Effects of coaching on wellbeing, perception of inclusion, and study-interest

The current study aimed to investigate the influence of an evidence-based coaching intervention on students’ wellbeing, perception of inclusion and study-interest, among 93 first year social work students (aged­ 16–24) in the Netherlands. The coaching intervention that was implemented was based on the REGROW model. A pre-test-intervention-post-test design with two conditions was employed. The experimental condition (n = 47) received coaching from their mentor between pre-test and post-test, while the control condition (n = 46) received regular academic career counselling from their mentor. The results indicate that coaching has a positive effect on students’ emotional wellbeing, but not on psychological and social wellbeing, perception of inclusion and study-interest. In addition, it was found that students’ evaluation of the coaching trajectory is predictive of their emotional wellbeing, specifically in relation to relatedness and pressure. In vocational education, coaching seems to be a valuable addition to academic career counselling. A structured practical coach model, such as the REGROW model, potentially combined with a coach card, could help implementing coaching in vocational education.