Support

Students chat about a range of issues such as:

• Feeling anxious about an upcoming exam
• Feeling lonely or homesick
• Having thoughts of suicide or self-harm
• Relationship difficulties
• Feeling upset about failing a course
• Difficulty adjusting to a new country
• Being stressed about an assessment task
• Managing grief
• Difficulty sleeping
• Feeling worried about a friend or family member

There is no reason too big or too small.

The after-hours support line provides short-term support only. To access ongoing support please:

• Contact Counselling
• Speak to your doctor
• Or call the Mental Health Access Line on 1800 011 511

Contact Counselling Call the Mental Health Access Line

This service is available to students who are located outside of Australia, however call charges may apply.

The After-Hours Support Line is an extension of the University of Newcastle’s Counselling and Psychological Services and thus personal information is protected in accordance with NSW privacy laws and as outlined in its Privacy Management Plan. Contact with this service is documented in a secure electronic medical records system. This system can only be accessed by staff of Counselling and Psychological Services and it is completely separate from any academic processes or systems.

Information provided during your interaction with this service will generally not be disclosed without your consent, however there are some exceptions to this. These situations include:

1. Where the University of Newcastle has a legal obligation to do so;
2. Where necessary to manage the risk of an immediate threat of harm to an identifiable person or persons, including yourself, that can be averted only by disclosing information;
3. When Counsellors are consulting or in the course of supervision or professional training (your identity and the identity of other parties involved will be concealed in this instance)

You may choose to access the After-Hours Support Line anonymously. However, if during the interaction we identify that there is a serious risk of harm to you or another person, then we may need to identify you or disclose information (such as your phone number) to emergency services in order to protect you or others.

• A free interpreting service is available for people who do not speak English.
• This service can be used with selected organisations, including the University of Newcastle's After-Hours Support Line, and emergency services.
• To access this service, call the Translating and Interpreting Service on 131 450 and ask to talk to the organisation you need (e.g., The University of Newcastle's After-Hours Support Line on 1300 653 007) in the language required. Translating and Interpreting Service will then call the organisation, and provide translation during your call.
• A call to Translating and Interpreting Service is the cost of a local call from landlines (additional charges apply for mobiles).