MIND THE GAPS: A survival guide for graduate students
Most research on student mental health has focused on undergraduates and takes a medical approach, treating mental health as an individual issue to be diagnosed and treated. Less attention has been given to graduate students, whose experiences and challenges are often quite different. The Mapping the Gaps study examined graduate student mental health at three Ontario universities—University of Toronto, Carleton University, and the University of Windsor—through a critical disability studies and mad studies-informed lens, or one that looks at how university systems and policies contribute to psychiatric distress.
The Problem with Current University Approaches
hrough the Mapping the Gaps project, we learned that many of the structures and processes of graduate education are inherently ableist (they discriminate against people with disabilities) and in particular, sanist (they discriminate against people with psychiatric disabilities or who experience what could be called mental distress, mental health problems, madness, or “mental disorders”). That is, the problems don’t lie within the individual students experiencing distress, they lie within the academic institutions themselves.
(Click to know more about our theoretical framework and the "Wellness Complex")
The Impact on Graduate Students
Many graduate students in our study felt pressure to meet unrealistic expectations of independence and productivity, which shaped their sense of belonging and success within the university. For students from marginalized backgrounds—including racialized students, international students, and those from low-income backgrounds—these challenges were compounded by overlapping forms of discrimination.
Students also experienced sanism, or discrimination against people with mental health disabilities, from their peers, supervisors, and the university system itself. While both students and some faculty members attempted to push back against these issues, their efforts were usually small-scale and personal, as larger institutional change felt impossible within a system that does not support collective resistance or advocacy.
Why This Matters
This study highlights how universities place the burden of mental health on students rather than addressing the broader systems that contribute to distress. Real change requires moving beyond individual solutions and focusing on institutional policies, funding structures, and cultural expectations that shape graduate student experiences.
Yet current solutions that are offered to students (self-care and “wellness” activities, individual therapy) are almost always individual solutions that ignore the broader institutions that are producing (or at minimum, greatly exacerbating) the real problems. In this resource, we’re taking a different approach that addresses structural barriesrs students face.
Our Team
Dr. Lori Ross, Dalla Lana School of Public Health, University of Toronto
Dr. Savitri Persaud, Department of Health & Society, University of Toronto
Walter Villanueva, Department of English, University of Toronto
Soumyaa Subramanium, Dalla Lana School of Public Health, University of Toronto
Dr. Fady Shanouda, Feminist Institute of Social Transformation, Carleton University
Dr. Merrick Pilling, School of Disability Studies, Toronto Metropolitan University
Lucy Costa, Empowerment Council
Dr. Kendra-Ann Pitt, Department of Behavioural Sciences, University of the West Indies
Dr. Jijian Voronka, Department of Interdisciplinary Studies & Critical Studies, University of Windsor
What You Will Find in This Guide
Resources for organizing
Panel Discussion
Click to hear → Resistance to Sanism in the University: Past, Present and Future
Promotional Materials
Feel free to download and share our posts to help spread the word!