Uddhav studies the health of academics at EU GREEN universities

As a PhD student split between two EU GREEN universities, Uddhav Khakurel will have the opportunity to explore two different work cultures while conducting research in the field he is passionate about – occupational health science.

Originally from Nepal, Uddhav Khakurel has long had a keen interest in occupational health and the factors that influence people's physical and mental health in the workplace.

He has a background in public health with a bachelor's degree in the subject from Nepal and a master's degree in global health with a specialization in epidemiology from the Norwegian University of Science and Technology (NTNU).

– While studying my master's degree in Norway, I conducted research, together with colleagues, on the work environment of nurses during the COVID-19 pandemic. It was a period of high stress for that professional group and I investigated what factors made them choose to stay in the profession. I have worked in academia for several years and have seen what a stressful job it can be as well, so it is interesting to investigate further.

Exploring academia in two places

Uddhav is now employed as a doctoral student in a so-called cotutelle program within EU GREEN, which means that the position is shared between the University of Gävle and Université Angers in France. He will spend 1.5 years in Gävle now and then 1.5 years in France, after which he will come back to Gävle and finish his PhD here.

– It feels like an exciting opportunity to explore academia at two different universities. I get to learn about different cultures and see differences in how people work in different places. It feels like there are very different working cultures and this particular opportunity offered by EU GREEN is an important part of globalisation.

"The arrangement works well"

During his time in Gävle, he will begin to conduct a systematic overview and a digital survey with employees at universities within EU GREEN, to investigate what risks exist in the work environment, what policy documents exist, what differences exist between the universities in terms of working methods, flexibility and how this affects the physical and mental health of employees. He also hopes to see what improvements could be made.

Uddhav has a main supervisor and a secondary supervisor at each university and they are in regular contact.

– The arrangement is working well so far and my colleagues are helpful and listen to my ideas. It's exciting to meet new cultures and for me it doesn't matter where I am as long as I have good people around me.

Text: Anna Sällberg