Counselling experts put students before certificates

Muscat: The First Scientific Conference on Psychological and Social Counselling in Academic Institutions opened on Tuesday at Arab Open University in Al Mabelah, organised by Oman College of Health Sciences under the theme 'Investing in Human Potential to Achieve Quality of Life'. The two-day event is held under the patronage of Dr Abdullah al Shibli, Undersecretary of the Ministry of Education for Higher Education.
Dr Naeema al Balushi, Chair of the conference's Main Committee, summed up its message as 'the person before the certificate, the student before the specialisation, and support before stumbling'. She said counselling 'is not about waiting for the student to face a problem, but about reaching them before difficulty turns into stumbling, before stumbling turns into withdrawal, and before silence turns into isolation'. She noted experts from Saudi Arabia, Algeria, Syria, Jordan and Egypt were taking part alongside Oman.
Dr Qutba al Ghafri, Chair of the Scientific Committee, said the diversity of the papers reflects a core message: 'Mental health and quality of life are not the responsibility of a single body or discipline, but a shared institutional and societal responsibility.' The conference features 21 research papers across five sessions, plus two workshops on resilience and stress management.
A national study of 12,647 students in Grades 7, 9 and 11 from all governorates found that the school environment and the religious, educational and cultural context have a positive effect on students' mental health, and that self-confidence strengthens harmony with life, which in turn supports wellbeing.
Artificial intelligence features prominently. A study of 29 social workers in North Al Batinah found that using ChatGPT templates raised the average quality of school social work records from 3.71 to 4.91 out of 5, recommending that no personal or sensitive data be entered into such tools. A systematic review found AI expands counselling services and can detect early warning signs of psychological crises, but faces privacy challenges and a lack of legislative frameworks.
Other papers address insufficient training of school psychologists in counselling gifted students, and administrative, human and structural barriers facing students with disabilities at university.
The programme covers four themes: modern technology in counselling; international and regional experiences; the impact of social transformations on mental health; and counselling's role in achieving quality of life under Oman Vision 2040. It concludes on Wednesday with its recommendations.