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Posted May 12, 2025

How to look after your mental health as a postgraduate student

Postgraduate student mental healthLooking after your mental health as a postgraduate student is essential to your happiness and overall wellbeing, as well as ensuring you achieve the grades you deserve.

How common are mental health issues amongst students?

A recent study found that as many as 80% of students are impacted by mental health. The Student Mental Health Study 2022 surveyed over 12,000 students and discovered that four out of five had experienced mental health difficulties. Of the students surveyed, 27% of them identified loneliness as a significant issue in their mental health and reported that they didn’t have any friends at university. This report was commissioned by Cibyl, in association with Accenture, Clyde & Co, Imperial College London and Universities UK.

Meanwhile, leading mental health charity, Student Minds, also conducted research in 2022 and discovered that a third of students have poor mental wellbeing and a third of students said that their mental health had declined since starting university.

How can you look after your mental health?

But how can you look after your mental health properly during this academically stressful and often financially challenging period of your life?

In this blog – published to coincide with the beginning of Mental Health Awareness Week – we are going to explore simple and financially achievable ways to look after your mental health as a postgraduate student.

Set realistic study goals

Procrastination is often a sign that we are actually too scared to undertake a task because it seems too big! Break your academic workload down into manageable chunks for you to tackle, and make sure it’s achievable. If your mental health starts to feel compromised, even the simplest task can feel overwhelming, so take a breather and consider your study options. Don’t be too hard on yourself if you fall slightly behind in your study schedule – readjust your revision timetable or dissertation plan and continue studying using your new timeframe.

Exercise regularly

Good physical fitness and good mental health are intrinsically linked, and by exercising for just for 20 or 30 minutes every day you can ensure you are on the right track. And you don’t have to pay out for expensive exercise classes or gym memberships – although many gyms do offer great student deals and your university itself may well have facilities you can use at minimal costs. But other ways to exercise for free (or limited costs) include going for a run or walk in the great outdoors. Or invest in a second-hand bicycle and use it for a daily blast of exercise, as well as to get around your university town. This could save you the cost of public transport as well as help you to get fit.

Eat healthily

Annoyingly, it often seems cheaper and easier to eat beige fast food rather than fresh colourful nutritious meals – but by shopping carefully and doing some clever meal prep over the weekend, you can make sure you eat healthily on a student budget. Bulk-cook meals packed with tasty veggies and freeze portions in advance of the week ahead, so you have something easy to warm up after a hard day in the library or the lab. Reach for healthy snacks rather than quick-fix empty calorie so-called treats. Swap your crisps for sunflower seeds, and if you do need a proper sweet treat, opt for dark chocolate over white or milk chocolate. Food considered to be good for the brain include nuts, pumpkin seeds, sunflower seeds, blueberries, broccoli and fish.

Get enough sleep

A recent report by the Mental Health Foundation highlights the importance of sleep to keep us healthy, describing it as being, “as essential to our bodies as eating, drinking and breathing.” The report went on to say that sleep is “vital for maintaining good mental and physical health. Sleeping helps to repair and restore our brains, not just our bodies…” Eight hours a night is the recommended amount of sleep – and although this is not always achievable, especially when you have looming deadlines and other aspects of student life to take into account, try and do your best to achieve this target on a regular basis – it really will make a difference.

Declutter your study space

They say that a messy house can be reflective of a messy mind, so make sure you have a calm, tidy and clutter-free environment in which to study. It’s really hard to concentrate when you’re surrounded by piles of papers, books and other mess. So, get some good storage and put your things away. Bookshelves, sideboards and cupboards are often freely available on websites such as Freecycle or Facebook Marketplace, so you don’t even have to spend your student loan on your storage Plus, if your study space is also in your bedroom, it’s a good idea to clear your work away at the end of your study session and return your bedroom to its original purpose to help aid your sleep at the end of the day.

Don’t give in to FOMO

FOMO = Fear Of Missing Out... Yes, you are a postgraduate student, and the social aspect of student life is undeniably important – and can greatly contribute to your overall happiness and wellbeing – but it’s important not to say ‘yes’ to every invite. You need to schedule in time to simply relax. Whether it’s taking a bath, watching the latest Netflix boxset or going for a stroll – sometimes you just need to say ‘no’ to social engagements and take some time for yourself.

Avoid feeling isolated

Yes, postgraduate study is a massive time commitment, but it’s important to keep in touch with your nearest and dearest so you don’t feel isolated. You may have moved away from home for your postgraduate degree and no longer be able to pop out to meet up with old friends for a coffee or a night out, but you can still keep in touch via phone calls and social media. And reach out to your new fellow students and try and arrange a couple of meet-ups even in the library as a study group. If you are starting to feel isolated, join a sports club or society so you can spend time with people who share your interests. This will help combat feeling of isolation and homesickness.

Use wellness apps

Although the mobile phone is increasingly being thought of as a contributory factor to feelings of anxiety and other mental health issues, it can also be used as a force for good. There are plenty of excellent wellness and mindfulness apps that you can download to help develop coping strategies and keep on top of your mental health. Good options include Calm and Headspace.

Don’t be afraid to ask for help

If you think you might be becoming overwhelmed as a postgraduate student – seek help as soon as you can. Phone a friend or family member, speak to your housemates or course mates, or contact your university’s welfare department. Universities, for example UCL, offer a great range of Student Support, Welfare and Counselling Services – make contact with them and they will be able to help you.

How can your university help support your mental health?

There are several ways that your university will be able to help support you with any mental health issues or general wellbeing whilst you are undertaking your postgraduate studies. These could include:

  • Low-cost and free counselling.
  • Online workshops to help manage anxiety.
  • Availability of approachable supervisors and pastoral care professionals to discuss workload issues with.
  • Encourage communication between students and lecturers as well as students and their peers.
  • Flexible deadlines for research projects and submissions.
  • Mentoring schemes so postgrads have someone to talk to who understand their situation.
  • Funding advice and help so the financial implications of postgrad study doesn’t contribute to feelings of anxiety.

Looking to study a postgraduate program? Use our course search to find your ideal masters degree.

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