The role of the Open Office is to support and advise all students (undergraduate, graduate, and postgraduate) during their time at Modul University Vienna (MU). Students may approach the Open Office academic mentors with questions and concerns related to their studies and/or personal issues, such as:
- Improving academic performance;
- Choosing a study program or continuing higher education beyond their current program;
- Accommodating special needs;
- Resolving challenges with lecturers, thesis supervisors/supervision, etc.;
- Adhering to academic standards, e.g., plagiarism, and discussion by the Semester Conference;
- Balancing academic and work life;
- Adapting to life at the university and in Vienna;
- Coping with anxiety and stress;
- Study planning and time management (e.g., workload planning, exam preparation strategies).
Together with the Deans and IDEC, the Open Office is a key stakeholder in the Special Needs Process. The academic mentor is a member of the Special Needs Committee throughout the student’s academic journey at MU. Where appropriate, the Open Office can also guide students to other relevant support structures and services.
The Open Office supports the low-performing undergraduate students identified by the Dean of the undergraduate degree programs. The assigned academic mentor contacts their mentees at the beginning of the semester and invites them for a meeting. It is a voluntary meeting, and mentees decide whether they need a meeting or not. For low-performing students, the academic mentor helps in planning their semester and functions as their informant in the Semester Conference if mentees allow them to share relevant information.
In all its functions, the Open Office safeguards the mentees’ confidentiality in line with MU policies (with exceptions only where there is an immediate risk of harm and/or a legal obligation to disclose). The Open Office provides support and guidance, but it does not replace professional medical, psychological, or legal services.