Effectiveness and Purpose

There are several resources online that are designed to help you get to know Gainesville and UF.

• Housing & Residence has a list of on and off campus resources for UF students.
• The  Graduate Student Support hosted by the Graduate School also has resources to help you get to know campus.
• Off-Campus Life (OCL) has information regarding housing, transportation, and events in Gainesville including:
  • The “Gator Guide”

You can also find out more about Gainesville on the following websites:

• Visit Gainesville 
• City of Gainesville

Taking care of yourself mentally by devising appropriate wellness strategies is fundamental for your overall health and ability to continue to succeed in your graduate program.

• Gator Well focuses on preventative measures to help you plan and implement wellness strategies 
• U Matter, We Care is another resource for any concern you may be having personally or academically
• The Care Team is an office within the Dean of Students office that was created to care for every single individual that walks through this campus. The Care Area consists of many different resources, facilities. and success plans to allow every person to feel a part of this University of Florida community.
• The Employee Assistance Program (EAP) offers students who are also employees of the university (research or teaching assistantships) up to 6 free counseling sessions each year. The EAP also hosts helpful guides on various topics for mental wellness. 
• Talkspace is a counseling app in which you have access to a therapist via text (HIPPA compliant).
• The Counseling and Wellness Center (HIPPA compliant) offers: 
  • short-term individual counseling
  • workshops
  • group sessions 
  • Kognito, a free online training course to learn effective techniques to help and refer students experiences mental health issues 
• UF Wellness and Healthy Gators Coalition host links to organizations on and off campus that address many areas of wellness, including mental health.

If you are living with a disability (physical or mental), the following resources may help in providing accommodations for school and work (including as a RA/TA).

• The Disability Resource Center (DRC)
• The Office of Accessibility and Gender Equity

Privacy- Title IX

• Concerns that fall under Title IX (sexual harassment, stalking, sexual discrimination, sexual assault, dating violence, domestic abuse, and more) must be reported to the Office of Title IX Compliance when disclosed to anyone affiliated with UF (faculty, staff, and more).
  • You can learn more about Title IX compliance by clicking here.

Privacy- HIPPA

The campus organizations that offer the most amount of privacy are those that are HIPPA compliant.

• The Counseling and Wellness Center ensures that your attendance to workshops and individual counseling will NOT be in your academic record or released to other individuals (as per HIPPA standards).

Graduate Student Social Support Programs:

• Office of Graduate Professional Development (OGPD) Writing Program
  • The OGPD Writing Program is offered every semester as a social support initiative that strives to create a peer support structure to (1) help students cope with feelings of isolation in the writing stage of their studies and (2) aid students in supporting each other in setting and reaching writing goals. Participants will need to be actively engaged in an academic writing project (thesis, dissertation, manuscript, qualifying exams, research papers, literature reviews, etc.) to be accepted into the program. Learn more at the link above.

Crisis Services- On Campus

If you need immediate assistance for mental health issues, please dial 911 for emergencies.

If you are in crisis and it is not an emergency, there are several resources for assistance:

• The Counseling and Wellness Center provides crisis counseling to all students. To access these services you can:
  • Call the office at 352-392-1575
  • Walk-in to their 3190 Radio Road location
  • Walk-in to their location on the 4^th floor of Peabody hall (near the Plaza of Americas).

Crisis Services- Off-Campus

Off-campus and not affiliated with UF:

• The Grad Crisis Line can be called at 1-877-472-3457
• The Alachua County Crisis Center can be reached at 352-264-6789.
• If you prefer to text:
  • The National Suicide Prevention Lifeline can be reached by texting “Start” to 741-741 or through messaging their Facebook page.

Physical wellness is as important as mental wellness for success in graduate school. 

RecSports has many resources to aid in your physical fitness goals: 

• multiple facilities 
• fitness classes 
• Lake Wauburg 
• pools 
• nutrition counseling
• personal training

GatorWell offers wellness coaching as well as workshops on topics such as:

• alcohol and other drugs
• interpersonal violence prevention
• sleep management

UF Wellness and Healthy Gators Coalition host links to organizations on and off campus that address many areas of wellness, including physical health.

