Long waiting times exceeding 7 months for psychotherapy represent a general problem ( Cavanagh, 2014 Beck et al., 2015). The waiting time for psychotherapy treatment or psychological counseling for non-urgent problems, such as stress associated with studies, is often between 8 and 16 weeks, and some students cannot afford it financially if there is a charge for the service. The capacity of university advisory services to help students is often limited by the number of sessions. A negative relationship between the low mental health of students and their academic performance has been documented ( Mortier et al., 2015). Almost half of them experience severe stress-related symptoms, and 5–10% of them report suicidal ideation during their studies ( Dyrbye et al., 2006). Alarming results have been repeatedly documented, especially among medical students ( Dahlin et al., 2005 Dyrbye and Shanafelt, 2016). Research suggests that, at any given time, 20–25% of students are stressed ( Kumaraswamy, 2013), and 50% of students may experience stress in the form of anxiety and depression ( Regehr et al., 2013). The study affirms that mindfulness-based interventions can be effectively delivered in an eHealth form to university students.Ĭurrent research and clinical experience show that the time of university study can be a life period of heightened psychological distress for some students ( Garlow et al., 2008 Bewick et al., 2010 Keyes et al., 2012). One new result is the observation of an eMBP effect ( pη 2 = 0.27) on the decrease in attributed importance to the quality-of-life components replicated in two consecutive runs of the program. A small effect size was found in the frequency of using a cognitive reappraisal strategy ( pη 2 = 0.073). The students who completed the eMBP reported a reduction of perceived stress with a large effect size ( pη 2 = 0.42) as well as a decrease of negative affect experience frequency and intensity ( pη 2 = 0.31), an increase of being mindful in their life (Five Facet Mindfulness Questionnaire subscales: pη 2 = 0.21, 0.27, 0.25, 0.28, 0.28), and a higher rate of self-compassion ( pη 2 = 0.28) with a medium effect size. The results of the presented pilot study confirmed that eMBP is a feasible and effective tool in university students’ mental health support. We assessed the program’s effect on mindful experiencing, perceived stress, emotion regulation strategies, self-compassion, negative affect, and quality of life. We designed an 8-week online mindfulness-based program (eMBP) combining a face-to-face approach, text, audio, video components, and support psychotherapy principles with a unique intensive reminder system using the Facebook Messenger and Slack applications in two separate runs ( N = 692). The development of new preventive and intervention programs to support well-being in university students is a fundamental challenge for mental health professionals. University study can be a life period of heightened psychological distress for many students. Anne’s University Hospital, Brno, Czechia 4First Department of Neurology, Faculty of Medicine, Masaryk University and St.3Department of Psychology, Faculty of Arts, Masaryk University, Brno, Czechia.2Department of Psychology and Psychosomatics, Faculty of Medicine, Masaryk University, Brno, Czechia.1Department of Psychiatry, Faculty of Medicine, Masaryk University, Brno, Czechia.Miroslav Světlák 1,2*, Pavla Linhartová 1, Terezia Knejzlíková 1,2, Jakub Knejzlík 2, Barbora Kóša 2, Veronika Horníčková 3, Kristýna Jarolínová 3, Klaudia Lučanská 3, Alena Slezáčková 2,3 and Rastislav Šumec 2,4

Being mindful