Dr Meha Pande
Wellbeing Adviser (Postgraduates)
Meha has been a part of university life since 2006, first as a student and subsequently by taking on academic and student support roles.
Originally from New Delhi, India where she completed her Honours, Masters and MPhil in English literature, she came to St Andrews in 2016 to pursue doctoral studies and graduated from the School of English with a doctorate in the field of photography and nineteenth century literature.
She has worked in various teaching positions in the University in India as well as in St. Andrews. Her diverse teaching experience has enabled her to interact and support undergraduate and postgraduate students across a range of socio-cultural environments.
She joined Student Services in 2016 as Assistant Warden in David Russell Apartments and moved on to the role of Deputy Warden in the same hall, and then Warden in McIntosh & Andrew Melville Halls. She also worked as Halls Life Coordinator until May 2021 and co-ordinated various events and activities focused on the five ways to wellbeing for students in halls. These roles have allowed her to acquire a close understanding of student life and life in halls. It has also provided her a substantial experience in handling complex circumstances and managing crisis situations out of hours.
Meha became a part of the Wellbeing team in December 2020 and works alongside her colleagues in the wellbeing, counselling, and mental health teams.
In her wellbeing sessions, she works towards supporting postgraduate students experiencing any kind of difficulties. These range from but are not limited to guidance on managing deadlines, handling research anxiety, offering practical tips and measures to attain a balanced lifestyle, suggestions on effectively striking a balance between research and writing, creating a workable plan of action to achieve goals, advise on pastoral and academic issues, and making referrals to other services wherever appropriate.
Through her own university experience, Meha understands the challenges which come with higher education and how they can often have a bearing on mental health and wellbeing.
Having been an international student in the university, she also has the first-hand experience of the unique complexities that Postgraduate students, particularly those have travelled a long way from diverse cultures to be in St Andrews, may experience in their time. She looks forward to offering support and guidance to postgraduate student population as they navigate their way through university life.