Canadian Campus Wellbeing Survey (CCWS)

The Canadian Campus Wellbeing Survey (CCWS) is a national survey that is coordinated by the University of British Columbia. The survey covers nine core sections related to student health and wellbeing. The nine core sections are mental health assets, mental health deficits, student experience, health service utilization, physical health/health behaviours, academic achievement, substance use, food security, and sexual health behaviours.

The questions in the survey are from well-established surveys often used in Canadian populations. However, there is a potential that some questions focused on mental health may spark uncomfortable feelings. There are two questions related to suicide risk within the last year. The survey will include information on local mental health support and resources provided at Durham College.

In appreciation for participating, we will enter all students who participate in the survey for a chance to win one of ten $100 gift cards. Once you start the survey, you will be automatically entered into the draw for a gift card, even if you skipped some questions. If you are the winner of a gift card, we will have access to your name and contact information to notify you. We will not have access to the information you answered in the survey. We will contact the prize draw winner approximately one week after survey closure.

Student wellbeing encompasses factors that affect mental and physical health. Your wellbeing has a significant effect on your post-secondary experience at Durham College and it is a priority for Durham College. This survey is one way in which we will monitor our progress in implementing our goals and values. Overarching survey results and themes will be used to inform service delivery at Durham College.

Your participation in this study is voluntary. It is your choice to be part of this study or not. You may choose whether you would like to participate and skip any questions that you prefer not to answer or stop at any time.

If you volunteer to participate in this study, we ask you to take approximately 15-20 minutes to complete an online survey.

You are participating in this study confidentially. We will not use your name or other information that would allow you to be identified in any reports. To enter your name into the draw for the gift cards, we will provide you with a unique URL. This URL is linked to your e-mail address to enter your name into the draw only. The only people who can link this URL to students’ emails is the survey team at Durham College. After you submit your data, it will be de-identified (unique URL removed) and added to a research database. This means that your survey responses will not be linked to your name. Results of the survey will be reported in aggregated form only, without identifying individual students. No part of your response to the survey will become part of your student record. Both the CCWS team and Durham College will be able to access the de-identified data. However, at no point can your responses be linked to you by the CCWS team or Durham College. De-identified survey results may be shared online on the Durham College website and with community partners to demonstrate Durham College student needs and gaps in services. Your data may also be made available to researchers or third-party organizations for research-related purposes.

By starting this survey you are giving your informed consent to the collection of the information in the Canadian Campus Wellbeing Survey. Your data will be anonymously stored in a data registry. The data registry is solely under the custodianship of the CCWS analysts and may only be accessed through case-level datasets prepared by CCWS analysts for approved researchers and third-parties for research purposes.

Data are stored securely and hosted in Canada and are encrypted at rest. Files and data will be transferred using UBC's Microsoft OneDrive. MS OneDrive allows users to securely store, share, and synchronize files and folders from anywhere at any time. OneDrive complies with Provincial and UBC security requirements.

 Students can visit the CCWS Data Removal Request website at https://ubc.ca1.qualtrics.com/jfe/form/SV_56cl7d92RKIYkfk to request the removal of their survey responses from the dataset. Please note that you only have the option to do this before the survey closes, at which point the data is collected and processed. Participants who withdraw their data will still be eligible for the prize draw.

Your participation is important as it will provide crucial feedback to Durham College about your experiences, and will help shape the programs, services and initiatives that support you and other students to succeed at Durham College and beyond. It will also allow us to compare Durham College students’ experiences with the experiences of students attending other post-secondary institutions.

• If you have questions about the survey, please contact the CCWS at survey@ccws-becc.ca 

• More information about the CCWS is available at https://www.ccws-becc.ca/  

• CCWS research database: If you have any concerns or complaints about your rights as a research participant and/or your experiences while participating in this study, contact the Research Participant Complaint Line in the UBC Office of Research Ethics at 604-822-8598 or if long distance e-mail RSIL@ors.ubc.ca or call toll free 1-877-822-8598.  

• If you have any questions about the survey at Durham College, please contact:

  Jennifer Elliott
  CCWS-2026@durhamcollege.ca 

• This study has been reviewed and received ethics clearance through the Durham College Research Ethics Board, application #312-2425. If you have questions regarding your rights as a research participant in this study, please contact:
  

  Megan Parker
  Research Ethics Board
  Durham College
  2000 Simcoe St. N.
  Oshawa, Ontario  L1H 7K4
  reb@durhamcollege.ca 

Your mental health is important to us. If you are experiencing a mental health emergency, please call 911 or go to your nearest emergency department for assistance.