end of the meeting, we will agree on the continuation according to your needs.
What is customer information system called AJAS?
The university well-being services use the customer information system AJAS.
Discussions with the social worker are confidential, as is the information collected in the system. You also have the right to check the information about yourself in the system. The system’s institution-specific privacy statement can be found here:
My personal study plan should be updated. Can a Social Worker help with this?
Social workers do not update the student’s personal study plan (PSP). If you have questions about the PSP, please contact:
Guidance counsellors at the University of Applied Sciences
At the university, MyTeachers
If I meet with a Social Worker, will the teachers be told?
No. Your meetings with a social worker are strictly confidential and we are bound by professional obligation of confidentiality. In other words, if you meet with a social worker, it is a matter between you and the social worker, which you can of course tell other people about if you want and if necessary.
However, sometimes it is necessary to cooperate with teachers or other guidance actors, and you will always be asked for your consent.
I would like to get a job. Can Social Worker help with this?
The guidance of social workers focuses primarily on supporting studies. Of course, sometimes discussing thoughts and issues related to employment may be topical, but other actors will help you best in job search matters.