About the National Standard of Canada for Mental Health and Well-Being for Post-Secondary Students (The Standard)

In collaboration with CSA Group (a global leader in standards development), the Mental Health Commission of Canada (MHCC), has championed the development of the Standard. The Standard is the first of its kind in the world, building on the exceptional work of Canada’s post-secondary institutions and seeks to inspire further actions through principle-led approaches. The standard is meant to promote and strengthen student mental health and well-being to support student success.

• Learn more about the Standard
• Learn how to access to the Standard
• Learn about how the Standard was developed

 

Getting Started

Interested in learning more about how the to get started with the National Standard? Here are a few key resources:

• The MHCC has introduced a Starter Kit, with supportive resources for institutions to get started aligning their efforts with the Standard. Access the Starter Kit here.
• Interested in learning how to identify the Mental Health and Well-being priorities on your campus? Learn more about the Canadian Campus Well-being Survey.

 

Implementing the Standard

Ready to implement the Standard? Learn more about resources and tools to help guide implementation

• MHCC has been supporting the development of a tool called the Campus Mental Health Action Tracker– led by the Social Research and Demonstration Corporation (SRDC) – to help PSIs track their progress with the Standard. Learn more about how to use the Campus Mental Health Action Tracker.
• The MHCC’s resource: Insights on Implementation of the National Standard for Mental Health and Well-being of Post-Secondary Students was created following consultations with post-secondary institutions currently applying the National Standard to collect insights from their progress so far. This resource emphasizes the typical challenges and facilitators that institutions face in their efforts with the National Standard. The resource also provides practical advice and shared experiences to aid your institutions’ efforts in implementing the Standard. Access the resource here
• Healthy Campus Alberta and the Centre for Innovation in Campus Mental Health jointly created the Post-Secondary Standard Resource, providing available information to support post-secondary institutions with the implementation of the National Standard of Canada for Mental Health and Well-being for Post-Secondary Students. Access the resource here.
• Join the CSA community to access supportive resources available in the Centre for Outreach, Resources, and Engagement (CORE).

 

Regional Communities of Practice Support Implementation

• Healthy Campus Alberta
• Healthy Campus Saskatchewan
• Centre for Innovation in Campus Mental Health (CICMH)
• Mental Health Commission of Canada (MHCC)

 

Featured Webinars:

• Campus Mental Health Action Tracker with SRDC & MHCC. Hosted by the Best Practices Network
• The New National Standard & Self-Assessment Tool Webinar. Hosted by the Best Practices Network
• An Introduction to the New National Standard of Canada for Mental Health and Well-Being for Post-Secondary Students. Hosted by Healthy Campuses Alberta
• The Campus Mental Health Action Tracker. Hosted by CICMH

Resources:

• National Standards Toolkit (CICMH)
  • Created by CICMH, this toolkit is designed to help post-secondary institutions comprehend the National Standard and facilitate the application and implementation of the Standard within the campus setting. The toolkit contains the following information:  
    • Environmental Scan: Provides a review of outstanding practices at Canadian postsecondary institutions that align with the Standard.    
    • Rubric: Offers post-secondary institutions a method to assess alignment with the Standard.  
    • Campus Mental Health Action Tracker: A tool to assist post-secondary institutions to align their program and policies with the Standard.  
    • Mental Health Policy Inventory: Demonstrates how the Standard can influence internal policies.  
    • Key Takeaways from the Project with the Social Research and Demonstration Corporation (SRDC) and CICMH: Provides background work on this toolkit, and explores how to implement the Standard.  
  • Download the toolkit here (PDF)