If you are having physical health concerns, please visit the Student Health Care Center (SHCC) in the Infirmary building at 280 Fletcher Drive. The SHCC offers many services including:

• individual appointments
• self-help resources
• telephone consultations for urgent care
• immunizations
• lab services
• sports medicine services
• radiology services
• a pharmacy that can bill your student account for prescriptions and other medical goods

An integral part of being a successful scholar and professional is the ability to communicate with, appreciate, and amplify the strengths and perspectives of people from diverse backgrounds. These include, but are not limited to:

• preferred learning styles
• race
• ethnicity and culture
• gender identity and expression
• sexual orientation
• disabilities
• religion
• age
• socioeconomic background

Inclusion, diversity, equity, and access on-campus resources:

• The Office of Graduate Diversity Initiatives (OGDI)  is a function of the Graduate School dedicated to recruitment and retention of underrepresented graduate students. OGDI provides programs and services to assist and support the pursuit of a successful graduate education in addition to social, informational, referral, and in some cases, financial support. Though OGDI supports all graduate students, it has a particular interest in serving as a source of support for students from underrepresent groups in graduate education such as, but not limited to:
  • African Americans
  • Hispanic Americans
  • Native Americans
  • Native Alaskans (Eskimo or Aleut)
  • Pacific Islanders (Micronesians or Polynesians)
• The Office of Multicultural and Diversity Affairs (MCDA) promotes diversity and inclusion by creating environments where students can learn about themselves and others through workshops, programs, and office initiatives. MCDA also offers support through the following groups: 
  • Asian Pacific Islander Desi Affairs
  • The Institute of Black Culture
  • The Institute of Hispanic Latino Cultures (La Casita)
  • LGBTQ+ Affairs
• The Disability Resource Center (DRC) provides services and support to students with: physical, learning, sensory, and/or psychological disabilities. The DRC also hosts events and workshops to educate students on disability inclusion on campus.
• The Counseling and Wellness Center offers a self-paced 4-module online short video series, BAM! Best Allyship Movement, to aid students in building their cultural awareness.
• The International Center (UFIC) provides services to international students, exchange students, and exchange visitors from across the globe. UFIC also supports international research engagement by faculty and study abroad for domestic students.
• HR provides training on topics involved in inclusion, diversity, equity, and accessibility through their Gators Together program.
• The Center for Teaching Excellence (CTE) also provides many resources on supporting and including diversity in the classroom including: 
  • Frequent workshops on topics such as anti-racism, accessible classrooms, and diversity inclusion
  • resource pages for inclusivity, accessibility, difficult dialogues, and universal design.
• The Center for Instructional Technology and Training offers the following trainings:
  • a certificate in Teaching for Inclusivity and Accessibility 
  • a self-paced course on accessibility fundamentals for the classroom.
• Please also see:
  • The equal opportunity and affirmative action program 
  • The Chief Diversity Officer

Completing your Individual Development Plan (IDP) will help you identify your goals in graduate education and plan your professional development during your training at UF to accomplish your career goals. The IDP page provides many helpful tips and resources to help you with this task.

Effective time management strategies are key to succeeding as a graduate student.

• GatorWell hosts workshops on time management and has resources for time management self-help as well.
• The National Center for Faculty Development and Diversity (NCFDD) provides live and recorded workshops on time management topics. These webinars include subjects such as:
  • "How to Align Your Time with Your Priorities"
  • "Mastering Academic Time Management"
    • You can activate your free account by following this link: NCFDD.
• Several short videos and courses on time management and other personal management topics are available through LinkedIn Learning.

The Office of Student Financial Affairs offers multiple workshops a year to increase your financial literacy skills. Their website also has resources on:

• budgeting
• identity theft protection
• financial tools

Human Resources hosts webinars on the topic of financial literary through the Financial Literacy and Retirement Education (FLARE) program. Classes include:

• planning for financial security
• sharpening investment skills
• federal student loan forgiveness

The Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC) provides financial education for Adults and Young Adults. The training is self-directed and covers topics such as the basics of borrowing money wisely, using a spending plan to achieve financial goals, and how to use banking products effectively.

MIT has a resource called iGrad to facilitate graduate students’ financial knowledge and informed decision-making, the Office of Graduate Education sponsors MIT’s iGrad portal for financial literacy. This link also contains valuable resources relevant to graduate students on budgeting, credit, identity theft, workshops, taxes, saving, investing, and other helpful tips!